Yeah, I'm a graduate student...I got my Bachelor's in Social Work with a minor in Psychology in 2009, and I'll be getting by Master's in Social Work in May with a Family Practice concentration (just because that's the most general that they have at my school) and an extra Gerontology Certificate.
I'm 28 but I've been slowed in finishing all of it because of some health issues (I'm fine now lol), but I hope for my career to be in either Health Care or Mental Health. I like a lot of areas; the only one I couldn't picture myself doing is Division of Family Services.
What do you do?
Hey, I think getting your MSW at 28 is pretty darn impressive! I was 28 before I took my first college class, and I really lament my late teens and those lost years of my 20s... I was incredibly unstable from about 16 to 21--lots of drug use and I was mostly homeless or transient--though when I turned 21, I landed a job at a factory, dialed my drug use back a bit, and found more stability than I'd ever had. A few people encouraged me to enroll in some college classes, and even though I had always been a good student throughout high school, those five years of living hard made me feel really alienated and not at all like I was capable of attending college. There was also my sexuality and gender expression to deal with, which had always made me a frequent target of verbal and physical abuse, and I was not eager to mix with large groups of strangers in an unfamiliar setting. Also, I was raised really working-class, and no one in my family has ever attended college, and my mom hadn't even graduated high school. So, working in a factory and being a Teamster felt really familiar and comfortable to me.
Still, when I turned 28, something shifted inside me, and I realized that even if I never wanted a "fancy career" and was content being a laborer for the rest of my life, I was still really curious about the world and "thirsty for knowledge" as they say. Some folks can self-educate, but I had hit a wall trying to do that and was finally ready to try out this college thing. So, I took a few classes, stuck with it, and somehow ended up with a master's degree in history. Still, I'm squirrely as hell, and being out in "the world" is not at all comfortable for me, so, I work from home, copy-editing and proofreading dissertations and journal articles (it's good to be near two big universities), and writing the occasional encyclopedia article. I struggle financially, do not have health insurance, and have to admit that I feel a little annoyed with myself for having these (mostly) self-imposed limitations that have most likely kept me from living up to my full potential...
And I still miss the factory work, to tell the truth, and when the editing is slow, I think of going back to the floor, but those jobs are disappearing, especially in Michigan, and I'm older and in worse shape than ever, and, so, I think my factory rat days are behind me...
Anyway.
So, the Family Practice route is a smart way to go--opens lots of different doors for you, yes? When you say "Health Care", do you mean in a medical setting, like a hospital? My girlfriend just got her PhD in psychology and is finishing up a post-doc fellowship at a hospital. Seems to me that there is a definite need for people like you in hospitals and health care settings, who are trained to recognize the ways that mental, physical, and environmental factors can affect well-being. I may get clobbered for saying this, but I don't think doctors are the most competent when it comes to recognizing the impact of psychosocial factors on health. So, whether its for counseling, health education, crisis intervention, or "just" case management, I think there is a huge need for social workers in health care settings.
My friends who have MSWs do a variety of things: one runs the Washtenaw County Big Brothers/Big Sisters; two run Ozone House, a local youth shelter; one works for Fair Housing Michigan; one works for the state, doing case work; one teaches social work at University of Michigan. So. But the thing they all seem to have in common is this desire to make differences in the lives of people who are struggling, to help people achieve self-sufficiency and stability, and to honor the common humanity that connects us all. The Social Workers I know are some of the most compassionate, open-minding, non-judgmental people I've ever met, and I'm really glad to have met you and to be able to add another super hero to my collection
