What sort of education/training do you need in order to work for CPS?

Each agency has it’s own requirements. There are several levels of employment from the office clerk to the department supervisor and they each have different levels of education. I suggest you contact your local agency and ask them.

I’m looking at the state of Michigan.

@Jude CPS? Child protective services?

@wilma Yes.

An MSW?

You might find some information here.
My sister works for an intermediate school system and she has a MSW.
I’m not sure what you could do with less than that.

In Westchester County NY you need a Bachelor’s in any subject.

Maybe some child development courses to earn a certificate in?

Hi. My sister works for CPS. Granted, we’re in New York, but maybe I can help nonetheless. She has a BA in Sociology (but I don’t think a Sociology background was part of the requirements in any way) and no related work background. She took a civil service exam in the subject of health and social work and scored very well. I’m pretty sure that has a lot to do with why she was hired. She wasn’t trained for the job until after she was hired. She’s been going through a months-long training sequence in which she went to a training workshop put on by the CPS every other week and shadowed current CPS workers on the off-weeks. She loves her job. Good luck!

Mariah’s description was exactly what we had to do in Westchester County NY.