What Do You Think About MSWs? (Masters in Social Work)

Probably because social workers don’t get paid all that well and in obtaining a masters you will no doubt come out of school with quite a bill to pay. If you can afford it (like you have a inheritence that will take care of it or you have a scholarship that will pay most of it) than do what you love. Social work isn’t for everyone either. You need a strong stomach to deal with some of the low lifes you will have to deal with in order to protect the innocent.
I think its an extremely stressful job but some people are made for it. I’ve known some people who where in it and got out because it was warping their ideas about people.
Not just the crud they dealt with but it was making them paranoid about everyones motives.
You need to have a level head and a realistic view of the world for this profession to work for you.

I haven’t had good experiences with social workers. But those particular people were employees of the government. They broke the law they were employed to uphold, and mistreated me and my family. So for me, it put a really bad taste in my mouth.

But I try to have an open mind, because I know that not all people are like that. Nevertheless, I’m cautious.

The field of social work is quite broad, and there are social workers practicing in both the public and private sectors. You could become an LCSW, which requires two years post-graduate study after a MSW. The ones I personally know who are in private practice, one does adoption placements, another works as a liaison between hospitals and nursing homes, one works with young adults with additions, and another works with schizophrenics. They all seem to earn a better than average income.

I’ve had great experiences with LCSWs as therapists. There is obviously a drying up of funds right now for public programs so jobs in government agencies will be probably be very tight for a while. For objective information on the career and future outlook you can check out the Occupational Outlook Handbook, at this site, put out by the government.

Honestly, I would probably call someone with a doctorate.

So your general feeling toward Social Workers is mixed or leaning toward negative?

No. Some counselors hold MSW. If I were looking for a counselor I would probably only call those with doctorate degrees.