Essay Sample on Master of Social Work: Pursuing a Career in Care Specialist

Introduction

I am enthusiastic about applying for a Master of Social Work since I firmly believe that it will increase my career opportunities as a care specialist. As an undergraduate, I pursued a vigorous curricular in this field, with a concentration of social, political, and economic justice happening in society. These studies provided me with a chance to develop a better understanding of the social issues that children and other members of the community face on a day to day basis. It was through these classes that I got interested in social work and discovered my passion for serving and proving care to all types of people in the community

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Pursuing a Master of Social Work will help me anticipate and prepare for challenges that I may encounter in my professional life. It will lay the basis and foundation for my future as an accommodating and helpful member of society. My educational advancements will present chances for me to work in partnership with a group of professionals committed to social justice and enhancing the quality of life of people that are impacted by social disadvantages such as poverty, discrimination, and unemployment. Nevertheless, social work training will provide a comprehensive knowledge base not only during my professional career but also in navigating everyday experiences.

Poverty and Its Relationship to Social, Political and Economic Justice

One of the critical detrimental social issues in the world is poverty. It is the source of most social vices happening in society, like drug abuse and crime (Bouzarovski, 2018). Drug abuse and misconduct have adverse effects on families, which are the backbone of society.

Drug abuse affects many families since it leads to family disputes and people getting locked up in correctional facilities, which distorts interpersonal family relationships.

There is a good relationship between poverty and political injustice. On most occasions, people of color face racial discrimination in society. Most people, especially those from high socioeconomic status, believe that minority groups should not get considered as part of the community. It is the sole reason why people of color get discriminated against in most development projects planned by politicians and the government. It, in turn, increases poverty levels in society. The National Association of Social Workers' (NASW) has a code of ethics that shields all social workers against biases and discrimination (Code of Ethics, 2020). A social worker must follow the NASW code of ethics and provide care to all the members of the society irrespective of their race, gender, or color.

The relationship between poverty and social injustice get attributed to the lack of employment opportunities and access to affordable education. The primary reason most people are poor is the lack of empowerment, and a means to earn a living since there are scarce employment opportunities in society. However, a social worker must follow the NASW code of ethics and help poor people meet their essential basic needs and requirements (Reamer, 2006). Social workers have a responsibility to help the poor in society, generate and implement ideas on how they can earn a living to help them meet their basic human needs.

Poverty is related to social injustices that people face in society (Dorling, 2018). When a community has low resources, incidences of discrimination and biases arise. However, following the NASW code of ethics, social workers must not succumb to such pressures (Code of Ethics, 2020). Social workers must be just and treat everyone in society with respect.

Significant Experiences and Challenges in School and Work

When I was undertaking my degree in child welfare, I got privileged to interact and work with several kids from a specific welfare institution. I got some of the best first-hand experiences socializing and working since it was not the same as working with the youth in the church. The significant difference was that these kids were innocent, helpless, doubtful about their lives, and most had already given up hope in life. It challenged me to get determined to impact their lives through guidance and counseling positively. I motivated and encouraged the kids to have high self-esteem, which was the best gift and solution I could offer. After a few months, I had positively transformed most of the kid's mindset. It was the best experience since most of them began taking their schoolwork more seriously and got more determined about getting successful in life.

I encountered a myriad of problems while working with these kids. Some of them were not willing to listen and did not care about our social works. I used a humane approach to accessing and communicating with the kids. It involved passively listening to them speak of their feelings. Most of these kids were depressed, mentally disturbed, and did not have social counselors. I created a safe space where all the kids could share their emotional and social problems. After a while, I gained their trust, and they began listening and following my instructions. I had positively impacted most of the kid's lives, which gave me much satisfaction.

Comfort in Upholding Ethical Principles

As a social worker, I must uphold ethical principles and morals. It involves discouraging any form of discrimination or biases when providing social care services. I am comfortable in equally treating people from diverse communities irrespective of their social-economic backgrounds. I head a group comprising of youths from different ethnic groups, races, and genders. I always feel comfortable working with them since their cultural diversity makes the group strong and flourish. The cultural diversity in the group allows the youths to share ideas, emotions, and knowledge, which is always a learning experience.

Challenges experienced in my effort to uphold ethical principles included handling parent's complaints, mainly when the group engaged in certain activities that were not acceptable in their culture. I addressed this issue by trying to understand and familiarize myself with what was acceptable in different cultures. I ensured that I only allocated them tasks that did not violate their customs and believes. I followed all the ethical principles and incorporated all youths in the group.

The Culture of Humility Among Social Workers

The primary relationship between cultural humility and social work is that social workers have the responsibility to treat all individuals with respect irrespective of their ethnic backgrounds, language, and race (Danso, 2018). As a professional social worker, I understand the importance of cultural humility and the need to follow ethical principles. The culture of humility among social workers gets based on the ethical principles and morals which distinguish between right and wrong. It implies that social workers must follow a specific code of ethics.

Integrity is an essential ethical principle that I must uphold in offering social services. It involves being honest and having strong moral principles. When engaging with youths from my church, I encourage them always to have strong morals. I have created a platform that helps youths to commit to being truthful and honest amongst each other, which ensures success and happiness in life. Integrity attracts responsibility and mutual respect amongst members of the youth group, which ensures they accept each other for who they are, even when they do not share the same opinions or beliefs. I believe that when integrity values get instilled in the youth, social vices like corruption and embezzlement of public funds get mitigated. It improves a nation's economy and empowers its citizens.

I always uphold justice and fairness since I ensure equal treatment and provision of services in my youth group. I always ensure to incorporate people from different social backgrounds and make them feel comfortable within the group. I have created a safe space where they can join and benefit from my leadership skills and experiences. I have a better understanding of cultural humility since I am willing to incorporate people from different cultures in my group. I always lead by example and uphold the ethical principles by adhering to the social worker code of ethics and regulations. I have created a platform where youths are free to air out their views without getting discriminated against or judged. Every youth has a right to participate in my youth group. I want all youths to understand that their voice matters and be confident in sharing their opinions. It is an imperative approach to eradicating poverty in society since it develops leadership skills. It teaches them strong values at a young age, which ensures they grow into moral and respectable people in the community. Creating a platform where youths from different cultures can exchange ideas will eradicate discrimination-related issues. I am confident that working with these youths and teaching them ethical values will reduce cases of discrimination in the next generation. It will boost their courage and esteem levels, making them vocal in addressing social injustices and challenges affecting the society.

My Work Plan

With existing pressures to maintain a complete balance between my graduate course work and enjoying my college experience, at times, life can get overwhelming. When I commence the Master of Social Work, I will have to adjust my schedule so that I can balance school work, personal life, and work life. My priority will be to spend 36 hours at the practicum site. I will have to reschedule my working hours to work in the afternoons. I will spend all the morning hours at the practicum site. I am planning on enrolling for evening classes since most of the day time will get spent at work. I will keep an updated schedule that will ensure I have a sustainable plan for work and school assignments due. In particular, on Sundays, I will take care of my personal life, which includes spending time and socializing with friends and family before my busy schedule commences on Monday. With this work plan, I am confident that I will balance all the aspects of my life and still achieve my work and educational goals.

References

Bouzarovski, S. (2018). Understanding energy poverty, vulnerability, and justice. In Energy Poverty (pp. 9-39). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. Retrieved 28 January 2020, from https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/181961/1/978-3-319-69299-9.pdf.

Danso, R. (2018). Cultural competence and cultural humility: A critical reflection on key cultural diversity concepts. Journal of Social Work, 18(4), (pp.410-430). Retrieved 28 January 2020, from https://www.deepdyve.com/lp/sage/cultural-competence-and-cultural-humility-a-critical-reflection-on-key-RRtNPEUQpj.

Dorling, D. (2018). Challenging injustice: the importance of collective ownership of the social policy. Retrieved 28 January 2020, from http://www.dannydorling.org/wp-content/files/dannydorling_publication_id6697.pdf.

Code of Ethics. (2020). Code of Ethics Retrieved 28 January 2020, from https://www.socialworkers.org/about/ethics/code-of-ethics/code-of-ethics-english.

Reamer, F. G. (2006). Ethical standards in social work: A review of the NASW code of ethics. Washington, DC: NASW Press. ISBN: 978-0-87101-530-3.