With a strong interest in child welfare, there was no question that my interview with a social worker would involve someone who is involved in this area of practice. I did a small amount of internet research and discovered the All Nations Coordinated Response Network (ANCR) in Winnipeg.
I discovered that within the Child and Family Services system this agency is generally the first point of contact. With an interest in front line work, I decided to make contact with this agency in hopes of scheduling an interview.I made a phone call to ANCR and spoke to a receptionist with the agency about what I was looking to accomplish. I was more specific than I had originally planned and requested a recent graduate for the interview if possible. I did this in hopes of gaining a better insight of what a career will be like when I, myself am completed university. I was told I would receive a call back within a few days and was excited when I heard from Sophia, a 2011 Bachelor of Social Work graduate from the University of Manitoba.
When I spoke with her, I knew she was exactly the person that I wanted to interview. Not only was she working in a career which I am interested in, she was fairly new to this agency but also had experience with another organization that worked with children and their families. I was very interested in hearing her responses and points of view being that she was new to social work practice only a few years ago. Sophia explained to me her current position was a child abuse investigator and her prior position was a family group conference coordinator.With so many options in social work practice, I was very curious as to how she decided what she wanted to do and what prompted her to move from one agency to another.
In speaking with Sophia, I asked her what would work best for her to complete this interview as I knew that she may not have much time to dedicate to me. She told me she was currently quite busy writing reports which she was given time for, although she said she often still found herself taking at least some of it home. She suggested that I email her the questions I had come up with so she could look them over and jot down some answers so she was somewhat prepared.She advised me that she would give me the notes she made and that I could call her if anything else came up. Sophia also advised that I may come up with more questions as I await the interview or as we were doing the interview, and she would be more than happy to answer those as well.
We decided on meeting a week from the day I sent her the interview questions, this way she was able to take some time with my questions before we met. We decided on an hour during her lunch break at a small coffee shop in the area and I told her I was looking forward to the interview.I suggested I would follow up with her the day before the interview to make sure that the day we had chosen still worked for her and she agreed. With that, I hung up and within a few days, sent the interview questions to the email she had provided. For some reason, I felt nervous as soon as I sent the questions to Sophia. I decided to contact my friend Sarah, who had just completed two interviews in her first year of social work at the University of Manitoba for some pointers and to get prepared.
She told me the most important thing for me to do would be research the agency in as much detail as possible so I can fully understand what is being said in the interview. I did just that and went over the ANCR website from top to bottom including the portions that I had already read. Sarah also said I should think about how I was conducting the interview and to act as though I was the one being interviewed. She told me to focus on maintaining eye contact, keep an open posture, and ensure effective listening skills.
I felt that these tips from Sarah were a huge aid in my preparation as I really did not know what to expect or how to act. I thought it was a very good way to look at the interview, in that it could be somewhere that I would like to do a placement and I may be on the receiving end of questions if this was the case. If I presented myself in the most professional and knowledgeable manner, it may be beneficial to obtaining a placement with this agency if I decided to pursue it. With these tips from Sarah, my nerves had relaxed a little and a couple more questions came to my mind.I knew I would be ready for the interview. When it came to the interview, I decided to ask Sophia questions about what it was like to be in social work practice.
Some of the questions I posed were: What are the challenges and rewards of social work, what do you feel to be major successes in your fieldwork and how did you achieve these, what would you define as the primary purpose of social work practice, do you have a most memorable case you have worked on, what would you change about the system and why, and is there any advice you have for someone just starting out in a social work career?In response, Sophia told me she felt that it was a great reward to see even the smallest positive change when working with a family or community but challenges could be the exact opposite, working endlessly to advocate for change and not seeing, or being disappointed with the result. In her fieldwork she feels that the reward of being part of any small positive changes are all her successes and with this, she knows she is doing what she set out to accomplish in social work practice. As a definition of social work provides much confusion for myself, I was set on finding out how Sophia felt about the subject in general.As social work is a broad practice, Sophia agreed with Margolin (1997) in saying the effort to define social work almost always ends in the greatest muddle. Rather than trying to define the field of social work, she provided me with the definition of her own practice. Sophia believes that the primary purpose of her social work practice is working collaboratively with families, communities and stake holders to ensure the safety of all children while being sensitive to cultural differences.
Most memorable cases for Sophia are those where she is able to separate a child from an offender without removing the child from their home. She feels keeping families together while removing the oppressor is very important. Sophia would like to see more advocacy for funding towards prevention programs, keeping kids out of care and in their own communities and homes with proper resources to create a sustainable healthy environment where families are able to thrive. In closing the interview, I found that her advice to challenge myself and keep an open mind was very important.
She advised me that working or volunteering in areas I may be unsure of will help me learn what my preferences are, and that they may change throughout the course of schooling and placements. In completing this interview, I have come to understand how passionate many people in social work practice are about their work. I was very nervous to complete the interview but was relieved when I found asking only a few questions can generate so many different answers. It was not as nerve wracking as being interviewed for a job, which is what I had expected.
I ave found it very disheartening to often hear people say that social work helps people who do not want to help themselves such as through the writing of Carniol (1995) If government were to provide adequate aid the lowest-paid workers would quit their jobs and become eligible for public assistance. Having the opportunity to hear someone speak very positively about a system which I have heard many negative things about was very refreshing. It was nice to hear personal details about a career from a person and learn about the system first hand rather than to read a written interview and not have the personal contact.I feel that through completing the interview, I was much more engaged and had many more questions than I often do when completing a reading. Speaking with Sophia, I feel that I have enhanced my understanding of social work practice by broadening my perspective of what being a social worker in child welfare entails. Specifically, illustrating a clearer picture of what working life is like on a daily basis, as well as long term.
I have learned that working as a social worker in child welfare can be very stressful, fast paced, and have heavy caseloads thus developing excellent time management skills is essential.While there are many rewards to working in child welfare, I have learned that it may be frustrating when you don't see the results you want, which may happen often. Learning that within the field of social work practice you must take each day as it comes and stay motivated was very beneficial. I feel that before this interview I may have expected to see results right away, and Sophia kept stating that the positive outcomes are usually only very small changes.
Without this advice, I feel that I may not have understood why I was doing so much when the outcome was so little.I found it very valuable to learn that whether literally or figuratively, taking your work home will occur. Sophia advised that not only does she write reports at home, she often leaves work with cases on her mind that she just cannot stop thinking about. She told me that it is important to remember to take care of yourself which many people forget and often end up burnt out.
She says it may be difficult for those outside of social work practice to understand the role, so debriefing with colleagues who undergo the same stress can be helpful.Knowing who to connect with when looking to discuss stressful events is something I would not have thought of on my own and am grateful this was shared with me. Sophia also advised that working together with colleagues can boost your productivity. I feel it is valuable to know that working in collaboration with those around you in a positive manner will help you accomplish more.
As pointed out by Dubois and Krogsrud (2004) It is more likely that you'll do your best when you feel appreciated and supported by those with whom you work.It's more likely that you'll participate actively when you feel as though you're a part of the process, making a valuable contribution. Another important aspect that I took away from the interview was, which skills are most important to have in any social work practice, and how schooling and placements can help me perfect these skills. Learning that advocacy, providing resources, confidentiality, and case management are relatable to many social work practices allows me to focus in on these areas more in my studies and be better prepared when I go to work in a field placement.Dubois and Krogsrud (2004) indicate similarities in what social workers do as generalist practice. As there are so many topics to be covered, I have found it reassuring to know there are connecting similarities.
Knowing that you must be well-rounded was very important to me. Sophia also helped me understand that all of the writing done in university will help strengthen my written, oral, and problem solving skills which will be utilized daily in social work practice. Just when I thought I had too many questions, Sophia informed me that while she may not be able to answer all of the ones I had today, I should keep asking questions.She told me that she still asks questions and she hears others who have been in the field for much longer than her, asking many questions as well.
It was very reassuring to learn that asking questions is not seen as a sign of weakness, which is what I would have thought before this interview. It was nice to learn that others are unsure, just as I am. James (2010) indicates that many issues and concerns raised by students start with their own sense of themselves and their experiences as raced, gendered, and classed citizens. I feel that my own questions about myself re trying to lead me to who I will be as a social worker.
I have learned that being informed and knowledgeable will help in my confidence to ask any questions that I may happen to have. Overall, I feel that everything we spoke about was a great learning experience, although knowing I am in social work to serve, help, and encourage, not save people may be the lasting word I took away from my interview. When in practice, I may not receive thanks from those I am helping, however I, myself need to see the little changes that I have been a part of.
