When it comes to the question of why one should study social work, my answer will always be helping people. The feeling that I am here for people can fulfil me and gives me much more than sitting in an office behind a pile of papers.
Since childhood I have loved being in contact with people. So when I wanted to choose a job that would be fulfilling and also give me joy, working with people was the most suitable choice. In the beginning, I thought I would devote myself to helping people only in my free time, but university studies in this field changed my thinking in many ways, and I decided on social work as a full-time career.
The essence of a social worker’s profession is working with people to address their hopeless situations. The social worker and client together assess the client’s life situation, experiences, and the problems that trouble them, and especially the reasons that led them into their current situation. The next step is, in an ideal case, proposing possible ways to solve this situation and improve the client’s quality of life in various areas.
From my perspective, encouraging clients toward a proper attitude toward life and socially appropriate behavior is very satisfying, especially when it succeeds and a person gets back on the right track.
A social worker tries to solve problems together with the client, which is why it involves intensive cooperation. During consultations, clients learn from the social worker how to develop their skills and solve emerging problems, and they also learn responsibility for their own social initiative. Some clients do not realize their strengths and positive qualities that they could use either in their work or when interacting with people in everyday situations. That is why the social worker tries to motivate the client to discover these strengths and learn how to use them. I believe that for every social worker, as for me, it is rewarding to observe a client moving forward, even if only in small steps. Each such step is a signal to me and to other workers that we are doing our work well. It is there that we find the meaning of our work. Our goal is to help improve the client’s living conditions and to develop or improve social relationships in the social environment.
Studying social work not only motivated me to become a full social worker; it prepared me mainly for that role. The role of a social worker carries a deeper meaning, and therefore the quality of this work should be reflected not only in professional knowledge but above all in practical experience. A person in this position can develop intellectually or personally. They develop practical knowledge and skills they can use with future clients. Even in the role of a social worker, a person must keep learning. Every day brings new clients and with them new experiences.
What qualities should a social worker have? Their personal profile should not be missing initiative and dynamism. These are exactly the qualities that help a social worker seek new possibilities for solving a client’s problems. In the first place, one must have an interest in people, in their individual destinies and problems, while having an unbroken willingness to help. Acting reliably, openly, and respecting clients’ privacy is also among the competencies of a social worker.
Currently, I mainly work with children who are in a disadvantaged situation and need the help of a social worker. Based on this work, I even established Občianske centrum Marienka for children, because working with the youngest gives me the most joy. Children are the most appreciative clients for me, and the greatest reward is their satisfied smile. Of course, this is not only work with a child, but to the same extent we also work with their parents or the people who spend the most time with the children.
It is worth noting that an important task is not only helping people who approach a social worker; it is also about finding people who need help. I need to stress that it is important to try to foster in the client support and the ability to manage their life independently and avoid falling into a disadvantaged environment. This means helping and motivating families to stay on a “normal level of functioning.” Involving such people in various activities is important, because many people have no idea about services that could help them even a little. For example, children who do not prepare enough for classes and skip lessons are not guided by their parents or motivated to achieve results. Their parents give them no prompts, and none come from the community in which they live.
Some people may need help but do not know how to seek it out. That is why it is important that the social worker also becomes deeply involved in finding such people and tries to find possible solutions to their current social situation together. Social workers closely cooperate with volunteers and support the operation of leisure educational activities for children or the creation of various centers. The goal is to involve as many people as possible in activities, because their own activity can change their subjective feeling that they are useless. Such people do not understand the world around them and are afraid to engage in new things; they suffer from a lack of life perspective and creativity.
I feel very good when I am helpful to my client and can see that the effort truly paid off. What motivates me are clients who come to thank me personally and talk about how things are going for them. These are the successes that fulfil me at work and motivate me for further progress and a greater desire to help.
In any case, I recommend studying social work, and for everyone interested in studying this field, I recommend Vysoká škola zdravotníctva a sociálnej práce sv. Alžbety. This school gives you not only theoretical knowledge but in the same measure practical life experience that you can later use in your work. In addition to the first two levels of study at this school, it is possible to continue later with doctoral studies if desired, as I have done myself.
Author: Mgr. Tímea Csikósová The author is a doctoral student at Vysoká škola zdravotníctva a sociálnej práce sv. Alžbety in Bratislava