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Tips for New Social Work Graduate (MSW) Students

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  Happy start of the school year! Perusing social media, I came across a NASW blog article called “Guide for the First Year Social Work Student”. This post provided lots of great information tailored for new undergraduate students interested in studying social work. I wanted to take that NASW post a bit farther and compile a list of tips specific to graduate students pursuing a masters in social work (MSW). In my opinion, graduate school is a completely different experience from undergraduate, so my hope is that these tips will serve to be beneficial. Tips for New Social Work Graduate (MSW) Students -Don’t worry about grades so much When I was in graduate school, one of my professors told a story about a straight A student who committed suicide several years after graduation. His point was that given the people we need to work with, we social workers need to focus less on being perfectionists (as demonstrated by obsessing over grades and test scores) and work on being empathetic an...
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Thank You, Jeanne Philips!

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While browsing one of my favorite social worker blogs, I ran across a post praising Jeanna Philips, also known as "Dear Abby", for defending the social work profession in her daily advice column. The text of the original article can be found here: Dear Abby

I can definitely relate to the "Melanie" discussed in the Dear Abby letter. As discussed in a previous post, I've been subject to many negative remarks from strangers, acquaintances, and even family members since graduating with my MSW. Reading something like today's Dear Abby column reminds me that there are people out there who actually appreciate the social work profession. Thank you, Jeanne Philips, for brightening my day!

Comments

  1. LisaJune 22, 2011 at 8:14 AM

    I'm glad you became a social worker, too. ;) I find I have a hard time with the comments that you describe here, and also with comments that discriminate against the people I work with. Don't know how many sighs I've supressed or how many bite marks my tongue has endured. But what can I say? I love what we do. ;)

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  2. Cheap Social WorkerJune 22, 2011 at 8:53 PM

    Lisa,

    Thanks for reading my blog and for your kind words! Indeed, there are many times I've had to resist the urge to respond to my family and acquaintances. I can only hope that someday, more people will come to respect the social worker profession as they learn more about what we do. In the meantime, I can promote the profession by doing my job to the best of my ability!

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Tips for New Social Work Graduate (MSW) Students

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