This assignment is to help you to learn from an actual social worker in the field what social work is all about. The person has to have a degree in Social Work, not a related field. Locate someone you know already who is a social worker or contact a local agency you are interested in knowing about and ask for the social worker to schedule an interview. Plan ahead to set the date. They are busy people. Set up a time for a face to face interview. Upon your interview ask them the following questions. If they give you really short answers, use your probing skills and ask them to elaborate on it and get more content for you to write about.
Interview Questions
- What degree do you have? What level of licensure do you have?
- What does your daily schedule/routine consist of?
- What is your job description and responsibilities? Ask them to be specific and describe them.
- What intake/assessment forms do you complete on clients? Ask for a copy. Ask them to explain them the form and what are the specific areas they ask information on from the clients.
- What role do you play with the other staff? List how they interact with each one and how they serve their client through that interaction.
- Do you have team meetings to discuss clients? If so what is your role in those meetings? How do you advocate for your clients there?
- What are the biggest needs of your clients? Ask them to explain these in detail.
- What resources do you use for your client’s needs? Who do you make referrals to and for what services? Ask them to specifically name and describe these programs and agencies they refer clients to.
- What social work skills do you primarily use from generalist social work practice with your clients?
- How does the systems perspective help you assess your client?
- What cultural competency knowledge and skills are needed with your clients?
- When you apply the strengths perspective to your clients, what key things do you look for and get them to see as strengths for change?
- What specific knowledge did you need to learn about your job or your client population to work with them?
- What do you see as the best way to engage clients on their first visit to see you?
- What is your biggest challenge in doing social work?
- What is your biggest reward for doing social work?
- Share one ethical situation you have been in with a client and how you managed it.
- Identify one thing that you learned on the job and was not taught in college?
- What are some things you wish you were taught in your social work program in college that would have helped you to be more prepared for social work?
- What is your advice for being an effective social worker?
At the beginning identify who you interviewed and what agency they work for. Describe your interest in picking this person and describe your visit.
Use the questions from the interview as your outline. State the question in bold print by itself and then in a healthy full paragraph under the question write the interview response given to you. Double space your tying.
After the interview questions, write one paragraph identifying and explaining at least three textbook terms that connect to the questions and response given in the interview.
Write a conclusion paragraph summarizing the main points you learned about doing social work from your interview. Highlight the most significant information you learned from your interview.
Layout:
In the opening paragraph, introduce the name of the person you interviewed. Give their title/position. Briefly explain what they do at the agency. Identify the agency they work for and what what that agency does.
Use the questions as your subheading. Then write a full paragraph explaining their response. If they give you short answers, ask them “Can you tell me more about that?” or “Can you expand on that please?”
Type it double a cover page.
