Social Workers are professional helpers who assist individuals in improving their quality of life and attempt to change society to support all individuals’ growth and well being.

Social workers are interested in understanding and assisting individuals and environments! Social work focuses on human development, relationships and interactions with the social environment.

Social Workers work at all levels: individuals, families, small groups, organizations and communities!

The profession of social work has its own body of knowledge, code of ethics, practice standards, credentials, state licensing, and a nationwide system of accredited education programs. Avila University’s Social Work Program is one of these accredited education programs, and has been since 1974!

The following Social Work Facts come from the
National Association of Social Workers web site at www.naswdc.org

• According to the recent U.S. Census more than 600,000 people hold social work degrees.

• 320,000 professional social workers hold state licenses that safeguard the public from unqualified workers. For more information about state licensing of social work, contact the Association of Social Work Boards at www.aswb.org.

• Demand for social workers is on the rise! According to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), social work is one of the fastest growing careers in the United States. The profession is expected to grow by 30% by 2010.

• Social workers are highly trained and experienced professionals. Only those who have earned social work degrees at the bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral levels, and competed a minimum number of hours in supervised fieldwork are “professional social workers”.

• Social Workers help people in all stages of life, from children to elderly, in all situations.

• Accredited BSW programs require a minimum of 400 hours of supervised field experience.

• Social Workers counsel people about their situations, then connect them with programs and resources that best match their individual needs and circumstances. Millions of Americans are helped everyday by professional social workers.

• Social workers help people overcome some of life’s most difficult challenges: poverty, discrimination, abuse, addiction, physical illness, divorce, loss, unemployment, educational problems, disability.

• 57% of social workers work in public organizations. 25% of social workers work in private settings; 18% in for-profit settings. (CPS 1999)

• The Veteran’s Administration employs 3800 MSW’s to assist veterans and their families with individual and family counseling, patient education, end of life planning, substance abuse treatment, crisis intervention and other services.

• According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), professional social workers are the nation’s largest group of mental health services providers. There are more clinically trained social workers – over 190,000 in 1998 – than psychiatrist, psychologists, and psychiatric nurses combined. Federal law and the National Institutes of Health recognize social work as one of five core mental health professions.

• In a recent survey of more than 3,000 Consumer Reports readers, therapy delivered by clinical social workers and psychologists was perceived to be as effective as that given by psychiatrists. (Consumer Reports Magazine, October 2004).

• Over 40% of mental health professionals who participate in Red Cross Disaster Services Human Resources systems are social workers.

• There are more than 170 social workers in national, state and local elected office, including 2 U.S. Senators and 4 U.S. Representatives. These include: Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Rep. Ciro D. Rodriguez (D-TX), Rep Barbara Lee (D-CA), Rep. Ed Towns (D-NY), and Rep. Susan Davis (D-CA).

• Graduates starting out with a BSW can expect an annual salary ranging up to $30,000 depending on the type of work, experience and geographic factors. A social worker with an MSW degree can expect an annual income ranging to about $40,000. A few experienced private practitioners and senior administrators earn as much as $100,000.

For additional information about social workers, search the 2002 Occupational Outlook Handbook on the Bureau of Labor Statistics website: www.bis.gov.
Or visit www.socialworkers.org for more information about the profession.