If you find yourself constantly putting the needs of others above your own, a career that will be a natural fit for you would be that of a Social Worker. In this role, your concern is the well-being of others, and you do everything in your professional power to make sure at-risk individuals are protected from harm.
Though, to protect all manner of people in your society, you need to be trained to understand people’s needs better. Each individual is different, and that’s why Social Workers have to study social work courses at degree level, to completely understand what these needs are and how to meet them within the remit of the law.
If you want to learn more about this career, read on to find out why you should consider studying social work courses.
What is Social Work Course?
If you’re not completely familiar with this line of work, you may be wondering ‘what do you study on a social work course?’ This depends on the type of social work course you study. Some focus on specific areas to boost your skills as a professional and others are designed to teach you everything you need to get qualified.
If you’re starting out, you will need to study social work training courses that cover the entire spectrum of the role. This is to make sure you understand people’s behaviours, and the external social, economic and cultural influences that affect them.
As there are so many issues that can impact people young, old and of varying ability, social work courses have an extensive syllabus to cover. Subjects may vary slightly depending on where you study, but you can expect to cover:
- Health and Wellbeing
- Psychology
- Sociology of the Family
- Contemporary Issues in Social Policy
- Morals and Ethics in Social Work
- Poverty
- Social Work Methods, and more
It is worthwhile noting you can only work as a Social Worker once you’ve obtained a social work degree that is approved by Social Work England. Depending on your career goals and specialism, this may require you to study social work postgraduate courses too.
Why Study a Social Work Course?
Now you know what is involved in a social work course, we can explore some of the many reasons why studying social work courses is such a good idea.
You’ll Become an In-Demand Professional
As with many care and health professionals, Social Workers are in demand in the UK. An ageing population is partly to blame, as now there are many more people with identified needs who require support from the social care system.
The increasing awareness of mental health needs is also adding weight to this strained area of care. This is great because people are finally getting the support they need but there currently aren’t enough professional Social Workers to provide them access to it.
By studying the necessary social work courses, you can take advantage of the many employment opportunities on offer. In adult social care alone, it’s expected there will be a need for 650,000 to 950,000 new jobs in this space by 2035!
You Will Earn a Good Wage
Like most jobs, your salary depends on where you are based regionally, with London often offering the most attractive wages. Though, generally, Social Workers can expect to earn well from the moment they graduate.
If you study social work university courses, you will position yourself for entry into a relatively prosperous career. On average, social work graduates are getting a starting salary of £25,000 when employed privately. Though, with the NHS you start in a band 6 position, which commands a wage in excess of £30,000 a year!
With experience in either setting, this can easily reach over £40,000 and if you secure a role as a team manager or senior specialist, this will rise considerably.
Your Work Will be Incredibly Important
Not only will studying social work courses help you earn a decent living, it will allow you to do work that is morally rewarding.
As a Social Worker, your aim is to improve the lives of people with identified needs. Depending on the area you specialise in, this can be providing support to anyone from adults to children, families, older people, individuals with poor mental or physical health, or disabilities.
You will assist them with a range of issues, in many instances, this can include overcoming the experience of child abuse, drug and alcohol misuse, poverty or even a period of severe ill health. Whatever their challenge, you will support individuals to reach their goals and live life safely and as independently as possible.
You Can Continue to Add to Your Skills
Once qualified through social work uni courses, you can continue to add to your professional skillset with social work short courses online. Stonebridge Associated Colleges have a range of short social work courses online that will enable you to upskill quickly and efficiently.
These include:
- Accountable Social Care
- Assuring Quality in Social Care
- Caring for Older People
- Social Care Competence in Practice
- Creating Quality Social Care Environments
- Ethics and Values in Social Care
- Using the Law in Social Care, and more
These short courses can help you branch into specialist areas and perfect the support you provide. They can also give you an idea of the areas you may want to study in greater depth in social work postgraduate courses.
You’ll Have Ongoing Career Opportunities
After you complete the necessary bachelor of social work courses and become qualified, you can move into several roles that help particular areas, including:
- Day-Care Social Worker
- Healthcare Social Worker
- Homelessness Officer
- Mental Health Social Worker
Should you want to gain more skills and further responsibilities, you can specialise in another area. Alternatively, you can take the next step in your career by moving into a more senior role within your existing area. However, it’s worth noting that senior roles generally remove you from hands-on work.
With 3-5 years of experience, you could become a senior practitioner, team leader or care manager. Or you could become a practice educator, where you’d oversee social work students and junior members of staff.
Get Started with an Online Course
If you want to make a move towards getting qualified for a job in social work, you can meet the requirements for social work university courses online with Stonebridge.
Our online Access to Higher Education (Social Work) course is a Level 3 qualification that is equivalent to receiving three individual A Levels. As such, you can go straight to university to study social work if you have this qualification and the specified GCSEs.
The modules explored provide you with the ideal foundation knowledge to expand on in university, as you will study everything from the extent of poverty in contemporary Britain to the concept of planned intervention and the welfare needs of various groups.
As the course is entirely online, you can progress through the materials at your pace and complete your Level 3 stage of education faster than otherwise possible. You will receive an Individual Learning Plan that will outline your assignment deadlines to keep you on track. However, the flexibility of these courses has our learners finished and ready to apply to university in 9-12 months on average.
Each of the modules is delivered through an engaging mix of online learning materials to keep you captivated throughout your studies, and you’ll also benefit from professional tutor support when needed.
Enrol Today!
If the sound of protecting people from harm and giving them a life that is safe and independent sounds like something you would enjoy, don’t put off becoming a Social Worker any longer.
Stonebridge Associated Colleges can help you take the next step in your education and get you onto social work university courses faster than you could traditionally. As one of the leading UK distance learning providers, we help thousands of students each year to achieve their academic and career goals.
Discuss your future as a Social Worker further with our Course Executives today. They will discuss everything our online social work course includes and answer any questions you may have. Call them now on 0121 392 8288 or contact them for more information online.
