Okay you want to change sectors and head into social care / social work. The first thing I would ask yourself is around how good the qualification and how well does it travel and how respected is it. I know you are wondering about this but as some with a Hons degree in social care from Cork IT and degree in social work from UCC. I feel my expierence might throw up some sign posts.

I would steer away from any of the social care courses currently being offered in Ireland. The Cork IT course in social care is grand and does offer a good all round expierence of social care issues. But to be honest it doesn’t travel well and is not linked in with any good post graduate courses or employment issues. As for social care work occupational structures and the social care worker / leader / Manager posts are filled by anyone with a social care and related qualifications.

I would promote the social work course in UCC as the course leads you in to a more protected occupational environment firstly. The opportunities at post graduate level is limited in Ireland but the work is far more rewarding and more to stimulate the mind. It also travels well and therefore if one was to travel abroad the work opportunities in social work are far more diverse.

Social care in Ireland is quite poor and has no ethical backing, although I am sure some of my colleagues would disagree. Social work would allow you to work in a more diverse environment and offers you more scope to develop community based work. With regards to child protection, social work would allow you to work with families and children as opposed to social care would be working with the children in residential care.

If I was to look at transferability of qualifications too, social work will get you into social care but social care won’t get you into a social work post.

I hope this advice is helpful, feel free to consult the IASCW website for social care and links or the IASW website for social work websites. Hopefully you will enjoy the work but I would note caution around the reason you want to go into the job. I know the voluntary expierences were real and startling. I would urge you to have a chat with a social work around these expierences and explore these feelings alot more as they may misguide you at times with how you would or could work with families on issues of abuse, disability and poverty.

Aidan

I’m a bit lost at the moment-well at cross roads! I’m currently working in the Legal Sector and Lecturing in Cork. After having a summer having done Voluntary work in an orphanage in Ethiopia dealing with all sorts of physically and mentally disabled children whom most all has been sexually abused and to my disgust continue to be. So, now I want to change careers….. I want to get into the line of Social Work/ Social Care/Child Protection.

Can you please help me or advice me what courses are better than the next, (I’m open to going to London or remaining in Cork to study) whether more job opportunities are within the Social Work sector or Social Care sector, what would you advice me to do, where to go, what to study. All I do know is I want to get into this sector of work.

Any help or guidance would be much appreciated.

Thanks.

The life style is good and London is a value for money city, except when one drifts into the more expensive areas but unless you link up with the city banker crew types you will be alright.

In terms of the work, any of the US qualified social workers are overly qualified and the employers don’t utilise their skills by the look of it. A tip would be to know the UK law for mental health issues and child protection. But with a good agency they will guide you. I am moving out of care management, which they say is social work but its just number crunching. And there is plenty of work, just type in gumtree social work jobs london and it will give you a flavour of what’s out there

Enjoy

Enjoy

Do you know if your American colleagues are dual citizen holders? I ask because I would require a work permit and am aware that recruitment firms help out in obtaining employer work permits.

Not that money is an issue, lol (thus social work) but what kind of lifestyle would 19 pounds an hour afford? Also, is the norm 40 hrs a week or 32 hrs?
Thanks again for your response!
jz

But apart from my politics, London has some great opportunities. gumtree website is good for daily updates. I work with tradewinds recruitment. Money ranges from £19 to £24 an hour and if you go asa private company you pay less tax. Other agencies are Hays social care and blue arrow but the agency I am with are good and get you the work that pays the bills.

Enjoy and if I can help with any thing else, mail me.

Aidan

I hope the following may be useful. If not … Oops…..I didn’t undertake any therapeutic Social Work training in Ireland in Cork when I was studying to become a Social Worker. It wasn’t available in my curriculum. However, saying that one may undertake some direct therapeutic work with children in the role of Child Care Worker in Residential Child Care and Child Protection. I know that Cork have a Therapeutic Care Team in their Child Protection Office. I believe that some Springboard, Neighbourhood Youth Projects, Foroige and Banardos, School Completion Programme and Drugs Task Force, etc. in Ireland afford their employees the opportunities to work with individually and in groups with individuals. It is my understanding that Social Workers in Ireland are generally placed in a multidisciplinary team with maybe a more directly qualified candidate fulfilling the post of psychotherapist/counsellor. As I have in counted this challenge I have returned to college to undertake a therapeutic training course. I suppose some Social Workers would classify their work therapeutic i.e. non professional counselling, individual work, group work, parenting courses etc. I know I do. Maybe Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and the Medical Social Work would be a good avenue to explore. Look the best of luck.

Just in relation to a comment left on this page “Limerick (if you are brave) has a few openings”. I believe as a social worker this comment wouldn’t be deemed appropriate in accordance with the social work code of ethics in relation to the negative stereotyping of clients.

Thank you,

Happy New Year All

1st point: Passport, if you go into a solicitor they should be able to do a certified copy for you.

2nd point: Jobs in social work are scarce and the route you talk around won’t work to easy. The HSE has an embargo on all new recruits and recently went for a job interview and there were 6 days of interview for a basic social work post. So competition is hotting up

3rd point: If you go to the IASW website, they will link you in with the psychotherapy association. But those jobs are extremely hard to get. I have not seen anything like that kicking around.

The UK would best suit you for that type of social work and NHS website for jobs is quite good and the pay isn’t far off the Irish money. But keep an eye of the HSE website for jobs.