Social Work Today E-Zine

The Binghamton University Masters of Social Work program has been awarded $75,000 to develop an innovative program that prepares social workers to specialize in older adult care. Known as the Hartford Partnership Program for Aging Education, Binghamton will adopt a model developed by the New York Academy of Medicine’s Social Work Leadership Institute. The program addresses the growing demand for social workers as the United States faces an aging population that is expected to triple by 2050.

“We are thrilled to have been awarded this grant and to be able to expand our efforts towards increasing competence in gerontological social work in the Southern Tier,” says social work department chair Laura Bronstein, MSW.

The Hartford Partnership Program for Aging Education works to build collaborations between universities and community agencies to offer students hands-on and varied experience caring for older adults across a range of settings. The program differs from traditional MSW programs as it offers students’ field rotations rather than experience in a single agency setting during their academic year placement.

The program at Binghamton will begin in the fall of 2008 and will fund a faculty field instructor, a researcher and MSW interns to provide services to these local participating agencies. "This grant affords both the students and our community with invaluable resources,” says Jennifer Marshall, director of field education in the social work department.

— Source: Binghamton University, State University of New York

Social workers often specialize in one or more of the following practice areas:

Mental Health Therapy

Disaster Relief

Military Social Work

Rural Social Work

Adoption & Foster Care

Child Welfare Services

Family Preservation Services

Homeless Family Assistance

Eating Disorders

Genetics

Hospital Social Work

Crisis Intervention

School Violence

Hospice and Palliative Care

Depression

Institutional Care

Chronic Pain

Outpatient Treatment

Development Disabilities

International Social Work

Advocacy, Consulting and Planning

Community Mental Health

Employee Assistance

Private Practice

Veterans Services

Child Abuse & Neglect

Domestic Violence

Political Development

Parent Education

Family Planning

HIV/AIDS

School Alternative Programs

Difficulties in School

Gerontology Services

Community-Based Services

In-Home Services

Senile Dementia and Alzheimer's

Addictions Prevention/Treatment

Criminal Justice

Housing Assistance

Public Welfare

Employment Services

Source: National Association of Social Workers http://www.naswdc.org

By Leigh Ann Charlot, MSW, ACSW, LCSW

* Show You Care: Use good white or beige paper quality resume paper. Pink, blue, marbled, and scented papers don't look professional.

* Create a Customized Cover Letter: Unless you are answering an ad that specified "no cover letter," be sure to write one that is customized each time you send out a resume. In it, specify the name of the job you want, and two or three skills you believe would be relevant in that job. Managers are looking for candidates who are willing to put time and attention into important tasks.

* Follow Directions: Send only what was asked for when replying to ads. Don't enclose diplomas, letters of recommendation, training certificates, or other materials unless they were requested. The extra paper can be distracting or even annoying to a busy manager.

* Make Your Resume Readable: Think of your resume as a tool for marketing your skills and format it so someone can scan it quickly for important information. Use inexpensive resume software or follow a sample in a resume book to give your resume a polished and easy-to-read format.

* Focus On Action: Concisely describe your past accomplishments using action verbs. Saying you were a supervisor is one thing. Saying you interviewed, hired, trained, and provided clinical supervision is another.

* Keep It Simple: Stay away from unusual fonts, borders, pictures, or other gimmicks.

o Update! : Motivated candidates never send resumes that aren't up to date. Doing so might suggest that you weren't interested enough to take the time.

* Keep It Short: Most candidates should submit a one-page resume, but may go to a second page if they have many years of experience to describe. Learn to be concise and focus on relevant highlights.

* Accentuate The Positive: Use appropriate headings to organize your resume, such as Objective, Education, Licensure, Work Experience, Specialized Training, Volunteer Work, etc. Most resumes follow a format with the information in the order given here but there is some room to adjust it. For example, a new graduate with significant, relevant volunteer experience might bring attention to it by listing Volunteer Work before Work Experience.

* Honesty Is The Best Policy: Don't be tempted to pad your resume or exaggerate your skills and experience. Hiring managers can usually tell and you run the risk of losing your new job if someone finds out you lied.

* Proofread: Check your resume very carefully and ask for help from mentors or friends who can help you fine-tune it.

The best resumes are short, well organized, and easy to read. These can easily put a candidate ahead of others who did not take the time to put together an effective resume. In a competitive job market there may be a hundred replies to a help wanted ad. It is only human for a personnel representative or hiring manager to focus on the replies that enclose what was asked for in an attractive, professional manner.

-Leigh Ann Charlot, MSW, ACSW, LCSW, is an outpatient therapist at Leyden Family Services in Chicago and a consultant and trainer in private practice in Chicago.

* Professional social workers assist individuals, groups, or communities to restore or enhance their capacity for social functioning, while creating societal conditions favorable to their goals. The practice of social work requires knowledge of human development and behavior, of social, economic, and cultural institutions, and of the interaction of all these factors.

* 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; currently, nearly 600,000 people hold social work degrees.

* 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 completed a minimum number of hours in supervised fieldwork, are "professional social workers."

* According to the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), 22,163 junior and senior students were enrolled in baccalaureate social work programs in 2000; there were also 20,369 full-time and 13,446 part-time students enrolled in master's degree programs. In the same year, 15,007 individuals graduated with MSW degrees and 11,773 graduated with BSW degrees. In addition, 229 doctoral degrees in social work were awarded in 2000. Currently there are over 8,000 social work professors teaching in the United States.

* Social workers help people overcome some of life's most difficult challenges: poverty, discrimination, abuse, addiction, physical illness, divorce, loss, unemployment, educational problems, disability, and mental illness. They help prevent crises and counsel individuals, families, and communities to cope more effectively with the stresses of everyday life.

* Professional social workers are found in every facet of community life-in schools, hospitals, mental health clinics, senior centers, elected office, private practices, prisons, military, corporations, and in numerous public and private agencies that serve individuals and families in need.

* 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 psychiatrists, psychologists, and psychiatric nurses combined. Federal law and the National Institutes of Health recognize social work as one of five core mental health professions.

* Over 40% of all disaster mental health volunteers trained by the American Red Cross are professional social workers.

* There are over 170 social workers in national, state and local elected office, including two U.S. Senators and four 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).

* Today, 48 special interest social work organizations contribute to the vitality and credibility of the social work profession.

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

Source: National Association of Social Workers, http://www.naswdc.org

By Leigh Ann Charlot, MSW, ACSW, LCSW

We've all been there. After sifting through ads and finding the right answers to those tough interview questions, the phone rings, and the voice on the other end is offering you a job. Most of us find this interaction awkward, no matter how excited we are about the job. Unfortunately, many of us aren't comfortable negotiating with a prospective employer or don't know how. If only we could find the right words at the right moment, a good job offer could be turned into a great one. There may be more at stake than money when it comes time to negotiate. Pay attention to details that will ultimately make a difference in your decision. For example, we can and should factor in such considerations as work schedule, number of hours expected, on-call responsibilities, vacation, training, and other job-related details.

Many social workers fear negotiating will make them look like they aren't committed to the work. "I'm not in this for the money, but I do need to earn enough to live on and save for retirement," says Melissa Martin, MSW, LSW, a Denver, CO-area social worker. As a former administrator and a social worker who has been on both sides of the job-offer conversation, I have seen a number of negotiating strategies used, and far too many applicants either become impolite or fail to negotiate completely. While I was never eager to increase the salaries I had offered, I did appreciate candidates negotiating appropriately because it gave me greater confidence that they would be satisfied in their new positions and want to stay with the company.

There are several phases of the interview process that, if handled incorrectly, can result in a job not being offered, or in an unsatisfactory offer. By thinking through objectives in advance and being prepared to negotiate appropriately, it is possible to get a great job offer instead of a mediocre one, or to rule out a poor offer. The few minutes on the phone when the job is offered are the culmination of the negotiation process, rather than the starting point. A successful negotiator will establish clear goals, understand the local job market, and take several other steps during the interview process, leading up to the offer.

Job seekers should research the regional and local job markets. Knowing in advance what the salary range, working conditions, and benefits for a particular job are will give you an advantage in the negotiation process. Experienced social workers can often network with colleagues for information when, for example, considering a move from one agency to another or from one field to another. New graduates and those who have recently relocated may not have that advantage. The Internet and the local library can often fill the gaps. Web sites such as www.salary.com and www.socialworkers.org can provide general information about the salaries of social workers in various fields.

The salary negotiation process begins with the application or with a resume and cover letter. When applying for a position, don't send a cover letter or resume that includes your salary history, even if it is requested in the advertisement. Furthermore, it's a good idea to leave the salary box blank when completing job applications. This information is often requested, but rarely works in favor of the applicant and may be used to screen out the applicant.

Interviewers will often ask a candidate to discuss his or her previous salary history or salary expectations. Answering these questions with a concrete figure is usually a mistake; if a previous salary earned is too high, the interviewer may rule the candidate out, assuming that he or she would not be interested in the salary the company can offer. On the other hand, if the job applicant says that he or she earned much less than the salary the employer plans to pay for this position, the employer may assume that the candidate is unqualified for a job at this level and decide not to pursue him or her.

Ideally, you should respond to both questions by indicating that you would be pleased if the job were offered, but would prefer to reserve discussing compensation until that time. Many interviewers will be satisfied with this type of answer and move on. Others may prefer to discuss salary early on in the process so that they don't invest time conducting second interviews and reference checks on candidates who aren't interested in the salary range they can offer. One way to handle this is to ask the interviewer what the salary range is for the position. If the interviewer provides the range, the candidate can then indicate that the range seems workable without stating a specific figure. This approach lets the interviewer know that it is worthwhile to continue the interview process but does not commit the applicant to a specific salary.

When interviewing, it is never appropriate for the candidate to raise the issue of compensation. There is no reason to discuss salary and compensation unless the employer is certain a job will be offered to the candidate; a candidate who assumes that the job will be offered will appear arrogant. If applicants have done their homework, they should have a fairly accurate idea of what the salary range is before entering the interview process. As an employer, I have always felt that job applicants who asked what the salary was were probably not great candidates because they had failed to take the time and care to do research on their own or were somewhat out of touch with the work and probably weren't serious about wanting to work in that field.

Remember that while salary can be an important factor, it is not the only factor. We can also negotiate for a particular work schedule, training, supervision, and other considerations. Entry-level applicants, for example, may find themselves applying for jobs in which there is little flexibility around the issue of starting salary, but can focus on ensuring that supervision for licensure is provided or that certain experiences will be available, such as the opportunity to lead therapy groups or work with certain populations. This is another area in which a job applicant should do his or her homework before applying. We all have preferences about the work and working conditions. Greater awareness of these preferences before the application and interview process allows for a targeted search and effective negotiation.

Make a list of all of the pros and cons about a particular job and evaluate how best to negotiate with them. Each of us would rank them differently. For example, one social worker might list carrying a beeper on the cons side and regular supervision on the pros side. Another social worker might not be bothered by the beeper and might be comfortable with greater autonomy. Determine what is meaningful to you. Create a list, taking into consideration salary, benefits, vacation time, training, educational opportunities, scheduling, number of hours you'll be expected to work, travel, supervision, and advancement opportunities. All of these factors should be addressed during the interview process. When the interviewer asks an applicant if he or she has any questions, be prepared-this is the time to ask.

With a clear understanding of the job and what is important to you, you can decide what to negotiate for. One job applicant may request no weekend work and ask for a commitment that supervision will be regular. Another applicant may be willing to work some Saturdays in exchange for the flexibility of working a four-day week. During a job interview, it's a good idea to state preferences in terms of what is hoped for or preferred rather than expressing them as absolute requirements, unless the issue is truly a "deal breaker." This way, the employer can get a sense of what the candidate is looking for and not eliminate him or her from consideration if the job is a close fit but not a perfect one.

By stating preferences, the candidate can refine the potential offer and know exactly what the job will entail, as well as what is expected of the person who is offered the position. Choose the two or three most important factors and plan to negotiate around them since it's unlikely the employer will be willing to listen to a long list of requirements and meet them. Be aware of the factors that are important to you and ask questions about at least a few of them. The employer will know that you are serious in your interest and that you are engaging in the negotiation process.

Now, back to the ringing phone. No matter how excited (or unexcited) you may be about the offer being made, thank the employer for the offer, and always ask for a few days to consider the offer. Employers want to hire people who have carefully thought through their decisions and are usually willing to give the applicant one or two days to think it over. Take this time to sort out what has been offered and what you had hoped for, rather than responding hastily.

Consider the offer: Is it everything you hoped for? I almost always recommend negotiating for a higher salary, and it may be possible to negotiate for one or two other factors, as well. When the time comes to return the call, start by thanking the employer for offering you the job. Then, indicate that you have a few questions. Ask whether or not the employer can offer what you are hoping for in terms of training, supervision, and hours. Often, the employer will say yes or will indicate that he or she needs to get back to you with the answer. With those issues resolved, it is time to address the issue of pay.

When coaching colleagues on this issue, I encourage them to learn what the upper end of the range is and to ask for it. For example, it may be appropriate to say, "I'm excited about coming to work for you, but I had really hoped to earn $35,000 to $37,000 per year in my next job." This statement should do two things: First, it should communicate excitement about or appreciation for the offer. Second, it should say what the applicant hopes for rather than an ultimatum, unless the applicant is ready to forfeit the offer if and when the ultimatum is not met. After stating what is hoped for, wait for the prospective employer to respond. Then, be prepared to accept or decline the offer based on the reply, which means thinking through the possible outcomes and knowing in advance what's acceptable to you.

As social workers, we may be reluctant to negotiate on our own behalf, but we need to do so if we hope to see our individual job offers improve. And, keep in mind that some form of negotiation is almost always expected. Finally, if we hope to see salaries and benefits improve for our profession, we-as individuals-must become our own best advocates in the negotiation process.

- Leigh Ann Charlot, MSW, ACSW, LCSW, has worked as a clinician, a manager, and an administrator in the fields of child welfare and domestic violence. She is currently a social worker in private practice at Women's Psychotherapy Center in the Chicago, IL, suburbs, providing supervision, training, and psychotherapy services.