Child Welfare, Essay Example

In approaching how best to convey my ambition to study social work, I face a serious conflict. Simply, I have no professional experience in my background related to the field.  It is, in fact, possibly inadvisable to even mention this before explaining my position and my ambitions in this regard.  I do so, however, to reinforce that very ambition.   I believe that honesty is a core value necessary for anyone seeking to enter or study social work.  Then, I feel that social work also demands a sensible awareness of realities, and attempting to disguise my lack of experience is no part of such an awareness.

That said, I may state with absolute honesty that I have been involved in social work in other ways, and before I decided to seriously study the field.  Daily life affords opportunities in “social work”, I think, for any individual with a desire to be of service to others, even when that service is not offered on a professional level.  In my case, there was a circumstance that remains powerfully within me, from when I was an adolescent.   A neighbor had a child she was having difficulty caring for.  A single mother, she was the sole support of the small family, and desperately needed to keep her job. Unfortunately, that job provided no child care facilities or assistance for its employees, nor was she paid enough to hire a sitter.  There was a facility in the community for such care, but the woman worked many evenings, and consequently could not take advantage of it.

As I said, I was a teen, and was engaged in the typically active life of an adolescent.  I had my school, my friends, my family, and my own interests, and it did not consciously occur to me to offer help to the woman.  The situation, however, simply evolved because I found I could not stand by when a serious problem was before me.  I volunteered to watch the child as many evenings as I could, which was a great relief to the mother.  Then, and in a kind of proactive fashion, I set out to create a better support structure for her.  I went to other, trusted neighbors and established a schedule, which eased the task for all concerned while allowing the mother the peace of mind she needed.   From this experience, I began to feel that many problems that seem insurmountable to people, such as the mother’s, are not impossible to fix, when efforts are made in the existing social framework.

In committing to study social work, I intend to gain as much information as I possibly can, because information is the key to helping others.  This, I believe, is true, no matter the social work arena.  In whatever setting the social work is done, it exists to promote the well-being of the clients (Hepworth, Rooney, & Rooney  3).  Caring is essential, but only knowledge can open doors, change adverse circumstances, and empower people to improve their lives.  On a very basic level, I do not believe social work actually changes due to societal changes.  Certainly, different conditions, globally and nationally, emphasize different needs, and some confronted today in social work include sustainability or funding in troubled economies, cross-cultural education, and a means of understanding the issues particularly as emerging from an increasingly globalized world (Sowers, White, & Dulmus  33).  The greater realities, however, remain, and the work is in place to serve those in need in the community.   I feel that a social worker must always be focused on this factor, no matter how many obstacles, or of what kind, are in the way.  This is the field to which I want to devote my energies and my life.  To that end, I most sincerely apply to enter the social work program, to begin attaining the knowledge to make this happen.

Works Cited

Hepworth, D. H.,  Rooney, R. H., & Rooney, G. D.  Direct Social Work Practice: Theory and Skills.  Belmont: Cengage learning, 2009.  Print.

Sowers, K. M., White, B. W., & Dulmus, B. N.    Comprehensive Handbook of Social Work and Social Welfare: The Profession of Social Work. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, 2008.  Print.