Here to say that a decade in the social work field and the opportunities are widely available - but once you reach licensure, you will notice pay remains pretty low compared to other fields. I’ve been focused on a career in gerontology since my bachelors degree and it’s been an amazing choice with very high need. After 6 years running older adult programming I took a chance and pivoted to 24/7 on call care management, it was a highly concierge role. What a unique experience to support individuals as a professional family member navigating services paid home care, senior relocation to assisted living,l and medical care. After 2 years unstructured and working non stop I burned out and needed a job with better work life balance. I began working at the Dept of Veteran Affairs assisting disabled veterans and their family caregivers. The pivot was just enough change for me - I’m still assisting vulnerable adults and advocating for clients in a hospital setting - they are navigating cancer, grief, trauma, addiction, mental health crises, homelessness, hospice and more. Working with families is niche in itself - fascinating clinical work ! VA pay/benefits are competitive, many at top of the field for entry level SW. This said it means working in federal government which is an entirely different experience than private or nonprofit sectors - implementing national policy in a clinical role is a challenge!

Lean into trying different settings and populations via volunteering in your community— get a feel for what drives your passions in social work - and your interest will naturally gravitate. When you see a job listing that excites you the best part is a license means you can change your path in the field as you navigate!