My reflections on graduating from the SSW and beginning a career(?) as a social worker are that I feel unprepared and a bit disappointed. I didn’t learn clinical skills to the extent that I thought I would, and I don’t feel very confident as a therapist. Perhaps I had unrealistic expectations about how much I would learn in two years. But I also don’t feel like I’ve acquired any other hard skills. Certainly nothing macro, which was partially my choice but also due to how macro is not prioritized in the curriculum nor in the field. I’ve been significantly radicalized, which I’m grateful for. But is it any more than I would have been as an already left leaning person on Instagram during 2020? Probably not. So overall, I’m underwhelmed. And the clinical social work profession itself is troubling. I question whether it actually helps people. I see it as largely just another cog in a big shitty machine, often complicit in perpetuating harm. And it’s exploitative of social workers! We’re a group of mostly women tasked to solve society’s ills and deal with the side effects of one oppressive system on top of another, where we are often overworked and underpaid. So given all of this, I’m really unsure of where I want to land within the field. I initially came to SSW to become a therapist. Now I’m not really sure which way is up.
- Melia Jannotta