What do social workers do and how much do they make?

Ok im wanting to become a Social Wroker for open adoption and I was wanting to know if anyone knew where I could go to the best college to become one?

SOCIAL WORKERS help improve people’s lives. They help individuals, families, and groups function the best way they can in their environment, deal with relationships, and solve personal, family, and social problems. These problems may include poverty, homelessness or inadequate housing, serious illness, disabilities, substance abuse, unemployment, lack of job skills, financial mismanagement, unwanted pregnancy, or antisocial behavior. They also work with families with serious domestic conflicts, including those involving child, elder, or spousal abuse, or divorce. Social workers develop plans to meet the client’s needs and determine eligibility for assistance, funds, and services. They help clients get services and record case progress. Most social workers specialize in fields such as child welfare, family services, mental health, medical and school social work, and public assistance. Although some conduct research or are involved in planning or policy development, most social workers prefer an area of practice in which they interact with clients. Child, family, and school social workers provide social services and assistance to improve the social and psychological functioning of children and their families and to improve the family well-being and academic functioning of children. Some social workers help single parents; arrange adoptions; and help find foster homes for neglected, abandoned, or abused children. In schools, they address teenage pregnancy, truancy, misbehavior, and other problems. Social workers also run support groups for family caregivers or for the adult children of aging parents. They may help workers cope with job-related pressures or with personal problems that affect the quality of their work.

Medical and public health social workers provide people with the support they need to cope with chronic, acute, or terminal illness, such as cancer. They help family caregivers plan for patients’ needs after discharge from the hospital by arranging for at-home services, such as meals-on-wheels or oxygen equipment. Mental health and substance abuse social workers assess and treat individuals with these problems. Services include individual and group therapy, outreach, crisis intervention, social rehabilitation, and training in skills of everyday living.

Through direct counseling and referral to other services, social workers help clients to consider solutions or find other resources. They provide concrete information such as where to go for debt counseling, how to find child care or elder care, how to apply for public assistance, or how to get an alcoholic or drug addict admitted to a rehabilitation program. Social workers help make society more responsive to people’s needs. They work with others to help combat social problems through community programs. Social workers identify social problems and suggest legislative and other solutions. They may help to raise funds or write grants to support these programs.

The national average starting pay is $15.25 hr.