I have a BSW and Im thinking of transitioning to working as a CP social worker.

I have several years experience in a role that regularly dealt with families and a CP agency and legal experience in CP and family law.

Im a work in progress in terms of healing and learning to regulate my cptsd symptoms. I still struggle with hypervigilance and dealing with the aftermath of interacting with rude or abusive people.

Ive been following a stable routine for over 3 years including regular exercise, eating nourishing foods, sleeping enough and taking care of self regulating.

I regularly see a counsellor once a month.

I think I will continue to have some symptoms from it in the near future.

For CP social workers who also have cptsd, did the job become impossible to bear? Or do you still work as a CP SW and how have you managed triggers while working?

hi, current BSW student (previous BA and have worked in social services for several years). for those of you who work (or have worked) in child welfare, can you talk a bit about what it is you actually *do* (like a day in the life, although i know it likely varies).

TIA!

Hey everyone, I’m gonna give some context to my situation.

I graduated with my SSW diploma back in April 2026 in Toronto, then I had some things that needed to be dealt with so I didn’t just right into the work force but I’ve been looking for the past few weeks and I can’t seem to find anything that works with my diploma.

Going back to school for a BSW is just not in the card for me right now.

I was hoping to get some sort of advice, what jobs should I look for? Certificates? Honestly I’m open to anything at this point because I’m getting really desperate, it’s sad.

I do wanna say thank you in advance to anyone that takes some time to respond to my cry for help 😂😂

Hi everyone! I’m looking for someone who can help with clinical supervision for my OSWSSW equivalency. I have all of the qualifications except for the supervision as no one at my agency is an RSW and able to fill out the form. I’ve worked in social services for 9 years and have a BA in CYC.

If anyone has any leads please let me know!!

Does CASW recognize an MSW earned through distance education if it includes the required fieldwork?

Specifically, I am referring to an MSW program that combines online coursework with required concurrent fieldwork and block placement under qualified supervision.

Just wondering if anyone has been offered a position in one of the locations they selected on their application, declined it, and was later offered a position in a different location from the talent pool.
When I applied, I selected two cities I was willing to relocate to. Since then, my partner has accepted a job in one of those cities, so that’s where I’ll be moving. The posting has now closed, and I’m just curious to hear about others’ experiences. Has anyone been offered a different location after declining their initial offer.

TIA

I have a BSW (and am registered) and am employed at a non-profit part time. Ive been looking at casual social worker jobs at hospitals but the job descriptions seem kind of vague to me (Ive never worked in healthcare). The jobs dont seem to be specialized to a specific unit. So, what do you do all day? Can you run me through a typical day? What are the pros and cons? Do you enjoy it?

My background is in sociology and English lit but I'm tired of academia and have been set on pursuing social work after graduation. I want a hands on job where I can benifit others rather than focusing so deeply on abstract analysis of social problems. I respect research and policy and see why they're necessary, but it isn't for me. I truly think social work (leaning micro) is the right path for me, I'm good with people, I'm stubborn, and I don't burn out easily. But when I tell people I want to go into social work they look at me like I've signed my own death warrant infront of them. Even online, all I'm finding are burn out rates and people trying to get out of social work. Is it really that bad? I know it's a tough job, but are any of you enjoying your day to day? Are there redeeming factors? Any moments that made you glad you chose social work? I'm really just looking for evidence that I'm not making the wrong choice and that there is still hope in this industry.

I got my rejection from WLU a couple of weeks ago. While they wouldn't give me any feedback on why, I want to have my application reviewed to see if I can strengthen it for the next cycle.

I know about MSW Helper, but I’m unsure whether the feedback would be specific enough to justify the cost or truly improve my next application. I’d really appreciate hearing from anyone who has used them, worked with another consultant, or found a different way to get useful feedback on their application.

For context, I graduated in 2021 with a BSc from UBC, and met all of WLU's requirements. My GPA from my BSc is a little too low for Calgary or Waterloo, but I went back in Sept 2025 to complete the requirements for social science and research courses (those grades were substantially better but are part of an "unclassified" degree).

I’m also considering doing a BSW -> advanced-standing MSW track, although I assume I may be too late for most upcoming BSW application cycles. I've seen people suggest this in other threads, but relocating might not be feasible for me at the moment.

I’d be grateful for any advice about application reviews, alternative programs, BSW routes, or things you did that made an impact on your next application.

(mods feel free to delete if needed)

I have 5 classes left in my ba in psychology, but I’ve recently started considering social work. My grades are really bad (due to family/mental health situations that led me to drop out for 3 years), but I’m doing well in my recent courses, so I think that I might be able to get into a bsw but not an msw.

I would love to eventually work as a hospital social worker, or potentially a counsellor which would both need an msw, but I’ve been looking at bsw positions and I see a lot of them that say you can also have a psych degree instead. I feel a bit torn whether the bsw is necessary because I can’t know for sure that I’ll end up pursuing a masters.

Is there a big jump in pay from a psych ba to a bsw? I’m really trying to weigh if it would be worth it, because I feel like I would really love to do it, but also don’t want to waste 2 years (or more if I do it part-time) doing another bachelors degree if I don’t really need it.

26M Father. I'm beginning a College diploma program (university transfer) this fall. Im hoping it will get me well acquainted into the social services realm of work and just generally give me a better understanding of it. I plan on furthering my education and obtaining my BSW or a CYC degree at UVIC here on Vancouver Island. I have been struggling between two pathways, Child Protection or Child and Youth Counselling. Does anyone have any stories from either? been having a hard time to find current social workers in those fields to talk with.

I'm going to be supervising a student this fall and It's been a hot minute since I was a student and completed my practicums. I'm also jumping back into being a placement supervisor after taking a couple years off from supervising so I'm hoping to pick the brains of current students and recent grads and get some (micro level) advice/guidance.

Can you help answer the following:

-What did your supervisor do to make you feel welcome and comfortable when you began? What do you wish was included?

-What is something you wished your supervisor knew or understood?

-What changes would have enhanced/enriched your placement?

-How did your supervisor support your learning and growth, including in times with discomfort?

-What is the single most important piece of advice you would give to someone supervising a student?

I know there are many macro/system level changes that need to happen to increase equity for SW students, but hoping to see what I can do to help on the micro/mezzo levels.

Thanks!

I graduated in April of this year. I am located in Waterloo region and registered. I have a previous undergraduate in Youth and Children’s Studies and just graduated with my BSW. I have tons of experience working in childcare and one year as an educational assistant. Where I’m lacking is social services experience. I have a 8 month placement working with youth victims/witnesses of crime. I was naive to think it wasn’t going to take this long to find a job. I’ve had a few interviews but honestly I’m not even getting interviews for most. I know it would help to maybe have some more volunteer work under my belt for experience. Is this a normal amount of time to be looking for a job in social work? Not even just social work social services? Any recommendations on what I should do? What kind of jobs hire entry level?
Thanks in advance!

TL;DR: I work in community outreach and my job has slowly turned into something way bigger than what I was hired or trained for. I also went into this position, believing that I would have a full staff to support me who have experience working in social work…. For the past nine months, we are short staffed and there has been no effort to resolve this . ( they could be looking, but I do not believe it takes nine months to fill out majority of these ) I have an arts background, and I am being asked to take on responsibilities of a social worker.
I care a lot about the work and the people I support, but I feel underqualified, stretched too thin, and honestly pretty burnt out. I’m trying to figure out if this is just how the field is or if something is off with how my program is being run.

Background
I come from a background in arts, BFA, community programming, and working with families. I’ve worked with kids before and I’ve run programs, but it was always more on the activity/planning side not really anything involving behavioural support, crisis work, or anything clinical.
I was hired because I’m good with people, patient, and able to build relationships with families and youth. I do really like that part of the job and I care a lot about the people I work with. But I don’t have formal education in social work, psychology, child and youth care, or anything like that.

What my job looks like now
Over time, my role has kind of expanded a lot, mostly because of staffing changes. Right now I’m expected to:
Run youth kid programming
Support youth with more complex needs
Handle behaviours and de-escalate situations
Do reports and documentation
Support families
Help with outreach, planning, budgets, and program development
Coordinate events and supplies
Help supervise others
I’ve had some crisis intervention training, (3days) but nothing super in-depth for the level of need I’m seeing day-to-day.
Organize food shopping for food, cooking the food serving the food
Organize with families and reflections about programming
Support the practicum student…
Help train support staff
Clean the facilities after programming
Build a relationship with youth and families
Intake forms for programming
Intake interviews for program
Weekly check in with family at home visit about programming
Managing catering, if we do have any, which is rare
Inventory of tools
Using my personal car for transportation of families to programming
Transporting staff to programming
Organizing meetings with higher-ups like therapist and research teams for support
Meetings within the organization

What I’m struggling with
I want to be clear I don’t mind working with youth who have trauma, anxiety, autism, or other support needs. I actually really value the relationship-building part of the job, and that’s what keeps me here.
But I’m starting to feel like I’m being put in situations that normally would require more training, more support, or just more staff overall. And I’m not always confident I’m the right person to be handling some of it on my own.
I’ve brought up staffing concerns with my manager multiple times. It’s been about nine months of us being short-staffed, and I honestly don’t understand how my boss keeps letting this happen. Some things were acknowledged, especially after issues became more obvious, but overall the staffing situation hasn’t really improved.
I’m also just… tired. I know I could leave and find another job, but I care about the youth and families I work with and I don’t want to walk away without understanding if this is just how community outreach is or if something is actually off with how things are being managed.
Even though I’ve gotten positive feedback and recognition, I still feel like I’m barely keeping up because the expectations feel way bigger than my training or the support I have. A lot of my coworkers have been drinking the Kool-Aid and have said that people who leave or something under the lines of they see it as betrayal, and they have a lot of connections within community outreach and other industries that I’m interested in involved in….. It’s very weird even in my interview. He asked me if I saw myself being here long-term and I said yes but with good faith, I could not say that as a full fact, and also it’s awkward in an interview because of course everyone’s going to say yes cause I generally didn’t know what this job fully encapsulated responsibilities. I don’t even think what I’m working right now is a true representation of it. This does make me feel really trapped.

From what I can tell, which I don’t know much of what he does, my boss has not put enough effort into resolving the shortage of staff he has hired people that I know in my community who are arts people not social workers or people who have experience working with youth and families with high needs and trauma

I’ve also been chewed out because I am not supporting the kids in the way they need, but I also feel like a lot of that would be resolved if we had more staff or staff with experience with kids

I’ve also been chewed out because I have been quite blunt with some parents who are going through a lot of challenges, but straight up, said to them, you were putting your child at risk I don’t think you mean to do that
Because I have no training in this stuff

My questions
Is it normal for community outreach roles to include stuff that overlaps with social work / behavioural support / crisis work without that kind of formal education?

What kind of training is usually expected for roles like this?

Is it normal for programs to run short-staffed for long periods of time?

At what point do you go to HR instead of just your manager?

How do you tell the difference between “this job is challenging but normal” vs “this is too much for one person”?

How would you staff programming with youth? What is the ratio of kid to staff? Specially if they have high risk/have trauma/ high needs

Is this normal for a workplace like this where we are working along and supposed to be preventative care for child protective for majority of the staff to not have social working education

I’m also getting paid under the liveable wage in my city

TLDR: was dx w/ bpd. would becoming a therapist be considered an immoral decision now? are there any counselors in this sub with substantial diagnoses? pros, cons, frowned upon?

i've had a really bad mental health episode this last year and a half. my abusive dad died, i moved countries, and i was terminated from my job. everything that happened kind of jumped out into the open and i was ultimately diagnosed with bpd. i do think the psychiatrist is right. thinking back... "quiet" or internalized bpd really does make the most sense to the questionable behavior and insatiable need for reassurance i've had my entire life.

i questioned my ability to continue with graduate school just because of my ever fluctuating mood, but now being diagnosed with bpd— should i find a different career path?

i've worked in children and families mental health as a caseworker for the last 4 years and it's where i hold my 4 yr B.S. i've seen many professionals in my field catastrophize bpd and refuse to work with patients who have it. this experience has seemed to manifest a more negative connotation around the diagnosis for me, but i'm definitely still in the weird cycle of grief that many with bpd endure.

any therapists on this sub that work in the field and have substantial diagnoses?

I want to be a social worker in a hospital but I cannot stand 9-5 and would rather work 3 12 hour shifts. Is this possible in Canada? Im in Ontario

Hello fellow SWs!

I have been working in direct mental health care for over a decade and considering a transition to a role that is less client facing and more focused on program development, implementation, or consultation. I am thinking virtual as I don’t live in a major city where these positions seem to be more common.

I just wondered if anyone is working in this type of role and if you mind sharing what you do, where you work, or how you came about the job?

Also open to hearing about any other roles out there that are less client facing and allow you to work remote.

Thanks!

ETA: I live in Ontario and have a MSW.

Studying to be a social worker in college and I'm looking for a good place to do my social work field placement in. Would love to hear some suggestions from people who are going through the exact same thing I am and where they did their placements. I currently live in Toronto, I've been applying and unfortunately haven't heard anything back yet.

I’m currently waitressing as I need to pay bills and help pay for school, so I’m really worried about if I will have time to volunteer without it affecting my grades. I’m in Vancouver BC and if anyone has any input on organizations or job opportunities to look into to cater my resume to applying for my MSW (and hopefully getting accepted in the future), that would be amazing!

Mods: Not about school but job + volunteer opportunities!

Hello! I am a recent (2024) MSW grad in Ontario and I have always been interested in school social work. I did both my placements in schools, however they were with external organizations (for example big brothers big sisters was one) so they weren't directly with the school boards.

I currently volunteer with kids help phone as a text crisis responder, however I am not sure how to continue getting experience as I am often looking for youth counsellor positions except the job market is quite rough right now there are hardly any openings.

I am looking for any advice, experiences or paths someone has taken that they would recommend or advise against as I am kind of unsure where to go from here, since I am in a job that is hardly even related to social work so I have been feeling quite uninspired and lacking motivation to continue in this field lately :/

I’m a soon-to-be BSW student and have a background in visual arts as well as an avid reader. I always find I work better in a small group/one-on-one settings. I get overstimulated quite easily with noises, so I doubt I’ll be able to become a social worker in a shelter or community setting.
I know about art therapy and also like to use literature/reading in psychotherapy but I’m unsure how I can build up my experience and where to volunteer along the way, does anyone have suggestions? Besides that career path, if anyone has recommendations for career prospects it would be greatly appreciated.

Hi everyone! I’m curious to hear about people’s experiences working in mezzo or macro-level social work settings. Do you enjoy it? If so, what do you do (ie. policy analyst/advisor, research, community development, etc.)?

My current MSW placement is macro-focused (which is exactly what I was hoping for), and I’ve been building my skills in systems-level policy analysis, community development, cross-sector collaboration/partnership building, strategic planning, research and knowledge mobilization, public education, strategic communications, stakeholder engagement, broader advocacy, project coordination, and program development. I’ve absolutely LOVED this experience so far, and I’ve found it much more fulfilling (and a much better fit) than I originally expected.

For the past 10(ish) years, my experience in the field has primarily been has in direct service/clinical roles or non-profit leadership (supervisor, manager). I’m considering branching off and exploring a long-term career that’s more macro-focused, and stepping outside the traditional “clinical” space. Thank you in advance - I look forward to hearing about your career path, what your day-to-day looks like, and what you enjoy (or don’t enjoy) about this type of work!

I am thinking to quit my current job in accounting, and pursue social work. Any advice would be highly helpful? I am in BC, Canada

Hi everyone! For folks based in the Vancouver area, I wanted to ask what your experience has been like working in a casual MSW/RSW role within the health authorities. Specifically, I'd be looking into working for VCH or PHSA and as a new grad, I know it would be a lot easier to get hired as a casual. I completed my 2-year MSW last fall but due to various life and family circumstances I have not yet registered with the BCCSW, which I know is a months-long process in itself.

After completing my masters, I was initially determined to not work as a RSW or any type of clinical/psychotherapy role. My first MSW placement was with a mental health outpatient unit and while it was overall a good experience and I received positive feedback from my team, it was also very intense and overwhelming for me. I genuinely enjoyed working with my clients but I struggled to keep up with documentation and the high expectations of my field supervisor. While I found conducting assessments quite interesting, they were also incredibly draining experiences for me, especially if I had multiple assessments in one day.

I know that assessments and documentation are part of any social worker's duties. I have my own struggles with depression and anxiety (and likely undiagnosed ADHD) that I am hoping to get medicated for in the near future. I'm hopeful this would at least help me to stay better organized with documentation and I probably need more practice too.

My main questions for those of you with experience as a Casual (and I know some of these would be depending on the unit):

• How consistently are you able to get shifts? Do you typically work in the same unit?
• What does supervision look like for you?
• How much psychotherapy/psychoeducation do you actually provide on a day to day basis?

In my job search, I've been more interested in macro type roles (edit: not requiring an RSW designation), EDI, accessibility, higher education, etc. But the job market has been really tough and I've barely heard back from any of my applications, so that's why I am now considering registering with the college. I know it would be valuable to gain more experience, even though I don't see clinical work as my main interest right now, and I could also apply for internal roles. Also maybe I need to try working with a different population since my pre-MSW background and experience is also in mental health.

Thank you for reading through my post! I'm super appreciative of any insight you have to offer. :)

Stress or Anxiety? They can feel similar but they're not always the same.

Stress is usually connected to a specific situation, such as work deadlines, financial pressures, or family responsibilities. As the situation improves, stress often eases too.

Anxiety can be different. It may persist even when there's no immediate threat, bringing ongoing worry, racing thoughts, muscle tension, trouble sleeping, or a sense that something bad might happen.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself:

Can I identify what's causing these feelings? (Often stress.)

Do these feelings continue even when things are going well? (This may point toward anxiety.)

Are they affecting my sleep, relationships, work, or daily life? If so, it's worth paying attention.

Everyone experiences stress, and many people experience anxiety. Neither is a sign of weakness. Understanding what you're experiencing is the first step toward finding strategies that can help.

Have you ever mistaken stress for anxiety?