Dear social work students, you are about to enter 2022. What will you do to write your new story? How will you balance and organize your life with a sense of newness after the holidays? Based on your experiences this past semester, what would you like to do differently for this upcoming semester?
As a first-generation college grad, I learned how to navigate the worlds of academia, and professional and personal life … with a lot of trial and error. However, trial and error are opportunities for learning and building confidence. As a student balancing your field placement, classes, employment, and home life can seem challenging. Build a pandemic into the picture in addition to other societal difficulties, it may seem like you are doing the best you can to keep up.
I remember as if it was yesterday. My undergraduate field placement was with a foster care agency. My graduate field placements were at a base service unit providing mental health services, then at a residential facility for justice-involved youth. For my doctoral program, my placement was at a university in the teaching environment. I know the experience of trying to balance all these components as an adult learner and first-generation college grad. Therefore, every chance I get, I try to come up with ways to make the process a little more streamlined for you, the current student.
Some of those ways have been through developing The Social Work Lounge Facebook group. In this group, the intention is to expose you to the diversity of social work, career opportunities, current events, and to answer many of the questions that circle your mind. I also know the importance of financial wellness. This has led to the development of the book, Let’s Talk about Finances: A Path to Financial Wellness for Social Work Students. This book is currently in progress and the release date will be March 1, 2022, just in time for National Social Work Month. This book gives simple tips to help build a financial wellness mindset.
What else? Remember I started this blog by writing about field placements. Well, that is an aspect of your education where you need to stay organized. I am still a paper and pencil person when it comes to my organizing tools. As a result, I posted a Social Work Field Placement Organizer on my website. This organizer is for your weekly notes, tasks, required paperwork such as supervision documents, and to keep track of your field hours.
To see these items, visit the My Store link on my website veronica.hardy.com. More ideas to come to help you streamline your career journey and begin writing a new story for 2022!