Child, Family, and School Social Workers
Overview
Salary
Demand
Core Tasks
Technology Skills
Tools Used
Top 10 Knowledge Required
Top 10 Skills
Top 10 Abilities
Top 10 Work Activities
Detailed Work Activities
Work Context
Education
Majors
Interests
Top 10 Work Styles
Work Values
Related Careers
Overview
Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
Experience
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Education
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
Job Training
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Examples
Many of these occupations involve coordinating, supervising, managing, or training others. Examples include real estate brokers, sales managers, database administrators, graphic designers, chemists, art directors, and cost estimators.
Provide social services and assistance to improve the social and psychological functioning of children and their families and to maximize the family well-being and the academic functioning of children. May assist parents, arrange adoptions, and find foster homes for abandoned or abused children. In schools, they address such problems as teenage pregnancy, misbehavior, and truancy. May also advise teachers.
Salary Salary
Salary at 10th Percentile: $32K
Salary at 25th Percentile: $38K
Median Salary: $48K
Salary at 75th Percentile: $62K
Salary at 90th Percentile: $80K
Demand
Core Tasks
Place children in foster or adoptive homes, institutions, or medical treatment centers.
Maintain case history records and prepare reports.
Recommend temporary foster care and advise foster or adoptive parents.
Interview clients individually, in families, or in groups, assessing their situations, capabilities, and problems to determine what services are required to meet their needs.
Counsel students whose behavior, school progress, or mental or physical impairment indicate a need for assistance, diagnosing students' problems and arranging for needed services.
Serve as liaisons between students, homes, schools, family services, child guidance clinics, courts, protective services, doctors, and other contacts to help children who face problems, such as disabilities, abuse, or poverty.
Develop and review service plans in consultation with clients and perform follow-ups assessing the quantity and quality of services provided.
Address legal issues, such as child abuse and discipline, assisting with hearings and providing testimony to inform custody arrangements.
Arrange for medical, psychiatric, and other tests that may disclose causes of difficulties and indicate remedial measures.
Consult with parents, teachers, and other school personnel to determine causes of problems, such as truancy and misbehavior, and to implement solutions.
Counsel parents with child rearing problems, interviewing the child and family to determine whether further action is required.
Evaluate personal characteristics and home conditions of foster home or adoption applicants.
Conduct social research.
Refer clients to community resources for services, such as job placement, debt counseling, legal aid, housing, medical treatment, or financial assistance, and provide concrete information, such as where to go and how to apply.
Collect supplementary information needed to assist client, such as employment records, medical records, or school reports.
Counsel individuals, groups, families, or communities regarding issues including mental health, poverty, unemployment, substance abuse, physical abuse, rehabilitation, social adjustment, child care, or medical care.
Provide, find, or arrange for support services, such as child care, homemaker service, prenatal care, substance abuse treatment, job training, counseling, or parenting classes to prevent more serious problems from developing.
Supervise other social workers.
Lead group counseling sessions that provide support in such areas as grief, stress, or chemical dependency.
Serve on policy-making committees, assist in community development, and assist client groups by lobbying for solutions to problems.
Administer welfare programs.
Work in child and adolescent residential institutions.
Determine clients' eligibility for financial assistance.
Technology Skills
Technology
Example
Hot Technology
Tools Used
Tool
Example
Top 10 Knowledge Required
Customer and Personal Service
87%
Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Psychology
83%
Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Therapy and Counseling
83%
Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
English Language
77%
Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Clerical
73%
Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
Sociology and Anthropology
69%
Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.
Education and Training
67%
Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Law and Government
63%
Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Administration and Management
60%
Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Computers and Electronics
56%
Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Top 10 Skills
Active Listening
98%
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Speaking
90%
Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Critical Thinking
83%
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Social Perceptiveness
83%
Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Judgment and Decision Making
80%
Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Reading Comprehension
80%
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Service Orientation
80%
Actively looking for ways to help people.
Complex Problem Solving
78%
Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
Monitoring
78%
Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Coordination
75%
Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Top 10 Abilities
Oral Expression
93%
The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Oral Comprehension
88%
The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Problem Sensitivity
85%
The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
Written Comprehension
83%
The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Written Expression
83%
The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Speech Clarity
80%
The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
Deductive Reasoning
78%
The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Inductive Reasoning
78%
The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
Speech Recognition
78%
The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
Information Ordering
70%
The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
Top 10 Work Activities
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships
95%
Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
94%
Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
Documenting/Recording Information
92%
Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
Getting Information
92%
Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Communicating with Persons Outside Organization
90%
Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
90%
Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
Assisting and Caring for Others
89%
Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
Interacting With Computers
89%
Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
Performing for or Working Directly with the Public
89%
Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests.
Making Decisions and Solving Problems
88%
Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
Detailed Work Activities
Write reports or evaluations.
Maintain client records.
Interview clients to gather information about their backgrounds, needs, or progress.
Advocate for individual or community needs.
Evaluate the effectiveness of counseling or educational programs.
Confer with clients to discuss treatment plans or progress.
Recommend legal actions.
Counsel clients regarding interpersonal issues.
Evaluate potential problems in home or work environments of clients.
Confer with family members to discuss client treatment plans or progress.
Collaborate with other professionals to assess client needs or plan treatments.
Arrange physical or mental health services for clients.
Help clients get needed services or resources.
Refer individuals to educational or work programs.
Refer clients to community or social service programs.
Advise clients or community groups on health issues.
Counsel clients or patients with substance abuse issues.
Collect information about clients.
Counsel clients regarding educational or vocational issues.
Evaluate characteristics of individuals to determine needs or eligibility.
Conduct research on social issues.
Supervise workers providing client or patient services.
Counsel clients or patients regarding personal issues.
Collaborate with other professionals to develop education or assistance programs.
Work Context
Electronic Mail
How often do you use electronic mail in this job?
Contact With Others
How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?
Face-to-Face Discussions
How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?
Telephone
How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?
Work With Work Group or Team
How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job?
Frequency of Decision Making
How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization?
Indoors, Environmentally Controlled
How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions?
Frequency of Conflict Situations
How often are there conflict situations the employee has to face in this job?
Deal With Unpleasant or Angry People
How frequently does the worker have to deal with unpleasant, angry, or discourteous individuals as part of the job requirements?
Time Pressure
How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines?
Education
Majors
Major
Interests
Social
100%
Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.
Enterprising
62%
Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.
Artistic
53%
Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.
Investigative
48%
Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.
Conventional
43%
Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.
Realistic
15%
Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
Top 10 Work Styles
Concern for Others
93%
Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
Dependability
90%
Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Stress Tolerance
87%
Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations.
Integrity
86%
Job requires being honest and ethical.
Adaptability/Flexibility
84%
Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
Initiative
84%
Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
Persistence
83%
Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
Self Control
83%
Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
Cooperation
82%
Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Independence
81%
Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
Work Values
Relationships
96%
Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service.
Achievement
86%
Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.
Independence
77%
Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.
Working Conditions
72%
Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.
Support
67%
Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.
Recognition
53%
Occupations that satisfy this work value offer advancement, potential for leadership, and are often considered prestigious. Corresponding needs are Advancement, Authority, Recognition and Social Status.
