MA prepared me for my job as a social worker
Ano Mutemachimwe graduated from the MA Social Work programme in 2024.听
听I am a newly-qualified social worker working in children鈥檚 services. I work within a team known as the Assessment and Intervention team. The role involves working in partnership with children, young people and their families to achieve the best possible outcomes for them. This involves undertaking assessments of the needs of individual children to determine what services to provide and what action to take.听
听The purpose of the assessment is always:听听
- To gather important information about a child and family.听
- To analyse their needs and/or the nature and level of any risk and harm being suffered by the child.听
- To decide whether the child is a Child in Need (Section 17) and/or is suffering or likely to suffer Significant Harm (Section 47); and听
- To provide support to address those needs to improve the child’s outcomes and welfare and, where necessary, to make them safe;听
Every assessment must be informed by the views of the child as well as the family, and a child’s wishes and feelings must be sought regarding the provision of services to be delivered.听
How the degree prepared me for the role听
The degree has both a strong theoretical basis but brilliantly pairs it up with a very practical application. I particularly enjoyed and benefitted immensely from the two placements (70 days in year 1 and 100 days in year 2). The placements allowed me to apply my learnings within a practical situation. During placements I got to gain hands-on experience, learn from and interact with more experienced colleagues and develop my own skills and capabilities. This proved pivotal in my readiness and confidence as a newly-qualified social worker.听听
I had such a positive experience at the 黑料大湿Posts – the two years literally flew by! That鈥檚 how much I enjoyed the course. I especially liked being part of a small and diverse cohort. I learnt from both my academic tutors but also from my peers on the programme with their varied work and life experiences.听
The University has class sizes that foster conductive learning in a small and friendly atmosphere. The academic tutors are highly experienced with both academic and practice experience that prepared me for my role as a social worker.听
Looking to the future and my advice听
I look forward to continuing to develop my skills as a practicing social worker. In due course I hope to be able to mentor other students and professionals joining the profession, possibly as a practice educator.听
I would encourage anyone considering University who wants to follow a similar career path to do so. The course is well designed to prepare you for the role of a social worker. You will be well supported both on campus and on placement to develop your learning into a competent practitioner.听
To find out more about Social Work degrees at the 黑料大湿Posts, visit: www.chi.ac.uk/social-work/听