Dominic Leo Thaikho, PhD
Dimapur, March 20 (EMN): The massive transformation in technology in the 21st century has revolutionised educational scenario and job markets even in the frontier regions like Northeast India. There is shrinking of jobs and at the same time increase in the field of education and career choices. Lack of awareness among our students and parents about the plethora of career choices hinders the students in the long term. Traditionally, as a student, we were given a vision from childhood about some fixed and specific careers. This phenomenon gradually causes a blindside about other career choices, selective career amnesia or mismatch due to the lack of awareness about the importance of exploring beyond then so-called elite white-collar jobs like civil services, doctors, engineers and so on. The other hindrance is the ‘result-dependency career choices’; our six senses seem to be fully awake from deep hibernation only after the declaration of 10+2 or graduate results. Thus, the consciousness of the criticality of pursuing a career does not maintain pace, although the surrounding environment changes at a speedy rate.
The knowledge of streamlining the subjects, widening its scope and career awareness, becomes a crucial factor and an essential life skill. Choosing a stream or subjects is a critical decision as one ideally needs to be aware of different sets of career alternatives in the rapidly changing labour markets. This awareness itself is a self-discovery process that helps students to identify their interests, skills, the education and training required in accomplishing the same.
In this context, I would like to draw the attention of young students looking to enter into the profession of ‘Social Work’ and social sector. It is hard being a young undergraduate or fresh graduate looking ahead to enrol in a college or university; still more laborious when you are a first-generation learner, and your parents are busy in their fields. You might have thought about it for a long time, and after much thought, you decided to pursue ‘Social Work’. The greater challenge, though, is when you start looking for the college or university. Therefore, if you are looking to explore in the field of ‘Social Work’, some of the information below might be helpful.
What is Social Work?
Social work is a practice-based profession and an academic discipline that promotes social change and development, social cohesion, and the empowerment and liberation of people. Principles of social justice, human rights, collective responsibility and respect for diversities are central to social work. Underpinned by theories of social work, social sciences, humanities and indigenous knowledge, social work engages people and structures to address life challenges and enhance wellbeing such as inequality, injustice and discrimination (IFSW 2014).
The academic qualifications accredited by the University Grants Commission (UGC) include a Bachelor of Social Work (BSW), Master of Social Work (MSW) and doctoral degree. The curriculum provides entry-level professional social work education addressing knowledge, skills and values that can be applied across the diverse range of practice settings, fields of practice and methods of social work practice, and includes an extensive period of field education.
Why choose Social Work as a profession?
If you are interested and looking forward to joining and contributing to the social impact space, like working with the people and making the world better; if you are pre-occupied with these ideas, I think social work would be the right profession for you.
Social work as a profession is a challenging and fascinating career pathway; it spans across multiple career options, depending on the specialisation you pursue and personal career goals, interests and the work environment you choose. After completing the social work university education, social workers can undertake different roles: counselling, psychiatric social worker, advocacy, community engagement and social actions to assist people at both personal and social level.
Social workers also contribute to policy development, education and research, particularly on issues related to social justice and marginalisation. They are also concerned with the wellbeing of individuals, families, groups and communities and always work with people in the context of their physical, cultural, social and structural environments.
How do you become a social worker?
The social work profession at times, can be mentally and emotionally exhausting. Social workers often work with a massive caseload and in limited time and resources. So, they should be compassionate yet assertive when dealing with clients. They must have great diversity, sensitivity, interpersonal skills, problem-solving, organisational and time management skills. At the same time, they must know how to take care of themselves to avoid burnout, stress and fatigue.
The profession in different countries undergoes various examinations to be certified and licensed as ‘Social Worker’ beside the necessary educational requirements of a bachelor’s degree in social work (BSW) and Master’s degree in social work (MSW). This degree is the basic foundation that prepares the students for service positions in various organisations such as government, private and non-profit organisations.
In India, the eligibility to be called as ‘Social Worker’ is having the necessary educational requirements of a BSW or MSW. BSW is the basic foundation without any specialisation, unlike MSW that offers specialisation. However, at times, it is also provided as a generic course. The specialisations are based on sectoral or thematic areas such as Health and Mental Health (also known as Medical and Psychiatric Social Work), Counselling, Community Development, Family and Child, Criminology and Justice, Governance, Social Entrepreneurship, Human Resource and Labour Welfare, Management of Non-profit Organisation, Women Studies, and Peace and Conflict.
MSW programmes require students to complete field-based practice, an internship or practicum. This not only equips the students in a particular thematic area, but also provides them with a larger level of expertise, enabling them to deliver more effectively in the field.
Eligibility and entrance examination
To pursue a profession in social work, one can pursue BSW at the undergraduate level, MSW at postgraduate level and higher education i.e., MPhil and PhD after completing post-graduation, which is offered by many universities and colleges.
To pursue BSW, a three-year course, a candidate needs to complete 10+2 in any stream but preferably in social sciences. For MSW, a candidate needs to complete bachelor’s degree, ideally in BSW and social sciences but other subjects are not restricted as well. However, for MSW with specialisation such as clinical counselling, the candidates might need to have taken psychology in bachelor’s degree.
The basic eligibility and process of pursuing in social work profession:
The entrance examination or selection process and students’ intake vary from institution to institution. It is based on all India entrance examination conducted by the respective university and made through a written test, group discussion and interview. The entrance examination is basically to test and assess mental ability and general awareness, while the interview is aimed at identifying the candidates with a genuine interest in social work. For instance, the admissions to Masters Programme at Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) is made through a two-stage process: 1) TISS-NET (TISS National Entrance Test): It is a standard screening test based on computer-based test with 100 objective multiple-choice questions. Those shortlisted proceed to the second stage. 2) PIT/PI (Pre-Interview Test and Personal Interview): In this stage, some variations might include such as group discussions (GD) or aptitude test (AT) as part of the PIT (see details on www.tiss.edu).
Some of the Social Work educational colleges/institutes/universities in North East India
| College/University | Programmes offered |
| Assam University, Silchar | BSW, MSW, MPhil & PhD |
| Assam Don Bosco University, Guwahati | MSW, PhD |
| Assam Downtown University, Guwahati | BSW & MSW |
| Bosco Institute, Jorhat | MSW |
| Lokopriya Gopinath Bordoloi Regional Institute of Mental Health, Dept. of Pyschiatric Social Work, Tezpur | MPhil in Psychiatric Social Work |
| Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Guwahati Campus, | BA-MA integrated in Social Sciences, MSW, MPhil & PhD |
| Don Bosco College, Maram, | BSW & MSW |
| College of Social Work | BSW |
| Indira Gandhi National Tribal University, Manipur Campus, | BSW, MSW, MPhil & PhD |
| Lungnila Elizabeth College of Social Work, Senapati | BSW |
| Martin Luther Christian University, Shillong | BSW & MSW |
| St. Edmund’s College, Shillong | BSW & MSW |
| University of Science and Technology, Meghalaya, | BSW & MSW |
| Women’s College, Shillong, BSW | |
| Mizoram University, Aizawl | BSW, MSW, MPhil & PhD |
| Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education and Development | BSW, MSW & Diploma Courses |
| North East Institute of Social Sciences and Research (NEISSR), Dimapur | MSW |
| St. Joseph University, Dimapur | BSW |
| The Global Open University, Dimapur | MSW |
Some of the colleges/universities that offer Social Work education in mainland India are:
Career opportunities
Social work as a career is not only very enticing but also has many options, so it’s very challenging to categorise accurately. Many social workers deal with individuals, family or groups. Others deal on the focus areas of the organisations, for instance, education, healthcare, livelihood, community development, environmental sustainability or right-based approach such as women’s rights, LGBT rights, child rights etc. It is also observed that many social work graduates are absorbed in government projects like NHM and NRLM; some in national and international NGOs, and some became entrepreneurs. It is also a fact that many social work graduates leave their jobs due to low salaries and dissatisfaction with work.
In general, social workers have career opportunities within the four main types of organisations in the space as classified by Gupta and Mahajan (2020):
i) On the ground practitioners
ii) Funding organisations
iii) Intermediaries and ecosystem-focused organisations
iv) Think tanks and academia
Dominic Leo Thaikho received his doctorate from the School of Social Work, TISS, Mumbai and MA in Social Work with specialisation in Medical & Psychiatric Social Work, TISS, Mumbai. He can be contacted at dleo.tiss@gmail.com.