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The primary job of a clinical social worker is to help clients with domestic abuse, disabilities, unemployment, diseases, drug abuse and housing problems etc. Social workers help in improving the quality of life of the affected people. Social workers tend to be very helpful and aspire to improve the conditions of normal human life. They are one of the most productive members of the society that use examples, history and communication skills to improve the lives of their individual clients. They provide the essential tools and resources to the people along with counseling services. Social workers use different methods like individual and group therapy sessions for the betterment of downtrodden. These highly trained professionals are self-motivated.
Clinical social workers study the root causes of the problems and their subsequent solutions. It is a very demanding job that demands utmost dedication and sincerity. Most of the clinical social workers are having an undergraduate or master's degree. They study subjects like human behavior, psychology, public policy, development psychology, clinical practice, counseling techniques and research etc. Clinical social workers often go for specializations in a specific field of study like substance abuse social work, public health social work, medical social work, family and child social work or school social work etc. However, their real training begins while they join a job or complete their internships. Working at mental health facilities helps them in gaining valuable practical experience. Many states require these professionals to clear licensing examination.
Clinical social services programs help the social workers in understanding a variety of issues that adversely affect normal human lives. There is a constant demand for clinical social workers in different walks of life. Factors like growing and aging population and shortage of skilled social workers should fuel the demand for clinical social workers. Those with specialized training and extensive experience are more likely to be offered good employment opportunities.
In India, quite a number of reputed institutes offer courses on social work.
Some of them are:-
Indian Institute of Social Welfare and Business Management, Calcutta University
University of Delhi, Delhi
Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai
Madras School of Social Work, Egmore, Chennai
Palli Sangthan Vibhag, Shantiniketan
Jamia Millia Islamia, Jamia Nagar, New Delhi
Institute of Social Sciences, Agra
The options available to the students of social work are, graduate and post graduate degrees and diplomas. Ideally, one should complete his/her Masters in Social Work (MSW). It is a 2 years course open to all graduates from any stream. Additionally, students can prefer to go for M.Phil. and PhD programmes in Social Work offered by many institutions. One also needs to have a genuine desire to serve the underprivileged in far from perfect working conditions.
Social workers can specialize in different departments. For instance, criminology, medical and psychiatric social work, community development, labor welfare and industrial relations, child care and family services and in world organizations such as the United Nations etc. The places where social workers can find suitable employment in India are, prisons, government departments, clinics, hospitals, sanatoria, child guidance clinics, counseling centers, mental hospitals, medical colleges, community public health centers, voluntary agencies, NGOs and personnel department of Industrial and Corporate sectors etc.
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