When I tell someone I’m going to school for social work I generally get one of these two remarks:

"You’re not going to make any money!!"

Or, "wow I could never do that!"

And before I started taking classes and doing research on it I thought the same things. To give you a little background, I was originally going to school for dietetics which is the study about nutrition. Once I started taking classes, I realized I wasn’t really into it as much as I thought I would be. So I became undecided which freaked me out what was I going to do? All I knew was I wanted to help people which there are so many jobs that do that. I took a class made for students who are undecided, we did a lot of projects finding out about ourselves and different careers but I still was so confused. Finally, I got to sit down with my teacher and after explaining that I just wanted to help people he said “maybe you should look at social work?” At first I was completely against this, I thought the same things as above, I’m going to make no money and I could never do that job. There was just no way.

Eventually I did my research and guess what? Those are misconceptions. Yeah maybe I’m not going to be a millionaire but I would be able to make plenty to get by. And certain jobs are much more stressful then others, and some days will also be more stressful then others but isn't that what most jobs are like? I thought for a moment and realized I’m strong and I could do this if I really wanted to. So I went and job shadowed a few social workers at a nearby hospital. I was able to see what happens on the OB unit and the geriatric unit. After that day, I knew that's what I wanted to do. I wanted to be a social worker.

So why do I want to be a social worker? Well like I said, I want to help people and that’s what social workers do every day. They get to help people in some of the most special ways possible. They get to assist parents in adopting kids when they can’t have them. They help children get out of abusive households. They get to be there for people when someone special passes away and help them cope. They get to help people with the problems they’re facing that they can’t talk to anybody about. Social workers are the outlets for people who feel like they have nobody to confide in. They’re the ones that try to keep you and your family stress free. They go above and beyond to help everybody no matter what their gender, race, ethnicity, age, sexuality, class, job or what their past is. They will literally help anybody that needs them and honestly we need more people like that in this world. And even better, social workers are everywhere. I can work in hospitals, schools, nursing homes, rehabilitation centers, mental health facilities, universities, adoption centers, prisons, and so many others places. So if I decide that I don’t like working in a certain area, I can just go work somewhere else without having to go back to school and get a different degree. I can help so many different people in so many different ways and places.

So, I may not make the Forbes list of youngest billionaires and some days I may be stressed out of my mind. But if I can help just one person, I will be happy and I know with social work I will be able to do that every single day.