Explore
FSU students have designed a variety of blueprints to design their careers when engaging in the Social Work major. There are some commonalities with career design blueprints, which are the foundation building blocks of Self-Knowledge and Options Knowledge. Whether you are just beginning to design your career or updating your design, the information, tools, and materials below will provide you with a solid foundation to design your career.
Self-Knowledge
To help you explore, here are interests, values, and skills commonly associated with common career fields related to Social Work. This list is not exhaustive yet gives you a starting point for your Career Design.
Interests
Social
Enterprising
Conventional
Values
Achievement
Independence
Working Conditions
Key Transferrable Skills
Communication
Critical Thinking & Problem Solving
Research & Innovation
Teamwork & Cross-cultural Collaboration
Key Technical Skills
Counseling
Crisis Intervention
Case Management
Learn More about You
The Career Center provides assessments that can help you explore and identify your interests, values, and skills. Utilize the Computer Assisted Career Guidance Systems and virtual values activity to see how your interest, values, and skills match those that are closely correlated with this major and compare occupation options that develop from your assessment results to those found in this blueprint.
Options Knowledge
General Information and Resources
Access valid and reliable occupation information through the resources below and compare the occupations you explore to your self-knowledge.
Sample Occupations
Bachelor’s Degree
Assessment Specialist, Caseworker/Case Manager, Child and Family Social Worker, Community Organizer, Correctional-Treatment Specialist, Criminal Justice Social Worker, Domestic Violence Counselor, Early Intervention Specialist, Geriatric Care Manager/ Specialist, Gerontologist, HIV Specialist, Hospice Social Worker, Human Rights Spokesperson, Human Services Program, Specialist/Provider, Independent Living Specialist, Mediation Counselor, Medical Social Worker, Mental Health Tech/Aid, Policy Analyst, Probation/Parole Officer, Protective Service Worker, Psychiatric Social Worker, Public Assistance Worker, Quality Assurance Coordinator, School Social Worker, Social and Human Service Specialist, Social Services Coordinator, Supported Living Coordinator, Veterans Services, Victim Advocate, Youth Services Worker
Master’s Degree
Addiction Counselor, Agency Director, Behavioral Therapist, Bereavement Counselor, Crisis Counselor, Clinical Social Worker, Employee Assistance Counselor, Guidance Counselor, Marriage and Family Therapist, Mental Health Counselor, Social and Community Services Manager
Doctoral Degree
Psychotherapist, College Professor, Clinical Researcher
Salary Range Based on Sample Occupations
Introductory Range: $29,540 - $54,550
Mid-Career Range: $56,990 – $89,220
Experienced Range: $96,820 - $162,640
Additional salary information:
FSU Graduating Senior Survey Dashboard
Board of Governors Dashboard
Explore the FSU Community to Find Opportunities that Match You
To see your major's tailored CandidCareer playlist click here
Explore the FSU Community to Find Opportunities that Match You
Connect with The Career Center
Drop-in to Career Advising with the Career Center and meet with a Career Advisor to explore and build your Individual Action Plan.
Drop-in Career Advising Options
Connect with your Career Liaison who specializes in supporting students in this major and related industries.
Sample Registered Student Organizations
Research Graduate and Professional School Options
Depending on your long-term goals, graduate school might be part of you career design. Utilize these resources using the keyword "Social Work, Counseling" to research your options.
Career Cornerstone Petersons US News & World Report Grad Schools.com Study.com
Career, Internship and Graduate School Fairs
Each year the Career Center hosts career, internship and graduate school fairs to help students connect with employers. These events and more can be found in NoleNetwork, the centralized job board and connection to career events and opportunities at FSU.
Engage
Engage with the people and opportunities to learn more about yourself and career options. Career Advisors, Career Liaisons, Alumni, ProfessioNole Mentors, employers and other people you meet through involvement on and off campus will help you refine your career design.
After finding a Registered Student Organization to engage with, engage with Career Center and FSU Campus events and Programs to help you connect and build your network while also developing ProfessioNole Competencies.
Career Center Events and Programs
Connect with professionals and FSU Alumni who are in careers that you want to learn more about or tryout a career to see how it matches your interest, values, and skills.
FSU Events and Programs
Division of Student Affairs Programs
At FSU there is a program for everyone. Engage with one of the many programs that will help you develop, academically, personally, socially, and help you design your career.
Build Your Skills and Earn Badges
Earn badges and develop your ProfessioNole Competencies. From Financial Success options to learning how to build an App, there is a badging pathway for you. Pathways allow you to enhance your skills while working autonomously and alongside your peers, industry experts, and other ProfessioNoles. While you are earning badges, be sure to engage in ProfessioNole Ready so you are prepared to seek new experiences that will help you in your career design.
Prepare to Connect
As you design your career, the Career Center can help you prepare to connect with employers and graduate and professional school programs through services, programs, and events.
Services
Programs
Events
Build Your Network
FSU is here to help you build your network. However, you can also get engaged with opportunities and groups outside of the FSU community by getting involved with professional associations and engaging in or following groups on LinkedIn.
Engage in Professional Organizations
Engage in LinkedIn Groups
To search for LinkedIn Groups you can use the names of the associations above in the LinkedIn search box and set your filter to groups or companies. You can then generate a list of LinkedIn Groups to explore and join or connect. Additionally, try some of the following keywords:
Social Work Community Advocate Social Services Case Management Counseling
Experience
Experiences like internships, leadership, research, creative works and global engagement, also known as experiential learning or formative experience, are a key part of determining your interests, values, and skills and developing competencies for career success. Experiential learning provides the opportunity to apply the knowledge you have gained in the classroom to a real-world experience while enhancing your transferrable and industry specific skills. By engaging in these types of experiences, you can “try on” the various work environments within your aspirational career field.
Experience Essentials
Many FSU Students engage in experiences throughout the year, however it is important to know when application deadlines occur and that a majority of employers recruit heavily in the Fall semester to hire interns for the upcoming summer. Below are some samples of possible experiences related to this major.
Types of Experiences
Research
Get involved with the Institute for Research and Development.
Join an Institute or Center Affiliate for Family Violence Studies, Multidisciplinary Evaluation & Consulting Center, Justice Research and Development, or Trinity Institute on Addictions.
Get involved with the College of Social Work Arts & Athletics Program targeting youth ages 11-14, the program aims to enhance self-awareness, confidence, emotional literacy, and interpersonal relationship skills while cultivating a resilient mindset.
Leadership
Earn the LEAD in Social Work Certificate
Become involved with the National Association of Social Workers Florida Chapter and Big Bend Unit
Service
Volunteer with the FSU Multidisciplinary Center
Get involved with the City Initiative to End Homelessness, “Homeward Bound,” Refuge House (services for battered women and their children), National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), Big Bend Cares, OASIS Center for Women and Girls, Tallahassee Veterans Village, or Big Bend Hospice.
Join the FSU Student Association of Social Workers and participate in the annual Wendy P. Cook Service Project to end homelessness. Volunteer with justice-related organizations or re-entry programs.
Sign up for the Big Bend A.F.T.E.R. Reentry Coalition Listserv.
Get involved with a justice-related organization identified by the Bureau of Justice Assistance
Find Experiences
FSU provides or connects students with experiences every day. For internships, the Career Center's NoleNetwork connects students to internship opportunities on campus, across the country, and even globally. The Career Center's "Gain Experience" webpage also connects you with opportunities and other FSU departments. Other departments and programs on campus can also help connect with an experience that matches your career design.
Experiences Through FSU
Center for Undergraduate Research and Academic Engagement
The Center for Global Engagement
The Center for Leadership and Social Change
Sample Employers
- Apalachee Center
- Big Bend Homeless Coalition
- Capital City Youth Services
- CESC / The Kearney Center
- Florida Department of Children and Families
- Florida Department of Health
- Florida Department of Juvenile Justice
- Lehigh Regional Medical Center
- Refuge House
- Suncoast Center, Inc.
Sample Work Settings
- Advocacy Programs
- Child Welfare & Protection Services
- Correctional Facilities
- Court System
- Educational Institutions
- Federal, State, & Local Agencies
- Juvenile Justice Programs
- Non-Profit Organizations
- Peace Corps/VISTA
- Victim Advocate Programs
Earn Recognition for Your Experience
Get recognized for your experiences. Whether it is one experience or a combination of various types of experiences that you engage in and complete during your time at FSU, there is a recognition program for you. Checkout the Experience Recognition Program options through the FSU Career Center and the Garnet and Gold Scholar Society, which is the highest experience recognition and honor offered at FSU.
Construct Your Blueprint
Now that you have the tools and basic concepts to being building your career. Start designing your custom blueprint.
Individual Learning Plan
As you design your career and build your blueprint create overarching goals with smaller smart goals that create the building blocks of your blueprint. Revisit and revise your plan as you meet your goals. If you get stuck, visit the FSU Career Center.
