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Higher education

Talk to other parents whose children are preparing for university on our Higher Education forum.

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Original poster

Becoming a social worker

101 replies

debbs77 · 03/03/2017 21:12

I'm looking to study a BA in Social WORK with a view to eventually becoming a social worker.

I've been a full time mum for 13 years and always wanted to work in the health sector. Always wanted to be a midwife but as a single mum the study and placements etc make it impossible for now.

I'd like to be a social worker and perhaps look further later on in to end of life care.

Have anyone done this? Can anyone recommend somewhere for distance learning?

OP posts:

murdershewrote · 04/03/2017 16:59

can anyone help, I've been reading about social work funding and can't seem to get my head around it. I have a degree but only got a pass so I can't do post grad route or employment based.
I could do the BA but am not eligible for student finance as I have had a student loan before.
I'm a single mum to 2 kids, one I would need childcare for. Is there any way I could get funding to do the BA that would cover tuition fees and living costs?
Thank you

Gallavich · 04/03/2017 17:38

I don't think so sadly.

Gallavich · 04/03/2017 17:39

Actually you could apply for a career development loan but that's only up to £10k which wouldn't cover much.

murdershewrote · 04/03/2017 18:19

That's a shame ☹️

Original poster

debbs77 · 04/03/2017 19:12

Sounds like my situation too then. That's a right royal pain. It isn't something I can afford to do otherwise and can't physically attend a university to do it as it would be full time

OP posts:

Original poster

debbs77 · 04/03/2017 20:04

I seem to hit hurdles in everything I want to do! Grrrr

OP posts:

Gallavich · 04/03/2017 20:28

Unfortunately Debs there is a huge amount of placement on a social work degree (rightly) so in order to study and complete the placement days it needs to be full time. The only way it is done part time isOU which is designed to run alongside related employment. It's just not a course you can do part time.

wizzywig · 04/03/2017 22:08

Gallavich what were your working hours generally like?

Gallavich · 04/03/2017 22:09

When?
I did a masters full time.

Original poster

debbs77 · 04/03/2017 22:36

I feel so sad!

Back to the drawing board!

OP posts:

Evalineaa · 04/03/2017 22:54

If you want to become a social worker you can become one.

NOTHING was going to stop me.

I was a penniless single mum on income support. I was homeless.
I had nothing. I had a diagnosis of depression.

But I WAS qualifying as a social worker.

I did my ucas application and when I got my offer I wondered how I would ever cope with all the demands of the job. I was refused a bursary but appealed the decision and got a part payment.

I cut back on everything I didn't need. My son had enough but some days I barely ate.

I couldn't drive and would walk four miles a day to drop my son off and collect him. I had almost a two hour journey to my first year placement.

I got home at 8pm some nights. I left the house at 6am.

I failed a placement and had to redo the full 6 months all over again. I failed two modules and had to redo them too. Every single month there seemed to be something going wrong. One hurdle after the other.

I kept going.

My final placement took me a whole year just to get. I had to keep chasing the University to send my application off and I ran out of my bursary.

I had no money so had to apply for an access to
Learning fund payment and was successful. I lived on about £50 a week for my final placement.

I had an hour and a half journey to my final placement. A three hours round trip each day, looking after my son singlehandedly when I got back. No weekend to recover.

I failed my dissertation and had to do it again. It took me over four years to qualify.

When I got my qualified social worker award letter I literally fell to the floor. I ended up
With a merit.

To be honest even if I'd lost all my limbs and went bankrupt, I would have qualified.

If you really want to do something you will. Trust
Me.

If you want to do it you can.

wizzywig · 04/03/2017 23:02

evalina bloody hell you must have cried! gallavich sorry i meant working hours when you were working as a sw.

Gallavich · 04/03/2017 23:03

I'm a social worker now!
I work 33 hours a week. I'm very disciplined about not working at home. It's not expected in my local authority- I know lots of people do but I just don't.

wizzywig · 04/03/2017 23:06

Op how old are your kids? Is there the potential of your older kids helping at home with the younger kids?

Original poster

debbs77 · 04/03/2017 23:32

Wow! That's amazing!!

My children are 3, 4, 8, 9, 11 and 13. I have no childcare other than nursery and do everything without help!

It might be possible next year when my youngest goes to school. I could save for it in the meantime xxx

OP posts:

Evalineaa · 04/03/2017 23:42

The 13 year old Could help quite a bit. Maybe offer to pay her.

Original poster

debbs77 · 04/03/2017 23:43

She is really good, and very helpful! I'll definitely continue to look into it.

OP posts:

murdershewrote · 05/03/2017 05:29

Evalinnea well done you got there in the end. But I'm assuming you were able to access student loans? I am a single mum on income support at the moment and can't get another student loan as I've had one before. So as much as I want it, my kids and I can't live off fresh air so I don't think it's fair to say if you want something badly enough you'll do it. There lots of things in life I'd really like to do but can't because finances are a barrier!

Evalineaa · 05/03/2017 07:36

No I wasn't entitle to any student loads.

I survived largely on a hardship
Payment from the university. All universities have something called a hardship fund.

My only other income was a social worker bursary which was less than income support.

If I'd got income support at the time I'd have felt like a millionaire!

Evalineaa · 05/03/2017 07:38

You can continue getting all the benefits you're getting now if you became a student as you're a single mum.

It wouldn't be worth you applying for any student finance anyway as it wouldn't be anymore than the income you have now.

So don't let that be a barrier.

murdershewrote · 05/03/2017 12:44

Evanlinnea I didn't realise you could continue to. Lain income support so thanks for that. How though did you pay for the tuition fees if you didn't have a student loan? They are 9k per year from what I have read online for the BA

Hopeless29 · 05/03/2017 12:47

I payed the full cost. I think it was a total of 9k a year.

I paid that from the income I had. It wasn't easy. But doable.

Hopeless29 · 05/03/2017 12:49

I wasn't in the situation of a single mum. But I was practically penniless when I qualified. Money was so tight. But it's only for a few years and the satisfaction of knowing you're going to be achieving something you want is incredible.

Single parents are better off than your average student.

murdershewrote · 05/03/2017 13:04

Hopeless, so did you already have the 9k per year saved? I don't have savings so that's the issue. You say single mums are better off than students, but I have a mortgage, car and two kids to pay for so can't magic up 9k. If I could cover the course fees somehow I'd be able to survive on the money I have I think.

Hopeless29 · 05/03/2017 13:14

I paid it in instalments.
Some courses are less than 9k a year. And a PgDip is cheaper as there's less modules.

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