Social Worker Advice Needed

[Daukaa]

Im currently in two minds, I have a good paying job £25K and soon to go up a band so in 4 Years will max out at £30K. The only thing with this job is that it will become boring over time and is not what I went to university for, in fact I had a similar job when I completed university and left it to pursue a job which was more interesting and more to do with my degree in engineering. Due to circumstances i have ended back into a job I find dull. To make a long story short I am contemplating saving money for two years and getting a part time job in something to do with mental health (for a year) and then applying for MA Social Work. (by the way Im mid 30s)

The only issue I have, is if I do it will I be able to get a job as a social worker in mental health ( I have a few criminal records that are all 10 years old, most serious one is assault on police officer) I am scared if I do everything , i might not be able to find a job in this area due to my past.

I have always wanted to help people as I have had mental health issues myself and also interested in Psychology.

My wish would be to be a social worker in mental health for 5-8 years full time and then go part time which should allow me to continue my studies and do a PhD.

So the main question is can a person be a social worker even if they have convictions from there past?

Hi Daukaa, not sure if you are still considering a move into social work as I realise this was posted a while back now (I want a career change so I'm trawling through here for advice!). I am a social worker and don't personally have any previous convictions but know other social workers who have/ including other students when I was training. I don't think you would be automatically excluded from entering the profession based on what you have said in your post but could potentially make finding work harder, particularly as one offence was an assault. I think how much of an impact it will have will depend on context etc (for example where you unwell at the time of the assaults?). You could speak with the social work department at the university you would want to study at to discuss this with them (you would have an interview for suitability before joining the course anyway where you could explain what has changed from the time of your offending etc). If the university wouldn't rule out accepting you onto the course I'd say give it a go.