B.S. Addictions Focus, where to go from here?

[rdm3000]

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I will be graduating within the next year with a B.S. in Addiction Studies and I am very lost. I have exhausted the current resources available to me at my university resulting in nothing conclusive, which is very upsetting. I've gotten a plethora of responses and suggestions with no real common theme and have decided to post here for some advice.

I am going to be 21 when I graduate and will get my degree in 3 years. So I will be fairly young and do not feel that going into the substance abuse field at this age will get me very far (age bias is something I have already delt with trying to get internships etc) I planned on being an undergrad for 5 years and thus planned my finances accordingly. With that said, I have a few options here:

1. Get another undergrad degree in Social Work.
2. Go right to a graduate program.
3. Take time off and work.

I am leaning more towards option two right now, but that is only because I am not sure if I want to go to grad school for social work or just go for counseling. Also, I have discovered that a number of graduate social worker programs offer an accelerated 1 year program if you have a BSW.

My future career goal is to specialize in mental health and substance abuse. I know that a large majority of social workers do just that based on what I have read online. However the majority of my professors(with mental health & substance abuse experience) got their graduate degrees in counseling or something other than social work.

So, with all of that said.... what would you all suggest I do?

If you suggest option 1, what would be the best schools to give me the most experience, academic qualifications, and over all the best chances of excelling in my career?

(disregard the time required for degrees or financial aspect of your decision making, I have a 4.0 GPA, am highly involved on campus, and a recovering addict so hopefully are I am well rounded enough to get into where I would most benefit from)

Thanks in advance for the answers and sorry for the lengthily first post!

 

[xenobart]

I'm biased towards option number 3 for you. I don't think taking another two years to get a BSW will do you much good. you can get the same jobs with a BSW as another social science degree, and you'll spend less money getting a 2-year MSW than you will with two more years of undergrad and a one-year MSW.I also don't think you should go immediately into a graduate program if you're not completely confident in what degree you want to get.


If you go out into the field and get work experience in human services, you'll be able to discover / solidify your main interests in the field and build up experience that you can have on your resume after you graduate. The time will help you choose the right masters degree for those interests, whether it's an MSW or something else. It also means you'll be a bit older when you graduate and will command more respect. I feel the time I took off between my BA and MSW really helped me grow as a person and in maturity as well. Additionally, MSWs I've talked to who have work experience in the field between degrees (rather than going straight from undergrad to the MSW) have an easier time finding work as the masters level.

 

[mededu]

Considering the present economic situation:

Take time off and work

You will get time to accumulate funds for yourself.

 

[Aggieanthony]

Considering the current economic crisis, I conclude it'd be in your best interest to hop right into graduate school! You have a 4.0 and lots of ECs. Undoubtedly you can get excellent LoRs, and as a recovering addict, you will have something to write about in your PS.

Trying to get a job right now with just a Bachelor's degree, when people with MPHs, MBAs, and every other form of Master's level education are also struggling and in the market is simply not advisable. Stay in academia, take advantage of financial aid (Especially with your GPA, should be a shoo-in).

At the very least, apply to MSW programs!! What's the harm in that? Unless you fancy the idea of working at Taco Bell as some sort of social work-applicable occupation (Which is probably the only place you'd end up being able to find work... Kudos to you if you found somewhere to put a BSW to use!)

Then, if you get into an MSW program, congratulations! If not, make sure you keep on the job outlook for something applicable. I remember considering an MSW at a school here in California and after long conversations with advisers and an open-house visitation, it seemed as though you either need a lot of applicable work/life experience (So many people were current California state employees looking for a salary increase!) OR stellar undergraduate GPA and some sort of EC that really made the applicant stand out.

I decided that social work really isn't my thing, as working with children (Which seems inevitable in the field, at least during some point in your career on your way to an LCSW) is definitely not for me. But, it would behoove you to make contact with MSW program advisers! For what it's worth, which isn't much around here, I found the advisers/admissions people at MSW programs to be much less haughty and elitist than anyone I ever spoke to during this last round of applications for Ph.D/Psy.d programs at universities in California! So don't be bashful! Go out past your comfort zone at your university (Applause for exhausting the resources available to you, though!), throw out e-mails and phone calls, and you'll be able to expand your knowledge exponentially over the close-minded, biased folks here on SDN (Myself included at times).

Cheers!

 

[knowing]

I will be graduating within the next year with a B.S. in Addiction Studies and I am very lost. I have exhausted the current resources available to me at my university resulting in nothing conclusive, which is very upsetting. I've gotten a plethora of responses and suggestions with no real common theme and have decided to post here for some advice.

I am going to be 21 when I graduate and will get my degree in 3 years. So I will be fairly young and do not feel that going into the substance abuse field at this age will get me very far (age bias is something I have already delt with trying to get internships etc) I planned on being an undergrad for 5 years and thus planned my finances accordingly. With that said, I have a few options here:

1. Get another undergrad degree in Social Work.
2. Go right to a graduate program.
3. Take time off and work.

I am leaning more towards option two right now, but that is only because I am not sure if I want to go to grad school for social work or just go for counseling. Also, I have discovered that a number of graduate social worker programs offer an accelerated 1 year program if you have a BSW.

My future career goal is to specialize in mental health and substance abuse. I know that a large majority of social workers do just that based on what I have read online. However the majority of my professors(with mental health & substance abuse experience) got their graduate degrees in counseling or something other than social work.

So, with all of that said.... what would you all suggest I do?

If you suggest option 1, what would be the best schools to give me the most experience, academic qualifications, and over all the best chances of excelling in my career?

(disregard the time required for degrees or financial aspect of your decision making, I have a 4.0 GPA, am highly involved on campus, and a recovering addict so hopefully are I am well rounded enough to get into where I would most benefit from)

Thanks in advance for the answers and sorry for the lengthily first post!

Option #2 is the one I recommend. I am older 36...attempting to get ready to apply for grad schools. I am speaking from experience when I say you should go to grad school now while you are younger. I have a son that will be 18 this year and there is no way I would recommend him not going to grad school if he were in your position. If you do not get in.... you have many more years in front of you to continue trying. Oh yeah...and don't get married until you are finished with all the degrees.😀