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ABSTRACT
Entering the work of world can involve significant challenges for the beginning practitioner. The transition process from university to work can play an important role in the emerging practitioner’s development as a social worker. The present longitudinal study follows 12 Swedish social work graduates from university and over their first four years in practice. The study provides an insight into how newly educated practitioners may experience the transition from university to the world of work and considers how they can be prepared and supported to meet the challenges of practice within contemporary work contexts. The students were first interviewed just prior to leaving university [see Tham & Lynch (2014). Prepared for practice? Graduating social work students’ reflections on their education, competence and skills. Social Work Education, 33(6), 704–717]. This paper captures the reflections of these students after four months in practice. Feelings of unpreparedness, unorganised, or even ‘chaotic’ perceptions of the workplace and uncertainty about the future were emergent themes, particularly among new practitioners employed in social services. The findings illustrate the vulnerability of these new practitioners and the importance of workplace induction and the provision of adequate support in their new professional roles.
ABSTRAKT
Att inleda sin yrkeskarriär kan innebära avsevärda svårigheter för den nyexaminerade socionomen. Hur övergången från utbildning till arbetsliv sker kan ha en betydelsefull roll för den nyexaminerade socionomens utveckling i yrkesrollen. Föreliggande longitudinella studie följer 12 svenska nyexaminerade socionomer från universitet och under deras fyra första år i yrket. Studien ger en inblick i hur nyexaminerade socionomer kan uppleva övergången från utbildning till yrkesliv och hur de kan förberedas för att möta de utmaningar dagens sociala arbete kan innebära. Studenterna intervjuades första gången strax innan de examinerades från socionomprogrammet (Tham & Lynch, 2014). I föreliggande artikel behandlas de nyexaminerade socionomernas reflektioner efter 4 månader i yrkeslivet. Känslan av att vara oförberedd, upplevelser av bristfälligt organiserade eller till och med kaotiska arbetsplatser och osäkerhet kring den framtida yrkeskarriären var framträdande teman i berättelserna, och då särskilt hos dem som arbetade som socialsekreterare. Nyexaminerade socionomers sårbarhet, vikten av att få en god introduktion till yrket och det stöd som behövs tydliggörs.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for very helpful comments on an earlier version of this article.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
Notes on contributors
Dr Pia Tham is a researcher at the University of Gävle, Sweden. Her research interests and publications concern the working conditions of social workers, social work education and the transition from university studies to working in the profession. She is currently conducting a research project on how working conditions for social workers in child welfare have developed over the past decade, and how they could be improved. A new project will have a special focus on healthy workplaces in social work.
Dr Deborah Lynch is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Nursing, Midwifery and Social Work at the University of Queensland, Australia. Deborah’s interests focus on child welfare and protection, social work education, social justice issues and community development. Her most recent book is Social Work and Community Development: A Critical Practice Perspective (co-authored with Catherine Forde).
