Social workers, teachers and nurses – from college to professional work

Abstract

The article elaborates and discusses the relation between professional college programmes in social work, nursing and primary school teaching and professional work in institutions, hospitals and schools. Empirical data from bachelor students in the beginning (first year) and the end (third year) of their programmes and from candidates three years after finishing college are analysed. Data from the three different professions are compared. The discussion focuses on why academic knowledge is valued relatively low in some of the professions and why it seems to be a gap between what competence professional workers need in their practice and what they have acquired in their college education.

Keywords:

• knowledge
• qualifying process
• social work, nursing
• primary school teaching

Notes

1. Since the 1990s there is an equalisation process between universities and university colleges in Norway in the way that both systems now offer graduate as well as undergraduate degrees.

2. Here ‘candidate’ means people who have finished their primary three‐ to four‐year professional education.

3. General knowledge, specific knowledge, knowledge about planning and organising, insight into rules and regulations, ability to reflect critically on and evaluate one’s own work, creativity, ability to work under pressure, practical skills, ability to work independently, ability to cooperate, ability to take initiative, oral communication, written communication, tolerance, ability to lead, ability to take responsibility and make up one’s mind, ability to show empathy and understanding, ability to make ethical assessments.