Skilled work - Social Worker
 

So I've been looking at the list and Social Worker is on there.

I've heard before you shouldn't plan your move to Canada based on the list as it can always change. But if one of my primary goals in life is to move there, surely I should take necessary steps towards that goal

So the deal is, I graduated university 2 years ago with Accounting and Finance, I don't like accounting and don't wish to do it as a profession, but it does mean I can do a Masters degree in several other fields. Social Work Masters degree is an option, and if I were to complete that, and obtain a relevant amount of work experience in it, that could be a good route?

Would social worker be likely to be taken off the list within the next 3-5 years?

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Accountants were on the list until last June, as were Financial Managers. ;)

My point being that the list does change regularly, and yes there is a good chance that Social Workers won't be in demand in 3-5 years time, but that Accountants may be back on - or neither of them! Or there may be no list at all, just a point requirement as there was until 2008. Really no way of knowing, and no point planning your career around possible emigration options - do what you want to do and just hope that it gives you a pathway to Canada.

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Last I heard there were quite a few vacancies in New Brunswick for Social Workers try www.nbjobs.ca to see what the latest position is.

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Social workers have only just gone on the list, when I started the process they weren't so my husband was the prinicple applicant.

the only thing I would say being a social worker myself is experience is a must. Lots of people say when working in this felid is that its not what they expected and masters degree or not its unlikley that you will find employment without having a least a few years "in the field". Also once you get used to British social work its still different to Canadian social work, all the same good luck.

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

hi
I am wondering given you are a British Social Worker and you are living my dream ! Do you think I have a chance of gaining employment in Canada , BC?
I have a DipSW and have worked mostly as a Probation Officer/ Manager since qualifying . Is it worth having my qualifications assessed ? Do I have a chance or should I stay in Liverpool with little quality of life just stress?
I have 2 children and want a better standard of life for them . I dont think England offers that now

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

It does, although admittedly maybe not in Liverpool! Given that it'll cost you tens of thousands to move to Canada, plus be very stressful etc, why not explore moving within the UK instead? Lots of people returning from Canada to the UK say they wish they'd just done that instead.

Plus you need to check and see if you are actually eligible for a Canadian visa first, did you check the duties listed under Social Worker to see if you would qualify as I suggested in your last thread?

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Hi
yes I have read the duties of a social worker over and over. The skills are definitely the same as a Probation Officer , very transferable. I have contacted CASW and I am waiting for the application form to have my social work credentials assessed.

I was thinking of BC Victoria looks fresh and clean a nice place for a family?
My Aunt lives in Toronto and has said the standard of living would be better for me and my children in Canada . I cant even buy a decent home in a nice area here in the UK on my wage. Would you say thats the same in Canada?

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

.... the OP is only just thinking of training as a Social Worker .... just thought I'd say ....

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Ditto. My wife is a Social Worker and is the prinicipal applicant. We are looking a Vicroria too. We in the very early stages of putting our application together.

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

It's not just the 'skills' though, you also have to meet the criteria in the first paragraph and that does very specifically apply to Social Workers. Also, Probation Officers have their own NOC code, so I really can't see how you'd come under Social Workers if there is one that is a better fit for you - I'd suggest you double check as the last thing you want is to apply and then be rejected and lose your fees.

Standard of living in Toronto may be better than in Liverpool (have never lived in Liverpool so don't know, although did live outside of Toronto), but that could easily be achieved by a move in the UK as well and not cost anywhere near as much! If you can't afford a home in the Liverpool area, then I really don't think you'd be able to in Toronto or Victoria either - both are v expensive. There are cheap areas in Canada, but BC (the joke is it stands for 'bring cash') and ON aren't among them unless you are really rural and away from the popular places like Vancouver and Toronto. Cost of living in Canada is also about the same as in the UK (some things cheaper, some more expensive, but it works out about the same).

Best thing to do is start a new thread about housing etc - if you can give people a budget, tell them what kind of place you're looking for and the lifestyle you are after i.e. skiing/how many cars/entertainment etc, then people can advise you on whether or not it's achieveable. Don't forget to knock off a big chunk of your current equity for the move, say approx £20k for a family to move to Canada, so take that off the total you'll have to spend.

HTH, good luck. :)

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

HI there, Canadian SWer here with a diploma, undergrad (4 year) degree AND a masters degree in social work. Canada is definitely a country with credential inflation and you won't be able to find the same opps here in Canada as you would in the UK. Guaranteed. That's why, as a social worker with three qualifications, I am moving to your country!!!

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

serious!!!! well I would say think long and hard about that because you will not have nice views or clean air to breath as a social worker in England. The demand is in the depraved cities with rubbish and dog poo everywhere . Oh and our children with degrees having to work in fast food outlets

Is Victoria like that? Is Canada like that?

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

good luck ! I am beginning to feel a bit down hearted by the response from the forum, it doesn't seem to match with the info I have received from the canadian immigration who say Social Workers are in demand . I get the impression I dont have a chance or its not worth it! We are going to Victoria in June to have a good look around.

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

serious!!!! well I would say think long and hard about that because you will not have nice views or clean air to breath as a social worker in England. The demand is in the depraved cities with rubbish and dog poo everywhere . Oh and our children with degrees having to work in fast food outlets

Is Victoria like that? Is Canada like that? me thinks not or is it all a hype???
grass is greener??

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Could you come back and offer some insight given you are a UK social worker who has done the move, is it worth it ?

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Ah -- my position is Cornwall. Not exactly the doom and gloom you describe. My second option is North Yorkshire. I've got a couple offers, thanks!

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

I don't think she posts now, but search out previous posts from BE member "dingbat" - who always had lots of good info about this role in the vancouver area. :)

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

yes, dingbat was a great poster for sw info!

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Hi there,
I am a social worker in London and my partner and I are considering moving to B.C. Its great to hear from other SWer's experiences so thanks in advance for your advice. I've just recently started doing some research on moving to Canada and I don't know where to start!!

I have done the self assessment on the CIC website and scored enough points, I certainly don't have a job offer, but I have 5 years experience working in social work. But without a job offer I understand I need to show proof of funds (which I don't have right now) but I will have upon LANDING...but thats ok right???!!!!

so the first step would be to submit the application for permanent residence and hope to be accepted....and from what I have read in this forum the process can take any where from one to two years???? I wonder how "in demand" social workers will be by then...

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

who knows, but we are going out for two weeks in June and then moving for good next spring, Im also a social worker and plan to speak to people while Im out there, I will be more than happy to share anyhthing that I learn . I know that I have to register with the BCSW. Like I said I will post when I have more info but if anyone else knows more Im sure we would all benefit.

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Hi
I am also interested in any further information. I am also a Social Worker, did my training in Canada but all of my work experience is in London. We are planning our move to Ontario in late spring of next year as well. I have been looking around to try to get an idea of the job market but there are not a great many of postings at the moment. Anyone found any good websites? I have mainly worked with children/ families.

One thing to keep in mind is that often Social Work jobs require you to have a license and often a car. I don't have mine but am going to work on it over the next year here so I can get in the UK and transfer it.

Maybe we can keep up a social work thread to share info?

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Dear Social Workers heading to Canada,

I am a Candian social worker, I have my diploma, my four-year degree and am finishing my Masters.

Please don't rely on Immigration Canada advice on how many jobs there are for skilled workers. This country is full of people who have qualified in different countries (PhDs galore) who cannot find work.

I am not trying to be a barrier to aspiring Canadian social workers, but I would warn you that our standards of practice require a 4 year degree in social work to hold the registered title "social worker". The UK education is not the same, unless you have a UK QSW degree.

A social work diploma is not going to cut it, folks. Sorry. Been there, have the diploma and the work prospects here are not the same.

For most of Ontario and British Columbia, a Masters degree is becoming the entry level requirement.

Just a friendly word of advice!

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Hey London Lisa,

If you qualified in Canada and worked in London in child protection, you can pick from any of the OACAS jobs. I recommend you look up 'children's aid society of ontario' . They have a good job board. The entry requirements are usually a BSW or MSW + experience.

Good luck!

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Here's the job board:
http://www.oacas.org/careers/

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Thanks for that, have been looking at CAS individual sites, but will have a look at this one. I have a BSW as well as an MA (in Applied Family Therapy). From your experience would that be an acceptable MA? I am not keen to do an MSW but will do it if necessary in the future.

Thanks again for the tips.

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Hey Lisa,

Oh yes -- do look at the site I posted -- it has all the CAS jobs in one place.

re: MA: that's a really tricky question. On one hand, you would probably qualify as 'equivalent' to MSW. The combination of BSW + experience + MA would equal an MSW. The BSW allows you to register as a social worker (protected title) in any province and your MA will give you equivalency in pay to an MSW plus will probably allow you to practice as a Marriage and Family counsellor here (although sometimes in order to get reimbursed from private insurance, the practitioner needs to be PhD (Psych) or MSW).

I think you could take your pick of any child protection agencies you want.

I hate to sound negative about the diploma in social work, or non-social work degrees. Canada (and Australia) seem quite stringent about their professional qualifications -- a lot of it has to do with protecting their 'own' identity and profession, rather than helping people in need.

How was working as a swer in the UK sector?

Lilibet

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Fantastic, will start browsing those boards.

Working in the UK has been great for me in lots of ways. Although I trained in Canada I have been here for almost 10 years and have done the vast majority of my work here. To be honest I have been given lots of opportunities here and have worked my way from basic grade Social Worker to Senior and am now working as a practice manager of a small team. They also funded me to do my MA. I have done some practice teaching while I have been here as well.

I work in inner London and it is a difficult area with a huge mix of people, fairly massive levels of crime and poverty as well as issues with gangs / sexual exploitation. I work with a small team that works with teenagers who are at risk of coming into care and we do short term therepeutic interventions with the families. I could go on and on but I guess I both love my job and find it incredibly frustrating at times. There are huge changes happening and I think that it is very likely that my team will suffer in the current round of cuts. Social Work at the moment is certainly under a different sort of pressure than I have experienced. Also it can be very disheartening in terms of the media coverage of Social Workers which remains fairly negative.

We are planning on moving to Canada for lots of reasons. I am Canadian and am now ready to come home and overall we feel that it is a better life for our little girl. I will be quite sad to leave my job but am hopeful that given my experience I should be ok.

It is my understanding that the new Social Work training in the UK is now all degree level so the issue re the diploma should not be an issue for newly qualified SW'ers.

Thanks for the advice and sorry for the long post.

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Hey Lisa,

So interesting to hear about your experiences in the UK as a SWer.

As I mentioned, I don't foresee you having any problems at all finding work as an MSW-level SWer.

Toronto and Ottawa are quite competitive. I am doing my MSW in Ottawa and there are not a lot of opportunities for unilingual people. I have a friend from Toronto who is doing her MSW and she tells me that MSWs there are having a hard time finding work. However, a lot of social workers don't want to 'do' child protection and it looks like agencies (aside from Ottawa) are hiring in these roles.

If you have the flexibility, a small Ontario city (Kingston, London, Hamilton, Kitchener) would offer the greatest options. Also -- look for cities that don't have universities offering the MSW -- those cities that do offer the degree are often spoiled for choice.

Good luck! I hope you'll keep posting as I have enjoyed reading about your career and future plans back here in Canada.

That Canadian BSW will serve you well in combination with your MA. Which Canadian university did you attend for undergrad?

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Thanks Lilibet for your posts, they are really encouraging.

That is what I thought re the child protection. As with everywhere it is not the number one choice for a lot of people. I am fairly flexible and would not be adverse to working for CAS so it should be fine.

I trained at McMaster in Hamilton and did my family therapy MA at the Tavistock in London. We are actually planning on coming back to the Hamilton area (Dundas or Burlington) as that is where my family is from and we quite like it. It is not the prettiest city but I am under no illusions. It will be a big change from London but that is what we are looking for. In some ways I am tempted by Toronto but we figure we'd be in the same situation we are in London in terms of cost of living so are opting.

Now off to start that visa paperwork--- uuggghhh.

What have your experiences been like in terms of Social Work in Canada compared to the UK?

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

My first post on this forum and I just wanted to say how refreshing it is to find this is an expat forum where people can be open and honest without having their post deleted if they say anything negative. :thumbup:

Another DipSW social worker here, trained in Scotland, 14yrs experience up to project manager level. I chose not to do my degree because I was also a foster mum for 25yrs to 'alternative to custody' teenage boys and was happy to exit Uni at DipSW level :)

I emigrated to the land of the dead, now known as NZ, two years ago - it has been the biggest and most expensive mistake in my life :( But....rather than return immediately to the UK, hubby and I thought it might be interesting to work our way home. Not really keen on Australia, so that leaves Canada (it was my first choice but hubby wanted an all year round temperate climate - hence NZ).

Thanks to the great information here I already know I cannot work as a social worker in Canada. (although I did read somewhere there are two regions in Canada where the DipSW is accepted). :confused:

My question is.... how easy would it be for me to find work as a social work assistant, or in residential care? Are there many opportunities? How bad is the tall poppy syndrome over there?

Hubby will be the main applicant on the work permit as he stands a good chance of finding work as an occupational therapist due to his extensive skills and experience. I will be happy just finding some interesting and rewarding work. :)

Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Hi bop53 -
Have a look on the ocas board that Lilibet posted above. I noticed that there are some listings on it for social work assistant type roles just to give a general idea. There is also a bit at the bottom for information for social work assistants.

I am sure that you could easily do residential work but like in the UK it is not well paid and can be very hard work. I think though given your experience you would be fine. To qualify though, I haven't lived in Canada in a long time so someone else may have more up to date info... Good luck.

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Hi Bob53,

I will try to be as positive as possible!

I have my social work diploma and was unable to find any meaningful work with it. All my diploma classmates moved on to do degree(s) on top: BSW & MSW. That being said, I live in an area where there is a lot of competition for sw jobs and employers have their pick.

I must be honest, however... I find that Canada have a tendency towards 'credential inflation' that catches people from the UK off guard. This applies for social workers (4 year degree or Masters needed), Occupational Therapy (4 year degree and moving to a masters) and Teaching (4 year degree plus 1 year post-graduate study).

Occupational therapists are having a harder time than Social Workers here. It is a very popular degree and most people work part-time. If your husband has a degree (in order to qualify with the provincial regulating body) plus experience, he will find work but I wouldn't guarantee that he will find full time work. Has he looked online for job prospects? I only mention this because I considered OT for a while before doing my BSW & MSW and was told by OTs to consider the MSW instead as there was more work. As I say... I am not trying to be negative, just realistic... my husband is British, we have families in the UK and I feel that the job market there for those w/ education is much more open than it is here... I currently attend school in Canada with people working on their second masters degree... several students, in fact. Credential creep is a fact of life here.

If you and your partner choose a province or an area that is more under-serviced by professionals, you will increase your chances of finding well paid jobs. However, if your education doesn't meet provincial licensure requirements, you won't be able to practice. :(

Ontario does recognize 'social service workers' with diplomas, but the title of 'social worker' requires the degree. Having been both, I must warn you that a lot of the diploma grads work in group homes, not in larger agencies or roles.

Good luck!

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Sorry Bob, just re-read your post: there are lots of opportunities for diploma grads in residential settings; this is where the majority of the jobs work. Most make between $11-25 per hour, depending. It is tough work, but I am sure you know the realities of the work! Good luck again!

P.S. your husband was right about the climate, though! Brrrr!

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

hey Lisa, McMaster is a great school! You will have no problem finding CAS or other work in the areas you are looking at. You can even practice as a Marriage/Family therapist, too. Good luck! CAS will snap you up, especially w/ your diverse London experience.

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Great reply Lilipuddian :)

I should have read it before I posted on another thread about getting a work permit. :lol:

It might interest you to know my hourly rate here in NZ as a grade 5 qualified social worker (DipSW on a par with Degree) is only $20 CAD. :eek: and any increment after that is paid one year after application depending on whether your manager thinks you have fulfilled any new requirements. :frown: (but not really relevant in my case now as I resigned my post today - long story, but fed up trying to fit in with their medical model. They are about 20yrs behind here).

Yet I pay the same price, if not more, for absolutely everything (except avocados and petrol) than my son does in the UK. So I've had two years to learn to live on the poverty line. I kid you not ;)

But not good news about OT work. I wondered why they were not on the skill list. Not sure if we could survive on a p/t wage. And not keen to move to regions that are too cold in Winter either. His old bones need the warmth he says. :rolleyes:

The idea seems to be slipping away at the moment, but I will keep checking things out as it could be a long time before we get our house sold here, and who knows, things might change over there in 6 months. Unlikely I know, but possible.

Sincere thanks again.

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

In Alberta, you can get jobs as a case worker/ intervention services caseworker, which for all intents and purposes is a social worker, but you do not need the a social work qualification, a related degree with experience will suffice.

Check out the alberta govertment website, and you will see the job adverts

www.jobs.alberta.ca

I am currently in Alberta in a social work field, but my degree is not a social work degree

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

This is true: I have a friend with a non-sw degree working for AB gov't as a child protection worker. I guess I am basing a lot of my experience on my knowledge of the Ontario system. BC can also be tough (Van) w/o a social work degree. It varies by province. Alberta is a good place to find social work, agreed.

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Does anyone know the best place to look for social work jobs in and around the Kamloops BC area. I have a degree in S/W and will be joining BCSW pretty soon so I will be ready to practice. Im looking for posts in children and families.:fingerscrossed:

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Oscardon: I have found it pretty tough to find child protection jobs posted in B.C. **not that there aren't a lot of jobs, they've just proven difficult for me to find online.** For example, in Ontario there is an official job board (CAS) but I have been unable to find similar for BC. I think that child protection jobs are posted through the BC Gov't (prov) website although I haven't seen a whole heck of a lot. I wouldn't worry, however... if you have a BSW and join BCSW and want to work in child protection, you won't be unemployed for long, IMO.

Re: Skilled work - Social Worker
 

Thanks. We are going out for a recce at the end of June, so I was hoping to approach some gov bodies etc its just a matter of finding out where they are hiding.