Aspie social workers?

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I know on the surface it might seem like a social worker would be the absolute worst job someone with Asperger's could have, but at the same time, something is telling me it would be the perfect job for me. At this point in my life, I'm at a bit of a crossroads. I'm nineteen years old, and working a part-time minimum wage job. I took a year of community college, but my parents cut my funding when they found out my grades were so poor. I don't really make enough money to live on, so I still live with my parents, and I want to move out as soon as possible, but I need to go back to school, and get a decent paying job first. The thing is, most jobs that pay a decent salary I either don't feel I have the capability of doing, or I don't feel I have the interest. I go through what it would be like in my head, and what would be required of me, and I don't see myself having the skills to do them. But, I do see myself being happy as a social worker. Although I cannot always communicate my feelings personally, I've always been very good at listening to other's feelings. In fact, I've always found it fascinating when others open up to me and tell me about their troubles. And, while I don't know if I always necessarilly have the best advice, I always like to share my opinions on the subject and hopefully help people. I think in many cases I have, if nothing else helped others look on the more positive side of issues. It's kind of ironic that someone with a disorder that prohibits them from having any clue how to fix their own problems would want to give someone else advice on theirs, but that's precisely what I'd like to do. One of my aspie interests has always been human behavior and interaction. Also, it seems like it'd be a relaxed atmosphere. I remember when I used to go to social workers offices when I was younger, I always felt immediately at ease, and their offices were always decorated with soothing lighting and fragrances. Perhaps I could even specialize in Asperger's/autism cases? Maybe they would like someone who has first hand experience with the disorder. My question is, is do you think it's possible for someone on the spectrum to do this job? And are their any aspie social workers out there?

yes its definatly possible, i think i know one aspie social worker im not exactly sure though he didnt say i have aspergers but kind of hinted at it.

I don't see why it would be impossible. If social work is in your field of interest, then you may very well be good at it. On the other hand, it does require a HUGE tolerance to government bureaucracy and BS, so keep that in mind. We do need more of us on the inside.

I´ve always related social work with "social life".

Think about it carefully...do you honestly want to listen to people's problems all day long? In addition, as a Social Worker, the
average pay is small compared to other career fields...unless you work in administration and these higher paying positions are often dominated by males with Social Work Degrees.

Still, if making a decent living is NOT your biggest concern and you are more motivated by making a difference in society...go for it!

Hi,

I actually AM an Aspie social worker. I have a Master's in Social Work (MSW) as well as my first Master's in cultural anthropology. I have worked in the area of community mental health, community organizing (Native American Indian population), adoptions, and child welfare. Here are some thing I would recommend. You will need to first at least get a Bachelor's in Social Work or sometimes sociology (depending on the agency you apply at). You can get started in many public agencies with that. If you pursue Child Welfare, which includes the investigation of child abuse and neglect (and includes a sizable number of children on the Autistic spectrum), many of those public agencies have programs which will help to pay for your graduate school program (MSW) in exchange for working for them for two years. (There is high turnover in the field.)

Income can vary. I make a decent income because I moved up the ranks in Child Welfare from a social worker on the line to a social work supervisor (where I supervise a unit of eight social workers). It also helps that I work for Los Angeles County which pays decently. When I started I made about $36,000 per year and I now make about $80,000 per year. You can actually get promoted and move up the ranks without the MSW by getting in with a Bachelor's and then putting in the time, but it is much slower. If you go into other venues, like private agencies and non-profits, then the income can be lower. Social workers with a MSW can also work towards their clinical license to provide mental health therapy - although clinical therapy and interpreting nonverbal social cues may be more naturally challenging for those of us with Asperger's.

Dave

I can't be the only aspie who works at multiple levels of governmet. Government work can actually be a very good thing for an aspie, because, as a general rule, government work is almost exclusively performance based. in other words, if you are good at what you do, you will go far.

Thanks everyone for your responses! They were very helpful. And Dave, I'm so glad to see living proof that there are aspie social workers out there, so I may actually have a shot. :D Thanks for all the advice, I'll keep it in mind. And Zsazsa, basically my goal is to get a job where I can support myself in a neighborhood where I don't have to worry about getting shot at. Other than that I'm not too picky. :] And also, I know that I will have to deal with a lot of emotional people, but my life is pretty dramatic at times anyway, so why not get paid for it being dramatic?

I'm an autistic social worker and I do really well at my job. What I struggle with is having to deal with people to much as it is so stressful for me. But I mostly do jobs that are research based, or program development etc. Where I do deal with people, although it's draining for me I work well because I am honest and ask questions etc where I can't read body language, although I can do that on some level but it takes a lot of concentration. There's a lot of strengths to being autistic! I also find I don't get worried like my colleagues do about peoples lives and problems. Oh and I find it's best not to tell anyone at work about being autistic. They suddenly start having doubts about my ability to work with people. Hope yu figure out what you want to do and keep in mind there's soooo many options with social work

I did one-on-one fieldwork for almost a year. I was extremely good at it, but it was very stressful.