Social worker
Social workers help people and families of all ages in everyday problems and crisis situations. The starting point for a social worker's work is to prevent, reduce and eliminate social problems at the level of both the individual and the structures of society. The work of a social worker often includes assessing service needs, organising services that meet support needs and multi-professional cooperation.
Expert tasks in social work consist of various administrative, planning, development and project tasks. The work of a social worker requires social skills, skills in applying legislation and instructions, and knowledge of the basics of social work.
Social workers work for municipalities, joint municipal authorities, the state, organisations and private companies. The places of work include social welfare offices, health centres, hospitals, mental health offices, educational and family counselling clinics, substance abuse services units, units for the elderly, schools and educational institutions, organisations and private social sector service companies.
A social worker may also work as an independent entrepreneur. International social work also offers job opportunities.
Good social skills are a prerequisite for coping with the work of a social worker. A social worker must be genuinely interested in people and different phenomena in life. It is important to have an open and unprejudiced attitude in the work.
The work will require knowledge of human rights and the principles of social justice on which social work is based. Knowledge of the legislation and instructions in the field is also important.
The work requires guidance, communication and interaction skills, such as empathy, ability to listen and express even difficult issues in a comprehensible manner. The work requires responsibility, the ability to handle pressure and the ability to make decisions. The mental strength to encounter customers in crisis situations, for example, is also useful.
Language skills and knowledge of different cultures are beneficial in many tasks.
Master's degree, Master of Political Sciences or Social Sciences, major in social work.
In addition, a social worker can be trained in the profession by completing a Master's degree (a Master's degree completed at a university or a Master's degree at a university of applied sciences) in Finland and social work studies in accordance with the degree requirements approved by the university (including studies completed at an open university).
The eligibility criteria for social services are specified in the Act on Social Welfare Professionals.
Median salary
3689 €/mo
Private sector
3451 €/mo
Public sector
3718 €/mo
The data is based on the median income, meaning the amount of salary which is the middle of the salary amounts arranged in order of magnitude.
Source: Statistics Finland's structural statistics on wages and salaries