Why are you pursuing a career in social work?
The interviewer wants to hear your reasons for choosing this profession to understand what motivated and inspired you to pursue this career. They want to hear if you were mentored by a social worker if you have family or friends who work in this industry, if you or others close to you faced poverty or violence, or if you were told about this career from a guidance counselor or professor.
The interviewer wants to gain insight into your background and the motivating factor in pursuing a social worker career. Give a brief story on why you chose to dedicate yourself to this field. Focus your answer on describing your personal reason for choosing this career path.
You want to avoid saying that you are pursuing a career in social work to help others. Interviewers know that people who enter this field want to help others, but they want to hear your personal reason and commitment to pursuing this career. Many social workers enter the field due to past experiences in their lives. The interviewer wants to understand what challenges you or others close to you have faced that directed you to choose this profession.
"I have a younger brother that abused drugs and alcohol, and he became clean with the help of counseling and a social worker who worked with him through his recovery. Seeing how the counselors and social worker changed my brother's life for the better made me want to pursue a career as a social worker so I could help others achieve sobriety and live healthier lives."
