The International Federation of Social Workers has been granted Special Consultative Status by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations. It also works with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

A Short History Of IFSW

The International Federation of Social Workers can trace its beginning back to the early part of the last century when, at the First International Conference on Social Work held in Paris in 1928, an agreement was reached to form an International Association of Social Workers. The Second International Conference on Social Work held in Frankfurt in 1932 saw the provisional statutes of the International Permanent Secretariat of Social Workers (IPSSW) agreed upon by the eight founding members: Germany, France, Sweden, Great Britain, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Switzerland and the United States. IPSSW was originally based in Berlin.

An agreement to form a new body was reached at the Fifth International Conference on Social Work held in Paris in 1950, provided that 7 national bodies became members; this was achieved in 1956 when the International Federation of Social Workers was formed in Munich. A new Secretariat, which shared offices with the National Association of Social Workers, was formed in New York.

Further highlights were:

• 1958 – IFSW and its partners published the journal International Social Work
• 1959 – IFSW was granted consultative status with the United Nations’ Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
• 1960 – IFSW’s policy role was expanded after a Special Session at the 10th World Conference in Rome
• 1970 – South Africa’s membership was revoked due to its participation in the Apartheid regime
• 1985 – IFSW was declared a “Peace Messenger” by the United Nations
• 1990s – Membership was expanded to include more than 80 member associations
• 2000 – IFSW developed a training manual, Social Work and the Rights of the Child
• 2001 – The global Definition of Social Work was adopted in 2001, in co-operation with the International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW)
• 2004 – The Statement of Ethics in Social Work, the Global Standards for the Education and Training of the Social Work Profession, and the Statement of Principles were published
• 2005 – IFSW consultative status was extended to UN Habitat
• 2010 – IFSW launched the Global Agenda for Social Work and Social Development at a joint conference with the International Council on Social Welfare and the International Association of Schools of Social Work

IFSW Organisational Structure

An international Executive Committee is democratically elected at a General Meeting of members every two years. The committee is made up of a President, Treasurer and Regional President and Member-at-Large for each of the six regions, being Africa, Asia – Pacific, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean and North America. The permanent Secretariat, which was established in 1956, is currently based in Switzerland.

International Federation Of Social Workers Partners

Apart from the special consultative status that IFSW has with United Nations Economic and Social Council and its accreditation to the International Labor Organization, UNICEF, the Council of Europe and the European Union, it also has many other partners:

• Amnesty International
• CONGO (The Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations in Consultative Relationship with the UN)
• The Commonwealth Organisation for Social Work (COSW)
• The Council of Europe
• ENSACT
• European Union
• IASSW (International Association of Schools of Social Work)
• ICSW (International Council on Social Welfare)
• Public services international
• UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, NGO Section
• UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund)
• United Nations
• World Health Organisation

Statement Of Ethical Principles

Ethical awareness is fundamental to the practice of social work, and the commitment to act ethically an essential aspect of the quality of services offered. The IASSW and the International Federation of Social Workers promote ethical debate and reflection in the member organisations, in the schools of social work, among the providers of social work in member countries, and among social work students. Some of the ethical problems and challenges that face social workers are endemic to specific countries, and others are common. The joint IASSW and IFSW statement seeks to encourage social workers across the globe to reflect on the dilemmas and challenges with which they are faced in order to make ethically informed decisions as to how to act in each particular case

Some of the problem areas include:

• Social workers function as both controllers and helpers
• Social workers are often conflicted between societal demands for efficiency and utility and their duty to protect the interests of the people with whom they work
• Resources in society are often very limited
• The loyalty of social workers is often in the middle of conflicting interests

The Statement of Ethical Principles uses the definition of social work adopted separately by IASSW and the International Federation of Social Workers and agreed upon in 2001. This definition stresses principles of human rights and social justice. The document makes reference to the various declarations and conventions on human rights that are relevant to social work, a statement of general ethical principles under the two broad headings of human rights and dignity and social justice, and some basic guidance on ethical conduct in social work.

The Statement of Ethical Principles covers the recognition of rights that are accepted by the global community and documents that are particularly relevant to social work practice:

• The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
• The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
• The International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights
• The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination
• The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
• The Convention on the Rights of the Child
• Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention (ILO convention 169)

The Statement also covers:

Human Rights and Human Dignity
Social work is based on respect for the dignity and constitutional worth of all people, and the rights that follow from this. It is the duty of social workers to uphold and defend every individual’s physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual integrity and well-being. This means that social workers must:

• Respect the right to self-determination
• Promote the right to participation
• Treat each person as a whole
• Identify and develop strengths

Social Justice

Social workers have a responsibility to promote social justice in relation to the people with whom they work as well as in relation to society generally, which means:

• Challenging negative discrimination
• Recognising diversity
• Distributing resources equitably
• Challenging unjust policies and practices
• Working in solidarity

Professional Conduct

The national organisations who are members of IASSW and the International Federation of Social Workers have a responsibility to develop and regularly update their own ethical guidelines so that they reflect those contained in the IFSW/ IASSW statement. National organizations must inform schools of social work and social workers about these codes or guidelines.

It is incumbent upon social workers to act in accordance with the ethical code or guidelines current in their country, as they generally detail guidance in ethical practice specific to the national context. The Statement does, however give general guidelines covering what social workers should and should not do, which can be used as a template from which to work locally.

IFSW Membership

Full Membership

The International Federation of Social Workers offers full membership to professional organizations that represent social workers at a country-wide level. This type of membership gives the organization influence over international social work policies and directions.

Members in this category of IFSW receive:

Advocacy for the promotion of social justice or social work on the members’ behalf, in their own country and/or region, internationally and/or within the United Nations

• An active culture of sharing and learning across regions, nations, and the world
• A news service that is relevant to social work
• Access to international advertising of social work jobs
• Links with other IFSW members to improve regional networks and practice based networks
• Participation in both regional and global conferences
• Resources and a dedicated International Social Work Journal
• Support for members’ campaigns for social work and social justice outcomes

Friends Of IFSW

Anyone that wishes to show their support for the International Federation of Social Workers may join as a Friend of IFSW.

Friends of IFSW receive:

• Access to learning, sharing, and cooperative networks
• Advance access to all publications at a reduced cost
• Discounted registration fees for conferences
• Exclusive access to international social work jobs
• The IFSW Friend Pin and a certificate of your ‘Friends Status’ membership
• The opportunity to participate in and/or create social work or social justice campaigns

Contact Details

Address International Federation of Social Workers
PO Box 6875
Schwarztorstrasse 22
CH-3001
Berne
Switzerland
Telephone (41) 22 548 36 25
Fax (41) 22 5181037
General enquiries global@ifsw.org

Technical support online@ifsw.org

The post What Is The International Federation Of Social Workers? appeared first on Healthcare Careers Guide.

Unfortunately, although the church had the best of intentions, their offerings were in the form of charity, which was seen to be a sign of piety, via various forms of direct relief, such as money, clothing, food and other material goods, instead of trying to attempt the root cause of poverty. This of course meant that although the poor received help for what they needed from day to day, they could never get out of the cycle of poverty, and it was not until 19th century that the history of social work as we know it began in earnest.

People Making Contributions

Elizabeth Gurney Fry

When looking at the history of social work, we will find that the first person to make significant contributions in attempting to change things was Elizabeth Gurney Fry (1780-1845), also known as `the angel of the prisons`, with the work she did in attempting to reform the British prison system. Betsy Gurney was a Quaker from a rather well-off family, and the Quakers had strong ideals about equality and peace. They were active in a range of philanthropic projects, including being amongst the early opponents of the slave trade. Betsy began her good work at an early age, when, at the age of 17 she set up a primary school for poor children in her own home. She took care of lonely and sick neighbors  and in 1813 started campaigning for prisoners rights, upon seeing the dire conditions in which women and children were imprisoned. Many of the reforms that Elizabeth Fry campaigned for were incorporated into British law in 1823 and she has been honored in various ways, including having a building named after her at the School of Social Work at Stanford University.

Thomas Chalmers

The next important figure in the history of social work was Thomas Chalmers, a Presbyterian preacher and an assistant to a professor at St Andrews, Scotland’s first university. He was ordained as minister the parish of Kilmany in 1803, and moved to Glasgow where he became minister of the Tron Church in 1815, where after he became minister of the church and parish of St John. Chalmers believed in helping the poor to help themselves and strongly dissuaded the poor in his parish to rely on public assistance. Chalmers found that this type of help dissuaded individuals from finding work and becoming self-dependent; he favored local solidarity and mutual support in the neighborhoods. He felt that with support and feeling that they were included in the community the poor could work and be modest while enlarging their own responsibility. He divided his parish into several districts and linked a deacon to each one of them whose duty it was to make frequent home visits, establish a friendly relationship with the poor and monitor their complete home situation, vis a viz material context, friendships, family ties, etc. as a basis for care and support. He also organized decent primary education for children, and weekend schools where they could receive additional secular and religious education. By doing this he helped the poor to help themselves, and his concepts were taken up by many, including Charles Loch who established the English Charity Organization Society, and Joseph Tuckermann who founded the Boston Society for the Prevention of Pauperism, 1835. His concepts are still very relevant to social work today.

Octavia Hill

The next individual who played an important part in the history of social work was Octavia Hill, a teacher and artist, who began her work amongst the poor of London in 1864, in what is now known as the borough of Marylebone, one of the most expensive places to live today. Hill’s focus was the home, as she firmly believed that no matter how small a home was, if it was well-maintained and light and airy and the person had neighbors that cared, it would make a huge difference in their lives. From housing she also branched out into creating gardens and playgrounds for the children, and even built a small clubhouse behind her own house in which she hosted weekend activities for women, children, and older people. Hill used money from the art critic John Ruskin to buy three houses in what is now central London, which she rented out, collecting the rent herself and discussing tenants’ problems with them. These housing projects became an attractive investment, and eventually other women were trained to undertake a similar role to Hill’s, enabling them to act as social workers. Octavia Hill is significant in the history of social work because she rejected charitable alms, electing instead to provide help without charity. This approach was designed to strengthen the self respect of tenants and to allow them to trust in their own capabilities, which is what we call empowerment and resilience today. Hill was a founding member of the Charity Organization Society set up in 1869. She also began to campaign to protect the natural environment in and around London in 1875, and helped found the National Trust in 1894, which still plays a pivotal role in the maintenance of parks, stately homes, and landscape in the UK.

Arnold Toynbee

Arnold Toynbee is another name that features in the history of social work for his proposed schemes for ‘university extension’, whereby students in deprived communities could apply and ‘extend’ their course material through volunteer work. This model received plenty of support in the colleges of Cambridge and Oxford, and it gained international recognition. Toynbee’s ideological ally, the Anglican priest Samuel Barnett, labelled it Practical Socialism, and after Toynbee’s early death in his twenties, he continued to promote the concept through the establishment of university settlements. These settlements provided these students with the opportunity to work to enhance the living conditions of the poor and also live among them for at least a year, with the aim of strengthening the links between scholars and the residents of urban slums, and achieving improved results in terms of mutual learning and social improvement. The philanthropist Charles Booth lived in Toynbee Hall whilst he worked on Life and Labor of the People in London, a study that mapped poverty in London at the end of the 19th century and influenced both social research and the fight against poverty for many decades thereafter.

Jane Addams

Jane Addams is an important name in the history of social work for her settlement work in North America in 1889. Another Quaker, Addams was inspired by her visit to Toynbee Hall to develop a similar initiative in Chicago. She started Hull House with her friend Ellen Starr, in Near West Side, a neighborhood with many European immigrants, which rapidly developed into an action center with education for adults, room for children, culture and a focus on social progress. Addams was also famous for engaging in political action aimed at establishing new laws to protect the poor. She assembled a group of strong, committed young women who became the female face of the democratization movement in the Progressive Era and professionalized the contribution of women in social work. Julia Lathrop and Florence Kelley, amongst others, reported on the effects of concentration of different ethnicities and their living conditions, about child labor and also about labor circumstances in the sweatshops. Their approach of ‘mapping’ contributed to the emergence of the famous Chicago school in urban sociology with key figures like George Robert E. Park and Herbert Mead. Addams succeeded in establishing a specific basis for American Social Work, which raised international interest, and Julia Lathrop later became the first director of the Children’s Federal Bureau (1912).

Joseph Rowntree

Rowntree is another name that should be remembered as part of the history of social work, even though the surname is more commonly known with regards to chocolate products such as Smarties or Kit Kat before their company was taken over by Nestle. Joseph Rowntree was also a Quaker, and was deeply concerned about the social problems of his time and became an active philanthropist committed to social reform. Rowntree’s main goal was to eradicate poverty and the other social evils, and he transferred his wealth in three trusts in 1904, which are still independently working towards reaching his goals. One of them, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, does many research projects which inspires social work in the UK and elsewhere. Seebohm Rowntree, Joseph’s son, initiated a house to house survey of York which he published in as Poverty, a study of town life in 1901, and various other studies.

Mary Ellen Richmond

Mary Ellen Richmond is another important name in the history of social work, and is known as “the founding mother of social casework.” She wrote a book called Social Diagnosis in 1917, which constructed the foundations for the scientific methodology development of professional social work. She dedicated her life to the modernizing and professionalizing of care for the poor from 1889 onwards, starting her career at the Charity Organisation Society in Baltimore, which was a US branch of the organisation Octavia Hill established in the UK. She was director of the charity department of the Russell Sage Foundation in New York, an influential fund supporting social science research, from 1909 until her death. Richmond systematically developed the content and methodology of diagnosis in the period around 1910, developing what she termed ‘social diagnosis,’ using her famous circle diagram which visualized the correspondence between client and environment. She identified six sources of power within the household, in the person of the client, in the neighborhood and wider social network, in civil agencies, and in private and public agencies that are available to clients and their social workers. Richmond gave social work clients a voice for the first time, opening up a new and fruitful area of social research which is still a cornerstone of social work today.

Alice Salomon

Throughout the history of social work there are other individuals such as Alice Salomon, a key figure in the development of social work in Europe in the first half of the twentieth century; Orwell, Griffin and others wrote various accounts of poverty and injustice; Robert Holbrook and Bill Wilson who started Alcoholics Anonymous; William Henry Beveridge, the architect of the welfare state; Carl Rogers, responsible for the earliest forms of humanistic psychology and person-centered therapy; Jane Jacobs, an urban visionary; Erving Goffman, known for his concept of total institutions; Sherry Arnstein, who published the article: A ladder of citizen participation for which she is still remembered and respected; Michael Lipsky for his concepts of street level bureaucracy and discretionary power; Paulo Freire for his approach known as conscientization which means ” the ways in which individuals and communities develop a critical understanding of their social reality through reflection and action.”

Ann Hartman

Others who form part of the history of social work are Joel Fischer, who argued that “The issue of effectiveness of practice always must be of paramount concern to the profession and cannot be brushed aside”; Ann Hartman who began her career in 1959 as a caseworker for the Summit County Child Welfare Board in Akron, Ohio and worked as a social work researcher and educator at the University of Michigan faculty after completing her PhD. She made two related contributions to social work that still influence today’s practice: the introduction of the ecomap or ecogram, and the genogram as simple drawing techniques that enable social workers to depict social and family relationships, and the second being the fact that the focus of clinical practice should not be solely on the client but should also include his or her social network.

Ida Maude Cannon

In the more modern history of social work, Dr. Richard Cabot, a senior physician at Mass General, hired the first social worker in 1905 to provide social work services in the outpatient clinics, and hired Ida Maude Cannon to jointly organize the nation’s first hospital-based social work program. Ms. Cannon was named Chief of the Mass General Social Service Department, the first organized social work department in a hospital, in 1914, and the social work program was further developed under her tenure.

Each one of the aforementioned individuals and many that came after them all contributed to what we know as social work today; each of them brought their own insight and research to the table, informed by their own experiences and building on what had come before. From churches, to philanthropists, to missionaries and volunteers, to government departments and state boards, all of them played a part in the history of social work, and many of them still do.

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Aims Of The Council

According to the organization’s website, these are its aims:

• Maintaining and publishing a public register of properly qualified members of the professions

• Approving and upholding high standards of education and training, and continuing good practice

• Investigating complaints and taking appropriate action

• Working in partnership with the public, and a range of other groups including professional bodies

• Promoting awareness and understanding of the aims of the Council

In addition to these aims there are 5 basic values that the council holds, including transparency in all of their dealings, collaboration between themselves and all other relevant parties that need to be involved, responsiveness to the needs and wants of shareholders and registrars, a promise that they will provide value for money to all concerned, and last but not least the promise that high quality services will be provided at all times.

Who Does The Health And Care Professions Council Regulate?

The Health and Care Professions Council regulates the following professionals:

• Arts therapists
• Biomedical scientists
• Chiropodists/podiatrists
• Clinical scientists
• Dietitians
• Hearing aid dispensers
• Occupational therapists
• Operating department practitioners
• Orthoptists
• Paramedics
• Physiotherapists
• Practitioner psychologists
• Prosthetics/orthotics
• Radiographers
• Social workers in England
• Speech and language therapists

There are a few important things to note in relation to this. For one thing it is against the law for anyone to claim that they are registered with the council within the UK if they are not in fact registered. This could lead to serious legal ramifications should the person be caught. In addition you will be unable to use one of the protected titles listed here if you are not, in fact, registered with the Health and Care Professions Council. Consequently, in order to practice as a professional in one of the above disciplines, you must become a member of the organization.

Approved Programs

In order to become registered with the council you must have completed one of the programs that the council approves in your specific discipline. On the council’s website you can find a list of approved programs. The list is long and extremely comprehensive and is the best way through which potential registrants can find out if they are eligible to register. In addition the program providers are able to use the council’s website to inform the council regarding any major changes in their program so that the council can reapprove the program. For comprehensive information regarding programs, please visit this site.

Application

Because it is possible for international as well as domestic professionals to apply for registration with the council, there are a number of different routes that you can take to become registered. There are basically 4 different routes through which you can apply for membership with the council. Read through the following and determine which applies most to you:

• The first route is for anyone who has completed a training program within the UK and has met all of the program and country requirements accordingly. In order to apply for registration with the council you must take this route. Information regarding this course of action can be found here.

• There are also several professionals who were once on the register but who have since been removed for various reasons, perhaps due to inactivity as a health care professional. If this is the situation that you find yourself in, you will need to apply for readmission to the register. This can be done by going to this website and following the directions and using the information provided.

• For professionals who have studied in foreign countries who would like to begin practicing within the borders of the United Kingdom, a different route must be taken. Consequently on the council’s website there is a page for international applicants. This can be found by going to http://www.hpc-uk.org/apply/international/ and following the steps provided.

• For international individuals established elsewhere in the EEA as well as in Switzerland and who would like to practice within the UK on a temporary or part-time basis, the “Temporary provisions of services” application must be filled out. This can be found by going to this website and following the steps provided. This temporary registration is generally available for only 1 year, but it is easy enough to renew once you have received the initial registration. This is useful for professionals who only plan to live in the area for a short period of time, but who would like to work while they are there.

Consequently this is an organization that is open to professionals from a variety of different countries, although there will be fairly stringent educational as well as other requirements that you may be required to meet before you will, in fact, be registered with the Health and Care Professions Council of the UK. If you meet all of the previously mentioned requirements you will be able to practice within the UK within the health care profession that you have studied.

The Council

The council itself is a small organization consisting of only 20 members (which includes the chair itself). In addition to this there are various committees falling under the domain of the council and which report to the council on various matters.

Meeting The Council’s Standards

As a member of the council it is extremely important that you know what is expected of you and what the standards are. If you fail to meet the standards you may be stopped from practicing in your capacity as a health care professional. Consequently it is exceedingly important that you take the time to report any grievances that you may experience in the course of your work in order to ensure that the council is fully equipped to meet the needs of everyone.

The Health and Care Professions Council is dedicated to ensuring that the best service is provided to its stakeholders as well as to its registrants. This includes taking any feedback offered by their registrants very seriously. Consequently it is on your best interests to make your grievances known.

Contact Details

The contact details of the Health and Care Professions Council are as follows:

Renewals, applications, CPD queries, fees, online account activation or general queries:
Registration Department
Tel: 44 (0)845 300 4472*
Fax: 44 (0)20 7840 9801
Email: registration@hcpc-uk.org

For all other queries (office hours are 8am to 6pm):
Main switchboard
Tel.: 44 (0)845 300 6184*
Fax: 44 (0)20 7820 9684

Postal address:
Health and Care Professions Council,
Park House, 184 Kennington Park Road,
London, SE11 4BU

Other Regulators

There are other regulating bodies that you may also need to be registered with in order to work as a healthcare professional in the UK. These are:

The General Chiropractic Council (GCC)
Regulates: Chiropractors
Tel: 020 7713 5155
Website: www.gcc-uk.org

The General Dental Council (GDC)
Regulates: Dentists, dental therapists, dental nurses, dental technicians, clinical dental technicians, and orthodontic therapists
Tel: 020 7887 3800.
Website: www.gdc-uk.org

The General Medical Council (GMC)
Regulates: Doctors
Tel: 0845 357 8001
Website: www.gmc-uk.org

The General Optical Council (GOC)
Regulates: Dispensing opticians and optometrists
Tel: 020 7580 3898
Website: www.optical.org

The General Osteopathic Council (GOsC)
Regulates: Osteopaths
Tel: 020 7357 6655
Website: www.osteopathy.org.uk

The Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC)
Regulates: Arts therapists, Biomedical Scientists, Chiropodists/ Podiatrists, Clinical Scientists, Dieticians, Hearing Aid Dispensers, Occupational Therapists, Operating Department Practitioners, Orthoptists, Paramedics, Physiotherapists, Practitioner Psychologists, Prosthetics and Orthotists, Radiographers, Social workers in England and Speech and Language Therapists
Tel: 44 (0)845 300 6184
Website: www.hcpc-uk.org

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)
Regulates: Nurses, midwives, and specialist community public health nurses
Tel: 020 7333 6622
Website: www.nmc-uk.org

General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC)
Regulates: pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and pharmacy premises
Tel: 020 3365 3400
Website: www.pharmacyregulation.org/

Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland (PSNI)
Regulates: Pharmacists and pharmacy premises in Northern Ireland
Tel: 028 9032 6927
Website: www.psni.org.uk

Northern Ireland Social Care Council (NISCC)
Regulates the social care workforce (Northern Ireland only)
Tel: 028 9041 7600
Website: www.niscc.info

Care Council for Wales (CCW)
Social care workforce regulator (Wales only)
Tel: 029 2022 6257
Website: www.ccwales.org.uk

Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC)
Responsible for registering people who work in social services (Scotland only)
Tel: 0845 60 30 891
Website: www.sssc.uk.com

The Health and Care Professions Council is an essential organization with which to be registered as a healthcare professional in the UK. Not only is it a legal requirement, it is also a way through which you may find opportunities for expanding your career options and finding new ways forward. Registrants have access to a number of different services as well as other resources that can help them in their job. If you are considering a career in the UK in one of the professions regulated by the council, knowledge regarding the Health and Care Professions Council is an essential tool.

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Social work is a career that is an honorable calling, and can be split into four main specialist areas:

• Children, family and school
• Mental health and substance abuse
• Medical and public health
• Policy and planning

Each specialization has its own requirements when it comes to studies, with some having more economics and psychology majors and others which have more speech and biology. These specializations can be further enhanced with more majors, and most social workers go on to do their Masters.

Unfortunately there are many individuals that do not further their studies because they do not have the financial means. Fortunately there is no need to stop your studies as there is plenty of social worker financial aid to assist you if you are in financial need. This aid comes in the form of scholarships and grants which can be accessed via virtually every college or university’s Financial Aid Office.

Finding Information About Financial Aid

The best place to begin is the Financial Aid Office of the institution at which you intend to study. This office will be able to provide you with student aid that is available to you via the school itself, the state and commercial private sources.

Other places that you can source for information is the Internet, and your parents’ employers or unions, many of which offer tuition payment plans or scholarships.

There are private scholarships, fellowships, grants, loans and various other forms of financial aid available to students, including those offered by religious organizations, community organizations, foundations, and civic groups. There are also those offered by organizations related to your field of study, such as the American Medical Association or American Bar Association.

FAFSA

Your first port of call when looking for financing for educational purposes should always be the federal support that the Department of Social Work encourages applicants to apply for. The Federal Application for Financial Aid, more commonly referred to as FAFSA, is a free application that you need to submit as soon after 1 January as possible.

You can go to the FAFSA website and choose any of the following three methods:

1. Login to apply online (Recommended) or
2. Complete a PDF FAFSA PDF FAFSAs must be mailed for processing
3. Request a paper FAFSA by calling us at 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243) or 319-337-5665. If you are hearing impaired, please contact the TTY line at 1-800-730-8913.

In order to apply for federal social worker financial aid you will need to fulfill certain requirements, such as:

• You must have your high school diploma or GED certificate, have completed homeschooling, or pass an approved “ability to benefit” test.

• You have to be a United Statescitizen or an eligible non-citizen of theUSand have a valid Social Security Number (SSN).

• You must have be financially in need (except for an unsubsidized Stafford loan).

• You must be enrolled in an eligible program as a full-time student seeking a degree or certificate.

• You must be making acceptable academic progress.

• You must not be in default on a federal education loan or owe a refund on a federal grant.

• You will need to complete a Student Aid Eligibility Worksheet to ascertain whether you are Partially Eligible or Eligible for aid if you have ever been convicted for the sale of or possession of illegal drugs whilst receiving any form of federal student aid.

• Males between the ages of 18 and 25 must register or already be registered with Selective Service. You will also be required to register if you are not currently on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces. You are exempt from registering if you are a citizen of the Republic of Palau, theFederated States of Micronesia, or the Republic of theMarshall Islands.

There may also be other requirements, which you will find out about when applying for FAFSA.
Once you have submitted your FAFSA, it should not take longer than 3-5 days for a Student Aid Report (SAR) to be sent to you and the colleges you have listed. The SAR contains a summary of the data as submitted by you and a Data Release Number which you will need in any communications with the Federal Student Aid Information Center.

If you need any further assistance in completing the FAFSA, you can go here. 
The FSA social worker financial aid that you may be eligible for are listed below:

• Federal Pell Grants are available to social work undergraduate students who can prove their financial need. The amount of the grant awarded depends on the level of need. Although this grant can go up to around $5 000, the typical amounts awarded range between $1,000 and $4,000 per annum.

• Federal Stafford Loans – provided through the Federal Direct Loan Program.- A Subsidized Stafford loan is a loan for which the government pays the interest during grace periods, and during any deferment periods.- An Unsubsidized Stafford loan is one that you are fully responsible for repaying all interest.

• Federal PLUS Loans are unsubsidized loans made to parents of undergraduate students. Interest rates for these loans vary depending on when the loan is taken out.

• Graduate and Professional Student PLUS Loans are for graduates and professional students.

• The Academic Competitiveness Grant (ACG) is specifically directed at and designed for those who went through a very rigorous high school program of study as determined by the U.S. Department of Education. This grant is offered to first and second-year students who meet the criteria.

• There are three Campus-Based programs which are financial aid programs that are administered by participating schools:- The Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) is aimed at and specifically designed for students with extreme financial need that exceeds the requirements for the Federal Pell Grant eligibility. Students who meet the requirements for social worker financial aid via this grant can look forward to receiving between $500 and $4,000, depending on the tuition fees. Students who receive an FSEOG grant can also apply for a Pell Grant.– Federal Work-study provides undergraduate and graduate students with work opportunities in order to pay for their studies.

• Perkins Loans are repayable, but at a low interest rate of only 5%. The maximum a student can get per annum is $4 000.

For more information about federal student aid:

Phone: 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243).

Website: www.studentaid.ed.gov

You can also get the free student publication:

FundingEducationBeyondHigh School: The Guide to Federal Student Aid

Phone: 1-877-4-ED-PUBS

Website: www.edpubs.gov

Address: Federal Student Aid Information Center
P.O. Box 84
Washington,DC20044

Benefits Of Social Worker Financial Aid

Social worker students who receive federal grants can concentrate on their studies instead of having to worry about finances. The federal grants that are awarded to successful applicants do not need to be repaid as long as the student maintains acceptable grades and are not in default on any federal loan. Not having to repay the debt gives awardees of financial assistance a better chance of getting ahead and getting out of the poverty-cycle when they eventually graduate, as they will not be burdened with education debt like so many other graduates will be.

Income Tax Credits

Another form of social worker financial aid that you may be eligible for is educational income tax credits, which can reduce your or your parents’ federal taxes.

• The Hope tax credit can be claimed during the first two years of college, up to a maximum of $1,800 per annum.
• The Lifetime Learning tax credit is available for any level of post secondary study, up to a maximum of $2,000 per year.
• The American Opportunity tax credit can be claimed during four years of college, up to a maximum of $2,500 per year.

Recent Changes To The Student Aid Programs

Due to recent changes in the legislation, there are some new requirements for the federal student aid programs. Most of these changes will take effect for the 2012-2013 school year. More information can be accessed here.

Remember, you do not have to give up your dreams to become a social worker just because you are in financial straits, all you have to do is do your research and apply for social worker financial aid from either the college or university that you wish to attend or apply for federal aid by completing a FAFSA.

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