Landing a Good Paying Job in Social Services

I would like to reach out to all of you who would like to work in the social services industry, but are struggling to land a good paying position. I can understand wanting to invest your full time in serving your community and making society a better place. I can also understand wanting to earn a good income that will allow you to live comfortably and enjoy life. Achieving these two goals is more difficult in social services that in most other industries.

Below is a diagram from the Occupational Outlook Handbook of the Bureau of Labor Statistics summarizing data from 2014.

Low-Income & High-Crime Rates

There is a high correlation between low-income families and high crime rate neighborhoods. The financial struggles some families endure putting food on the table and clothes on their children’s back lead some of those kids to earn money by engaging in illegal behaviors.

We are blessed to have people who want to work full-time to improve and make our communities better, but they too are struggling to make ends meet, such as teachers. Sometimes the people who contribute the most to society and the underprivileged are the ones who earn peanuts and could barely make a living for themselves and their families.

Client Example

I am currently working with someone to assist and market him for a few jobs in the industry. While researching several positions for him, I found a few that were an excellent match between where he has been and where he wants to go. We decided to focus his primary resume towards positions with the youth in social services. This particular position was a social service job with the government at the state level.

I designed his resume based on the requirements and knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) government resumes require. This is a fictionalized sample of the resume I created for my client. My resume writing process allowed my client to use the content from the resume to respond to most of the questions on the job application.

The following morning after my client submitted his application, I received an email from him informing me he was contacted for an interview. We were both so excited for the interview opportunity and the quick turnaround!

After reading my client’s email and noting the low salary for this position, I replied by presenting the pros and cons of this opportunity considering the salary. In all, my client decided to attend the interview with an open mind.

The Interview

During the interview, my client was informed the salary was not negotiable, as it was already budgeted by the state. Without disclosing the salary, I would like to say it was almost the salary of someone who just migrated to this country or of someone who just graduated high school and is just starting in the workforce without any work experience.

The requirements and expectations of this particular position are of a management level professional who would be on call 24-7. The expectations and high demands of this position do not match its compensation. While reviewing numerous state jobs, I realized the pattern of high demand positions offering a low compensation. This type of match was mostly noticeable in the social services industry, which is a shame because we should be building better communities and making a positive impact on the lives of those who are living the consequences of their negative actions.

In all, my client decided to work with me to find and land interviews for higher paying jobs in social services.

Professionals in the Industry

If you do not have a genuine interest in working to improve your community, a good salary will probably not instill the desire needed to make a difference. Yes, it takes a passionate and committed person with a strong desire to work in social services to make a difference. Yes, we have heard many times people who choose to work in this industry do not do so for the money.

The reality is we all need to make a living and be happy with our quality of life. I believe we need to be fulfilled in many areas including financially so we can assist and improve the lives of others. We need to care for ourselves first before we can care for others. If you are not fulfilled or are not taking proper care of yourself, you will not be able to do so for someone else.

The high demands and the low compensation for people in this industry are evident through the system and all that relates to the community. Eventually, what has happened and will continue to happen is people will start pursuing other industries to make a better living while volunteering in the community on the side. Communities will suffer as a result of this.

Government Outlook for Industry Compensation

According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Employment of social workers is projected to grow 12 percent from 2014 to 2024, faster than the average for all occupations.”

I do not know the thought process and justification the state or the government has for offering people in social services such a low salary while expecting a high level of enthusiasm and personal investment in return.

I do not understand how the government expects communities to improve and reduce their crime rates when the very people who are serving this purpose are struggling themselves. I am not even touching upon the subject of corruption within the system. Everything connects.

Opportunities for Contributing While Earning a Good Living

On the other hand, the jobs in social services with a higher salary are extremely competitive. According to a nationwide search I did on Indeed.com entering “social service” on the what field and “United States” on the where field, the top paying jobs in social services paid a little more than $70k with New York, NY, Chicago, IL, and San Francisco, CA being the top three locations with the highest demands in the industry. I did this search on April 14, 2016.

Below are a few examples of those jobs.

1. Youth/Family Counselor – $61,355.00 – $98,167.00 USD (Recruitment closes on April 19, 2016. If you would like to submit a good resume for this position, contact me today.)
2. Integrated Community Options Specialist – Salary negotiable upto $75,000
3. Partnership and Community Relations Coordinator – $82,662

I want you to know I understand the struggles you might be facing in landing a well-paying job in social services. I truly believe this is an amazingly rewarding industry. If you are interested in landing a good job in the social services industry and need help marketing yourself to land a financially rewarding position, contact me. I will be happy to help you too.

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