Here's my final personal statement I'm submitting with a culminating binder portfolio. Yes, I'm actually submitting this.
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When
I began the BASW program at the University of Washington I was generally an
optimistic, idealistic and naïve person. Now? Well, at least I’m still
idealistic. Sort of. Being in the undergraduate program has been like opening
up the stomach cavity of humanity and being forced to see and smell the
pulsating entrails normally covered by flesh and skin. I’ve come to understand
at a very deep level the mechanisms of oppression, the context of history with
social problems and the seemingly insurmountable odds we find ourselves up
against as social change “agents.” While the world may seem bleak at times,
I’ve learned that because of my existence as a social worker, it is now and
always will be marginally less so. Slow clap.
As
a result of being in this program, I’ve had to adapt and survive through
self-care. In the morning I would learn about how black people were lynched and
used as sex slaves. Then, I’d go to coffee with my classmates and try not to
cut myself.
The
School of Social Work encourages students to think critically and
independently. Well, in this school, I sure have learned how to do just that.
While the school may imply that social workers are responsible for the fate of
all oppressed populations everywhere, and that if we don’t do something, then
no one will, I know in my heart that this is simply not true. I refuse to live
in agony and misery, wallowing in privileged guilt and an unhealthily
metastasized savior-complex. While I am aware of the plight of vulnerable
populations, I as one individual, can only do so much. I will do what I can to
address poverty, violence and suffering in the world, but once I’ve put in my
eight hours for the day, I will surrender myself to a coping mechanism entitled
fatalism.
When
I leave this place, the School of Social Work, I will forever have on my
goggles of “awareness.” Trust me, even when I try to enjoy something as
mindless and popularly entertaining as The
Hunger Games, for example, I will end up writing a five-page analysis of
its major themes with respect to power and oppression[1].
I will carry with me ecological-systems theory, empowerment theory, the ethnic
identity development model, cultural responsiveness (the dialogic model, of
course) and the strengths perspective. These theories have affected the way I
interact with people, whether in my professional or personal life; I have
internalized them that much.
In
terms of “staying current” with social welfare, I’ll always feed my insatiable
compulsion to “be in touch” with the reality of the underclass, whether it be
through the NPR public health blog (Shots),
The Seattle Times, National Geographic, literary fiction or
memoirs of people who have survived horrific circumstances (e.g. Strength in
What Remains, Desert Flower, Persepolis). It is my duty as a
professional social worker to stay informed, and informed I will stay!
My
strengths as a social worker are my ability to articulate forms of oppression,
my critical thinking, my self-reflection and my ability to establish rapport
with clients through genuine warmth and caring. Areas for growth would be
maintaining professional boundaries with clients, political advocacy and
research-informed practice.
It
has certainly been an interesting ride, this BASW experience. I’ve had my hopes
crushed into a finely ground powder, then snorted through someone’s nose. I’ve
learned to be much more realistic, to reject martyrdom and to enjoy life for
what it offers. As a social worker, I may not be able to fundamentally change
the structure of society to uplift the downtrodden and usher them into an age
of triumph, true brotherhood and utopian parity. However, I’ll do my small part,
quietly, without heraldry or accolades, humming a pop ballad from the 1990s.
“Two roads diverged in a wood and I—I took
the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”
-Robert Frost
