Pediatric Oncology Social Work

Heartbreak: My Decision to Enter Pediatric Oncology Social Work
Samuel A. Maki
Brigham Young University

Heartbreak: My Decision to Enter Pediatric Oncology Social Work
Part 1 I have decided to pursue a career in social work focused on pediatric oncology. There are some big words there so I will explain a little more; pediatric oncology is the study of cancer in children. Children can mean all the way up until the age of eighteen, and even then, if someone started treatment as an eighteen-year-old, they often stay with their pediatric care unit well past their nineteenth birthday. :[Social workers] are skillful at delivering interventions that address the adaptive and psychosocial needs of clients during the different stages

Kuther and Morgan (2013) state that “All states have licensing or certification requirements for private practice and the use of the title ‘social worker’” (p. 23). It will be necessary to complete a Bachelor’s degree and then receive a Master’s degree from a school that is recognized by a ruling body. Any major will be applicable for a Master’s of Social Work (MSW) application, but a Bachelor’s of Social Work would be best and other similar majors such as Psychology and Philosophy can be beneficial. It is also considered helpful to have some familiarity with the field in which you wish to enter, though it is not necessary. I plan on receiving a Bachelor’s of Psychology degree from Brigham Young University and attending an MSW program to receive a Master’s degree. I am already involved in social work through my employment and I plan to work in various social work settings to be well-rounded. The overall time to complete these degrees is around six

Unfortunately, our program is only Master’s level, so the faculty are more used to working with graduate level students. I would prefer to work with a male member of faculty to better understand my personal demographic in the social work world, so I would choose between David Wood or Kevin Marett. Outside of BYU I have continued contact with a social worker at Mayo Clinic. I find it difficult to think that I would actually try to connect with the faculty at the BYU School of Social Work due to their divide between the levels of education. Research is not necessary to gain entry to this field, though I will look for research opportunities before graduate school. To receive licensure as a medical social worker, one needs five-thousand to six-thousand hours of supervised clinical experience, which comes through work during an MSW program and internships. To be properly prepared I have already begun work in a field like that of which I am interested in and I will continue to seek the advice of those who are already in the