Social care and social work
Source: https://www.york.ac.uk/students/work-volunteering-careers/options/sectors/social-care/ Parent: https://www.york.ac.uk/students/work-volunteering-careers/options/career-ideas/podcast/
This diverse sector appeals to graduates who are looking for rewarding work that makes a difference in people's lives.
There are many roles available to graduates - some opportunities will require further professional qualifications and most will require (sometimes extensive) relevant paid or voluntary work experience.
Areas where you could work include but are not limited to:
- counselling
- housing
- probation service
- residential care
- social work
- youth and community work
Find out about social care and social work
Key resources
- Overview of the social care sector and graduate jobs in the social care sector from Prospects.
Research the sector and keep up with current issues by reading:
- industry news from Community Care, Guardian Social Care Network and the Government’s social care blog
- information from organisations promoting social care and social work, including the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP), the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH), Social Work England, the British Association of Social Workers (BASW) and the Probation Institute
Use of AI in social work and social care
AI can help social workers and social care practitioners to reduce the amount of time spent on administrative tasks, such as note-taking and transcribing. An increasing number of councils use the Beam Magic Notes tool for social work. Social workers value the opportunity to focus more on the human-centred and relational aspects of their work, but need to ensure AI is used carefully and ethically, and that they retain full responsibility for decisions and interventions.
- Interview with Luke Geoghegan, BASW Head of Policy, on AI in social work (Oct 2025)
- BASW blog: AI, social work and our shared future (April 2025)
- The BASW provides member-only content and guidance to keep social workers up to date with developments and concerns around the use of AI.
- Skills for Care: How AI can make social care better (Dec 2024)
- Impact: Exploring the use of AI in adult social care (2025)
What skills do I need?
Employers in this sector look for candidates who show real motivation to help others, plus evidence of some of these skills, depending on the organisation and specific role:
- patience and sensitivity
- active listening
- able to stay calm and work effectively when under pressure
- excellent communication - verbal and written
- strong teamwork
- non judgemental approach and able to deal with a range of people
- self awareness
- resilience
- awareness of confidentiality
- time management skills and ability to prioritise
- information handling
For more information about professional skills and how to develop them, see the York Strengths Professional Skills page.
What qualifications do I need?
Depending on your area of interest, you may need a degree in a specific subject or be willing to undertake further qualifications.
- Jobs in housing are open to graduates of any discipline, but if you have a non-housing degree you should be prepared to undertake qualifications accredited by The Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) to progress your career.
- Social workers need an honours or postgraduate degree in social work approved by Social Work England). There are further study options, such as the programme offered at York. There are also a small number of graduate schemes in which you get qualified while working, including Approach Social Work.
- Youth workers need an honours or postgraduate qualification validated by the National Youth Agency (NYA)
- Counsellors typically undertake a three-stage training route accredited by a professional body, such as the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy.
- Probation officers need a professional qualification in probation, which is studied while working in a probation service. It takes 15 or 21 months, depending on what you have studied at university.
- For residential childcare, it may be also possible to work and gain a qualification on the job, see Residential childcare careers information for students.
Work experience
Work experience is essential if you want to work in social care or social work. Work shadowing and work placements can help you learn more about the areas of the sector that most interest you, and volunteering will show your dedication to the sector and help you develop your skills.
Housing
- Make speculative applications to housing associations, tenants associations or organisations like the National Residential Landlords Association.
- Find part-time work developing your customer service skills.
Social care work
- Many national and local charities require volunteers to support their work. Opportunities are advertised through Handshake, Do-it, York SU and on charity websites. Consider organisations like Samaritans and Childline, where you can volunteer as a listener taking calls from distressed members of the public.
Working with offenders
- Build your experience of working in challenging situations and supporting people who display challenging behaviour by volunteering with local authority youth justice teams; City of York Council and North Yorkshire County Council regularly seek volunteers. You could also consider volunteering as an appropriate adult, in victim support or with the police.
Working with children and young people
- Explore the opportunities available with York Students in Schools.
- Local youth organisations like Brownies, Guides, Cubs and Scouts require volunteers.
- There are opportunities to work abroad over summer as a counsellor at US summer camps.
See also the Psychology sector page for further suggestions and links to local care providers, including mental health support services.
Find jobs
Jobs are advertised on:
- websites like Community Care, JobsGoPublic, NHS Jobs and Handshake
- local authority websites
- BASW (the British Association of Social Workers) has a jobs section, and also offers support for newly-qualified social workers
- HM Prison and Probation Service for probation worker training.
Graduate training opportunities in social care include:
- Approach Social Work from Frontline
- Think Ahead (note government funding for Think Ahead will end after the 2025 intake)
The recruitment process includes application, online test, video interview and assessment centre, before a conditional offer and final checks. Find out about CVs, job applications and the recruitment process on the Applying and interviewing pages.
Alternatively for some roles, such as social work, you could consider further study options as a route into the sector (eg completing a Masters in Social Work, such as the programme offered at York).
What can I do at York?
- Take advantage of the volunteering opportunities available through [Careers and Placements](https://www.york.ac.uk/students/work-volunteering-careers/skills/volunteer/) and York SU
- Get help with CVs and interviews
- If you're not studying a social work course, consider a placement year to increase your experience and gain a better understanding of the sector
More resources: networks, podcasts and blogs
Connect with York graduates
Join York for Life to connect with our global network of alumni. Start building your own network - find people from your course, look at different careers, ask questions and request a mentor.
Use LinkedIn to make connections, follow organisations of interest, and find out what York graduates are doing. Find out more about using LinkedIn and networking.
Podcasts
Keep up to date with the sector and learn about the types of jobs available with these podcasts.
- Relevant episodes of our What do you actually do? podcasts
- Bethany Pease: life as a social worker
Blogs
- UK Government's social care
- Chartered Institute of housing
- Frontline blogs
- Health and Care Professions Council
- Probation Institute's latest news
- Think Ahead news and blogs. (Note: the Think Ahead programme is no longer being funded but the blog is still live, Nov 2025.)