1. Heidi Seeger
School of Social Work
Application Essay
January 28th, 2014
The Field of Social Work
Social work has always appeared to be a very enriching and interesting
practice to me. A few components of my life have inspired me to pursue a Bachelor’s
degree in social work. Several of my relatives, mainly my aunt and my sister,
stimulated an interest in social work by sharing stories of their practice. Since they
work at firms that service individuals with different needs, I was able to grasp the
wide range of services that exist in the field of social work. This flexibility and
diversity that is available when choosing one’s career path was very intriguing to
me. Also throughout my life, I have gained the ability to connect with individuals
and create meaningful relationships. This “people person” personality influenced
me to choose the practice of social work, in that I could utilize this communicative
skill set while servicing others.
Many key values in my life coincide fluidly with values of a social worker. The
following four values are held with the most importance in my life: strong work
ethic, accountability, compassion, and faith. Having a strong work ethic will
positively affect my success within the social work program, and my career to
follow. Accountability is closely tied to social work as well, for an employee is
always responsible to make ethical decisions in various situations. Compassion is
yet another crucial value in the field of social work. In order to provide the best care

2. and support for one’s client, compassion and empathy must exist. Lastly, faith is an
important personal value that ties into social work. There will surely be times
throughout my social work career when different forms of religion are presented.
Having a strong respect for my religion will help me to respect other religions and
corresponding viewpoints.
Different skill sets are needed to succeed in every type of career. I possess
several strengths that will surely enhance my professional social work practice.
Time management and planning is a fundamental strength that I have been able to
perfect with the help of academics. Learning how to complete lengthy assignments
within a short time frame will surely carry over to my career, in which deadlines
will be due quite frequently. Critical thinking and effective writing is another
personal strength that will benefit my professional practice. Grants and progress
reports will be easier to write with this strength. Finally, effective communication
and public speaking will greatly benefit my career in meetings with faculty and
individual clients.
Although I have acquired various beneficial skill sets, there is still one area
that I wish to grow in order to enhance my profession. The apability to change
preconceived biases towards certain populations must be addressed early in my
career path. Accepting others’ differences and diversities is a weakness that I must
strengthen in order to provide the best form of social work that I have to offer.