Why Social Work Was My Path

Without sharing 23 years worth of my life history with you all I would love to tell you a little bit about my path to social work and to USC. First, you must know that I am a product of social services, and thus am a strong believer in the influence and the positive effects of social services. My mother had only been in the U.S. for three years when I was born and she has shared with me the challenges that she had navigating most systems in the U.S. due to language and cultural barriers. Being the sole parent in the home my mother struggled for most of my life to take care of myself and my lil’ brother. I quickly became the family spokesperson as I entered elementary school and began to speak English. I remember questioning the system as a child and wondering why it was that so many individuals needed governmental assistance for survival. In addition to having questions about the “system”, I had a deep appreciation for the role that it played in ensuring that I had a home, food in my belly, and warm clothes on my back. As I grew older, my encounters with helping professionals continued. During high school I had a number of teachers that took an interest in me and guided me through the process of applying to college. During college I encountered more individuals who served as mentors and guides who assisted me and guided me through the process of completing my undergraduate degree, funding it, and successfully applying to graduate school. My arrival at USC was not planned by any means. Prior to attending USC I was in a PhD program in Sociology. After one quarter I recognized that my heart and passion lied in applied research that would someday benefit others. I recognized my need to give back to the community that had made me who I am . I decided to withdraw from my PhD program and enter into Social Work. I have no regrets about walking away from a PhD program because it wasn’t my path. I am now interested in pursuing a PhD in Social Work and I plan to do so in the near future. My philosophy in life since I was a little girl has been, “Show me the way and I promise you I will get there.” It’s funny now that I am 23 to recognize that I adhere to a philosophy that I developed during my elementary school years, but the reality is that it worked then and it works now. I strongly believe that there are a great number of individuals out in the world that merely need a guiding light and a supportive hand for them to make it out of adversity, and that is why I decided to pursue social work.