To register as a Social Worker in Scotland you need to have attained an honours or masters degree. While the educational content within these degrees is absolutely necessary and upholds the integrity of the profession, higher education is not accessible or attainable for everyone. There are plenty of people with invaluable life experience and community knowledge who would make great Social Workers but do not have the grades or ability to attend university. Other routes such as apprenticeships and access courses into apprenticeships should be considered to support more people into the profession. There is no reason the same content taught within the university degrees cannot be made available through other educational avenues. We are missing out on a wealth of talent by excluding people based their academic abilities rather than enhancing their existing practical skills.
This content is created by the open source Your Priorities citizen engagement platform designed by the non profit Citizens Foundation