How to become a Hospice Social Worker

Becoming a Hospice Social worker will lead you towards working with very ill and possibly terminally ill people of all ages. Working in the hospice field requires compassion and caring as well as the ability to help people work through the grief that they feel. A Hospice social worker has to cope with grief and the dying on a daily basis and you need to adjust to that environment. Each patient responds differently to the possibility of dying and a hospice social worker needs to be flexible while seeing to the needs of their patients.

Step 1

Study and work towards a Bachelor of Science degree in Social Work before you try to become a hospice social worker. Many colleges have courses relating to social work and it will not be hard to find a local college to attend.

Step 2

Volunteer as a hospice worker while you study for your social working degree. Becoming a volunteer will let you see the environments that you will work in when you are a social worker. Volunteering with various hospice companies will also give you references and potential job leads when you are ready for a job as a hospice social worker.

Step 3

Continue your schooling and get a Master’s degree in Social Work. Study for your Social Worker’s license and take the state required test. The college that you attended will help you get ready for the state exam. You need to pass the exam before you can get your social worker’s license. Some hospice social worker jobs require that you acquire a Master’s degree and a Social Working license.

Step 4

Train under other social workers in the hospice field as you are learning to become a hospice social worker. Training with others will increase your interpersonal skills and your skills in the social working field while you are learning hands on experience.

Step 5

Create a resume and document all your training and volunteer work in the hospice field. Add in your education and any relevant experiences that you have had with hospice work to your resume. Apply to private companies and government jobs to get your first Hospice Social Worker job. Many colleges have job assistant programs that will help you get your first job after college.