I'm a social worker and certainly nobody forced me into this profession. I love it, but its certainly a job that most people aren't suited for. Yes the pay isn't great, and doesn't match the education or effort that social workers put in. However, social workers know this going in to their career, and its a choice that most are happy with. There is a lot of burn-out in the profession, but its also a profession that has a reasonably high demand across a broad range of populations. Despite what some may think, its not just about working with neglected kids and removing children from homes. Social workers work with addicts, the elderly, community organizations, schools, the criminal justice system, etc.

My sister is a social worker, and has her msw. I've seen it burn people out (including her). They are very under-paid and under-appreciated. She makes about 45k a year and that's w/a full-time and part-time job. I think it's a stressful job but the only reason I give it a '3' is because it can be rewarding at times.

Low pay,it would be hard to witness the abuse,or neglect,kids have to put up with,at the same time maybe knowing that you where placing a child in a better cirumstance and actually giving it a decent shot at life I would think we be rewarding.

It is both a rewarding job and a hard job to do. It is easy to get attatched to the children they place. They think of what is right for the child rather than say the abusive or neglectful parent. It's sad to see some of the cases they have to deal with.

Generally speaking the pay is poor for those with advanced degrees and there are very few successes to the many unsavables.

You couldn't pay me enough to do this job. I feel for those who actually have the passion to do so. . .

This would be pretty bad. The pay is not great, compared to the work involved, and it's pretty thankless.

I'll vote for this one being one of the worst possible jobs one could have. Having to see all those poor, sad, loveless, unwanted, and frequently abused kids get moved around by the system and you never know if you're helping them or hurting them with the decisions you make. A thankless job too since you're bound to catch hell from someone if you make any mistakes. Huge workloads and paltry paychecks. God bless the people who choose to do that job.