How To Become A Community Support Worker

If you are looking for a job that offers you the opportunity to help people, you should consider serving as a community support worker. This job is for people who have empathy and want to help other people in their immediate community. Below are some things you should know about this job.

What Do Community Support Workers Do? If you want to serve as a support worker in your community, you should be ready to get involved in the daily activities of other people in your area. Among other duties, you can help your clients with household chores like cooking, arranging transportation, cleaning and recreational activities. In some cases, your job might include personal grooming, pet care and a bit of counselling. Sometimes, the client just needs your presence and a bit of friendship.

How to Become a Community Worker

If you want to work in the community support industry, you can start out at a lower level and work your way up the ladder. In this case, you can just take a diploma course in community services. This program has a two-year duration plus 400 hours of supervised fieldwork. With this qualification, you can get a job in a local state or federal ministry. In case you are not happy with this option, you can take a degree course and then you start your community service career at a higher level. The relevant programs include a Bachelor’s of Human Services or the better sounding Bachelor of Community and Human Services. Once you have any of these two qualifications, you are likely to get a good job in the community services industry.

Personal Qualities

Obviously, you cannot do this job if you are hot tempered, impatient and insular. This job requires tons of patience, empathy, an understanding nature and generosity of spirit. If you are compassionate, sympathetic and willing to help your fellow man, this is the right job for you. In addition, you should be a team player with excellent communication skills. The ability to drive (along with a valid driving license) is an asset because you never know when you might need to drive your client to the hospital or take kids to school.

Job Satisfaction

There is never a dull moment in this job so you cannot complain of monotony if you are working in the community service industry. Again, your career prospects are great and job security is quite high. Become a community support worker and you will enjoy all the spiritual benefits that come with helping other people.