Going "Macro": Exploring the Careers of Macro Practitioners

Abstract

Important benefits accrue to the profession and to its vulnerable clientele when social workers hold positions with substantial community or policy influence. However, fewer social workers are holding these positions than in the past, and student preferences to pursue macro-specific training have declined. To improve the social work profession's ability to recruit and educate students interested in competing for leadership positions in human services organizations, this article analyzes data from a survey of MSW graduates of a public school of social work located in the southwestern United States and currently working as macro practitioners. Findings indicate that macro social workers can successfully compete for mid-level and top-level administrative and policy positions, and provide evidence contrary to many of the concerns students express when deciding whether to pursue a macro concentration or career. The article concludes with a discussion of the implications for supporting and educating social work students interested in pursuing a macro practice career.

Perceptions of Macro Social Work Education: An Exploratory Study of Educators and Practitioners

“…The findings from this study support previous work that showed that there are factors external to the social work curriculum that impact macro social work education (Donaldson et al, 2014;Netting et al, 2016;Pritzker & Applewhite, 2015;Reisch, 2015;Rothman, 2012). These factors may include institutional demands within social work education, social work licensure, marketplace and professional demands, and macro social work identity development.…”

“…In contrast, Pritzker and Applewhite (2015) found that macro social work graduates were able to successfully compete for administrative and policy positions with graduates from other related disciplines (for example, law, public administration, or public health) and that macro graduates reported higher salaries than the national average for all social workers. Thus, it is not evident that the demand for macro social workers is in fact weaker than for other types of social work practitioners.…”

“…For example, many positions that macro practice graduates may compete for, may not be identified as "social work" positions in the job title, description, or requirements. While social workers' knowledge, skills, and abilities may be an excellent fit for these positions, the positions may not be identified as specifically for social workers (Pritzker & Applewhite, 2015).…”

Explaining the policy practice of community social workers

“…The findings showed that the level of policy practice training during graduate studies was positively associated with the level of PPE. This offers support for the calls for enhancing policy training in social work education (Pritzker & Applewhite, 2015; Reisch, 2016) in order to strengthen the recognition that this type of practice is integral to social work and, in particular, to community social work practice. Moreover, the study suggests that education (both by schools of social work and training by professional associations) should focus on providing policy practice skills, enhancing psychological engagement in politics, and encouraging participation in political networks.…”

Re-Envisioning Macro Social Work Practice

“…The marketplace has also become more competitive, as social workers have had to contend for administrative positions with business and public and nonprofit management professionals (Smith, 2015). As a result, the nature of management practice, which historically has included attention to advocacy, community organizing, and policy development (Austin, 1986), has narrowed to focus on securing funding, administering and evaluating programs, and monitoring performance (Pritzker & Applewhite, 2015;Smith, 2012). To sustain their organizations, social work managers have ironically become stronger proponents of micro practice than of their historical macro practice roles.…”