Human services ( masters)

[Duneranger]

Thanks bjcheung77 ,
Yes human services is working as case manager or social worker social services. I am not interested in counseling and not interested in MSW.  MSW is long process. I want to get a degree not more than one year.

Are you in the US? I ask because in some states, the government is very strict about what degree you need to become a case manager or social worker.

Yes, in my state they are almost always RNs or MSWs. Not just any Joe with a BA.

[Sara143]

Thanks bjcheung77 ,
Yes human services is working as case manager or social worker social services. I am not interested in counseling and not interested in MSW.  MSW is long process. I want to get a degree not more than one year.

Are you in the US? I ask because in some states, the government is very strict about what degree you need to become a case manager or social worker.

Yes I am in US. I had no idea about it. I just want to work as case manager or any other position at social services office.
I am not interested to get licensed as social worker ( MSW)

[bjcheung77]

@Sara143, "any other position in a social services office", review my posts, especially post #9... There are so many different positions that may/may not require a Masters if you want to work in any position or role in a social services office setting, most would be administrative roles, review my posts.

This is what you need to do... Finish your Bachelors degree first, while you're waiting for graduation, search for jobs in your area that you're interested in and see what the requirements are, copy/paste those links here and we can see what can be done, it may have or may not have specific requirements.

If all the jobs are pointing to one particular degree, then go for that.. if it just needs a Masters in a related/similar subject area, then you can take what degree/subjects that are acceptable. There are a few competency based masters degrees that may work for you... we just need to know what those are...

[wildebeest]

Is there any university who would offer human services masters under 10k? Or any international university? Thanks

EIU, where I'm getting my master's (and which I recommend as an above-average state school) offers an MS in Human Services for an all-in cost of about $14,025. This includes the cost of book rentals and all fees other than the $40 graduation fee and the application fee, the price of which I forget. Not under $10,000, obviously, but a decent cost for a pretty specific degree you can get online from a reputable state university. I also happened to take one of the human services classes (Grant Writing and Policy in Human Services) and thought it was well put together.

This wouldn't be an "under a year" program, however; it's designed to be a two-year program and you'd have to complete 12 credits for regular semesters and 9 credits in summer to finish in exactly one year and, while not impossible, it's a big ask. I took 6 credits during the last summer session and it was flat-out hard to keep up.

Lastly, while different states are different (obviously), I've worked in the field you're interested in for seven years, and where I work, at least, while an MS in Human Services would certainly be helpful to you, it probably wouldn't be particularly helpful for at least a couple years. You'd need to build your resume with work as an outreach specialist or a program coordinator or a social service program specialist, something along those lines, first, and work your way up to case manager. In the private (nonprofit) facility where I work, you don't need a master's at all, but you do need a relevant bachelor's degree (psychology, say) and at least 18 months of direct patient care, providing substance use or mental health care. This doesn't sound bad, but the case managers I know actually had about five to seven years of experience as intervention specialists or program coordinators before becoming case managers, and in order to get jobs as intervention specialists or program coordinators they first had to already have 18 months of experience providing direct patient care. Minimum requirements are very much minimum requirements and might not make you a competitive candidate. And in this case, the minimum requirements still add up two three years of experience in direct patient/client care roles before even being considered for a case manager position.

I think an MS in Human Services is perfectly viable, and with a lot of work can be done in about a year (though I'd recommend giving yourself 18 months, at least at EIU, which has been a pretty intense experience for me), but, at least in my state, this is a field where you work your way toward a job like case manager, and that means starting out doing more hands-on, therapeutic work with clients/patients. A master's degree isn't a way to bypass the experience requirements.

This is only my experience in my state, but I doubt it's an entirely unique experience.

https://www.eiu.edu/mhs/

[Alpha]

Purdue Global has a Masters program in Human Services.  I am unaware of the cost.
https://www.purdueglobal.edu/degree-prog...-services/

[bjcheung77]

Purdue Global has a Masters program in Human Services.  I am unaware of the cost.
https://www.purdueglobal.edu/degree-prog...-services/

CREDITS REQUIRED 45
(30 Semester Credits)

COST PER CREDIT $420
Total: 18900

I would suggest getting the MAOL completed at UMPI instead, then find an administrative position at any of those "Human Services" agencies and work your way into a position you'd like to get into. Start by getting your foot in the door, they usually only need a Bachelors and you're already there. The MAOL is the Masters that will get you up a notch to a higher paying/rewarding position.

[studyingfortests]

If one is getting a master's degree in a human services-related field, it really does not make much sense to get a master's in human services. This isn't a licensable degree in any state that I am aware of, and there isn't really much of any scope of practice difference between a masters and a bachelors except in a couple of states.

I'm not trying to tell you what to do, just saying a one-year masters in human services, if you can even find one, isn't going to be a very good value vocationally.

An MSW is only two years (assuming you have a bachelor's degree in almost anything), there are some good online programs that are around $35K or less, and it is one of the most marketable and license-transferrable degrees you can get.

You might want to rethink your decision.

[Sara143]

If one is getting a master's degree in a human services-related field, it really does not make much sense to get a master's in human services.  This isn't a licensable degree in any state that I am aware of, and there isn't really much of any scope of practice difference between a masters and a bachelors except in a couple of states.

I'm not trying to tell you what to do, just saying a one-year masters in human services, if you can even find one, isn't going to be a very good value vocationally.

An MSW is only two years (assuming you have a bachelor's degree in almost anything), there are some good online programs that are around $35K or less, and it is one of the most marketable and license-transferrable degrees you can get.

You might want to rethink your decision.

Sorry I just see your response. I appreciate your reply and advice.

[bjcheung77]

If you're not keen on getting a MSW, then don't. Stick with an 'easier' (cheaper/faster) Masters, such as the MAOL to check the box for the Masters level of studies and again, as I mentioned in post #16, use it as a springboard and work your way up to a management level, you just need to get yourself in that door first. Your bachelor degree should do the trick, with the masters, you're using it to move upwards...

[studyingfortests]

There is really no point whatsoever that I can see in getting a masters in human services. When I worked at a residential facility, we had a staff member who had her masters in human service. Because the degree wasn't licensable (no human services degrees are), she wasn't able to do much of anything billable and ended up relegated to doing intake assessments. She was doing the same type of case management work that our drug/alcohol counselor trainees (with little to no schooling) were doing.

I don't understand your resistance to the MSW. As masters degrees go, it is not that difficult compared with, say, a biostatistics masters or something of that nature. Most of the human services masters programs I'm seeing are somewhere around a similar number of credits. You don't *have* to pursue license with an MSW, but at least with that degree you'd have the option of doing so. And there are excellent online MSW programs for people without a bachelor's in social work that will take you 18-24 months to complete... which is about the same amount of time it would take for a human services masters.

If you are really interested in working only in case management, you might want to look at what the certified alcohol/drug counselor requirements are in your state. In many it does not even require an associates degree, just around 10 classes. And most case managers, especially in drug/alcohol and residential mental health, are CADCs. But the pay is about half of the MSW.