Why social work. A young woman from India who was raised to be most passionate about social issues and social justice, - especially by my mother, a public school teacher - I take great personal pride in my professional integrity, resilience, and especially my commitment to the underserved and the most vulnerable members of our society. Only since I have myself become a teacher, have I most fully come to appreciate the foundational importance of human dignity and respect and how instrumental it is for the educational process. Social Work is my choice as a profession because I see it as the duty of our society and those designated to address social issues, social workers, to help at-risk, marginalized, or vulnerable people to be accorded justice, particularly with respect to educational opportunity.
I became increasingly aware of my passion for human dignity during my fellowship and teaching experience for Teach India, particularly since one of my teaching units was focused on developing a better understanding of rights and equality. My students and I delved into the what, why, and how of equality and dignity. This experience helped me to develop a much better appreciation of the importance of integrating social justice and human rights education in school curriculums; and helping to foster dignity, respect, and positive thinking along with the promotion of freedom of speech.
I believe that all human beings have a moral if not legal right to education. At least to the extent to which it can afford to do so, for example, I see the society that fails to provide facilities for the disabled as a failure, because of the principle of equal opportunity. I have spent my life cultivating empathy for other human beings, especially the least fortunate, and for me this is the central driving force behind my keen motivation to build a career in Social Work as an MSW professional and a graduate of XXXX’s XXXX School.
I want to work with children in particular. Here in India we have a growing and devastating problem of children and adolescents living on the streets, most addicted to drugs, begging and eating scraps of garbage to survive. I look forward to giving my all as an MSW professional to helping them to build a dignified life, working in coordination with NGOs that are concerned with this issue. Â Coursework, fieldwork and community engagement at NYU would help me immeasurably to contribute to solutions to reach out to these children, caring for them, serving as their advocate with governmental organizations, protecting them and promoting their dignity. I want to learn how to help young, troubled, at-risk youth to channel their emotions and energy in productive ways, lessening aggression, anger, and frustration. I want to contribute to the development of stronger, more empathetic and more aware generations to come who truly value and fight for human dignity.
Why now, expectations. After graduating from our public school system in 2011, I completed my Bachelors Degree in History with honors in 2014 and then went on to spend two years as a fellow with Teach for India (June 2014-June 2016). My undergraduate studies in History helped me to learn to see and understand the inherent dignity of the human being in light of history, as well as understanding social conflict and injustice in historical context.
Closely related to my study of history has been my in-depth reading of and about philosophers such as Locke, Rousseau, and Kant who played pivotal roles in the development of my critical thinking about social issues and the role of the social worker in society – particularly the integration of women and slaves into the political and cultural order. I expect to be challenged at the Silver School but to excel and distinguish myself as a very passionate student and a hard worker with a big heart for the underserved and those who suffer, particularly children. I hope to be remembered by my fellow students as someone who always struggles for social change and improvement with sustainable ideals. I look forward to many decades to come putting my MSW from the Silver School to work internationally, particularly on behalf of street children, most especially in my native India.
Social Worker Attributes:  As I see it, the social worker must learn to persevere through many trials, as have I – without getting discouraged. I learned during the course of my 2-year teaching fellowship that commitment, grit and resilience stand at the core of the model teacher or social worker, tough to the bone, always creative, pragmatic without surrendering ideals, seeking to heal and negotiate conflict, at once a diplomat and a psychologist, the social worker mends tears in the fabric of society, and in the soul and heart of the person in need of help.
I see the social worker as distinguished by maturity, wisdom, and the patience to listen. My own compassion and perseverance were challenged when I was dealing with 2 of my most difficult students. Within time, I came to realize that they suffered from low self esteem caused by years of neglect and humiliation at home, which resulted in serious acting out problems in the classroom. It took incessant, positive narrations and shout outs every single day for some time to make them feel that I care and to give them confidence in themselves.
Social Issue of Concern: With Teach for India I taught in a government school for an underprivileged community. What interests me most about the experience now as I prepare myself to enter your MSW Program at XXXX are the ways that this experience touched on many of the broader aspects or factors responsible for limiting human development – the type of material that is covered in your thoroughly multidisciplinary program with its international and in fact global focus.
With Teach for India I soon became aware of how most of this community surrounding the school seemed completely resigned to their circumstances – without the freedom to ponder their futures since they were swamped with the battles of the present. With domestic violence and economic oppression widespread, little to no health care for half our population, a critical shortage of clean water, high unemployment, and malnutrition: how can we uphold the dignity of humans living in these conditions?
I also wish to study the moral, philosophical, and psychological dimensions of these problems. Thus, I seek to equip myself through the optimal academic experience at NYU with the creativity to contribute to the search for answers to complex questions about tragic and intransigent realities – especially as they affect street children. I am genuinely passionate about the study of acute poverty among the most poor and I seek a complex and creative understanding of human misery and suffering from the perspective of social justice and human dignity.
Goals, Contribution: My own professional goals and special interests dovetail nicely with the principal research interests of the faculty at the Silver School and I particularly appreciate the wide-ranging nature of your scholarly research initiatives. Child rights, human-rights-based approaches to human development and women’s rights in particular stand at the core of my commitment. I want to learn at XXXX, in a space with continuous learning, analysis, research, and applications for uplifting the quality of life for society’s vulnerable members. In addition to learning from the faculty a tXXXX, I also look forward to learning from my peers, interacting and collaborating with global social workers and researchers.Â
I seek a professional lifetime standing tall at the intersection of human rights and social work – the political, moral, ethical, societal, economical aspects; criminality, migration, terrorism, chronic poverty – how and why all of these play out in our societies. I see my professional future as a constant campaign for human dignity, through education, progressive policy reform, international solidarity, etc. I want to learn how to make human life flourish and prosper through the cultivation of human capacity in marginalized communities.Â
Optional: You will have many applicants with higher grades than mine. A chronic asthmatic, I ask for special consideration given the fact that I was quite ill for several years, including while I was an undergraduate student, hospitalized several times. I did work as hard as I could under the circumstances and gave my best. I have known struggles since I was very young and I also know how to bounce back. I faced several severe asthma attacks even during my fellowship with Teach for India but nothing stopped me from doing my best for my students each day. My heart and soul were in that classroom and the feeling came effortlessly. Â I am now more resilient, tougher, and ready to keep moving forward and do my best. I started exercising more, going for walks, yoga, and strict nutrition.
My asthma is fully under control and my heart is set on the XXXX School at XXXX.
I thank you for considering my application.
MSW Statement of Purpose Human Rights, Educator