新西兰社工是干什么工作的？
在新西兰，社工（social worker）是一个备受尊重的职业。很多人以成为一名社会工作者为荣。 那到底什么是社工，他们到底做了些什么？ 其实很简单，社工就是帮助别人的人！
New Zealand has about 2000 social workers who help people with a wide range of problems. Social workers can be found everywhere in the community—in schools， hospitals and aged care facilities but are most commonly located within communities or non-government organisations (NGOs). They assist people to identify their needs so that they can be met by those responsible for providing services——be it health， education， housing or justice. In some cases， as was seen following recent earthquakes in Christchurch， social workers accompany government agencies on site to ensure that those affected receive all of the support they need.
The role of social work is evolving all of the time. While traditional practice areas such as child protection， domestic violence and elderly care remain key components， there is now an increasing demand on social workers to provide expert advice around cyber safety， social media and even technology use in the home. In short， if there is a problem， and someone needs assistance， the first port of call will often be the local social worker.
The skills required to become a successful social worker include good interpersonal and communication skills， an ability to liaise with a diverse range of people from different cultural and educational backgrounds and， perhaps above all else， empathy towards those who seek your help.
A degree level qualification in social work is obtained through three years full-time study at university， including one year of practicum where you put theory into practice. On completion， graduates must register with the Social Workers Registration Board(SWRB) to be able to practice. The SWRB also deals with complaints against registered social workers.
In order to maintain registration， social workers must continue their professional development throughout their career and undertake continuing education requirements set out by the SWRB.