Tuesday, June 19, 2012

How to Become a Veterans Adviser

By Tanya Robertson

Veterans' advisers, also known as veterans' social workers, have a broad variety of job responsibilities. Their main job is to assist veterans in obtaining the benefits they're entitled to. Typical examples of benefits include housing, medical care, psychological treatment and assistance with disabilities. Each case a veterans' adviser handles will be unique; it's the adviser's job to analyze the situation and assist a veteran in going forward with a plan to get him what he needs.

Obtain a four-year bachelor's degree in social work from an accredited college or university. You can substitute degrees in psychology and sociology for undergraduate work.

Obtain a master's degree in social work from an accredited college or university. To further your chances of getting a good job, you can work toward a specialized degree in social services policy or administration.

Check the social work licensing requirements for your state. You'll find these on the All Psychology Careers website by clicking on your state from the drop menu. You can also check your state government's website under licensing requirements for the same information.

Fulfill the requirements specified by your state to obtain your license. Some states will have you apply for a limited license that you will use while you work for up to two years as you gain the necessary experience to be able to take your social work licensing exam. Other states will allow you to take the exam right after you finish obtaining your master's degree. What you'll have to do will depend on exactly where you live.

Apply for a graduate-level field placement position with the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. More than 180 graduate schools participate in this program, assisting students with placement positions. Speak to your school's career services department for more information and directions on how to apply. The time you spend training in this position will count toward your required years of experience for the states that require this. Even if your state doesn't require the additional years of training before licensure, this is the only way to be specifically trained in veteran's affairs prior to gaining employment. Having this experience will enhance your possibility of obtaining full-time employment with a veterans facility in the future.

Take your exam and apply for full licensure. Again, check your state government's website for instructions on taking the exam and applying for your social work license.

Apply for positions as a veterans' adviser. You can apply for positions in VA hospitals, clinics, state agencies or a variety of other places. You can also apply for specific types of positions such as case managers, clinical advisers and researchers to name a few.


http://www.lenderva.com

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