This is a series where we ask Fordham GSS Master of Social Work students to tell us why they chose to pursue the social work profession, and why they picked Fordham for their educational experience. Tess Palin is a full-time MSW student at the Lincoln Center campus. If you’d like to speak with a student ambassador about the Fordham MSW experience, contact them here. Watch the video version of Tess’s interview here.
Why do you want to be a social worker?
My whole life I grew up in a lot of customer service and community engagement forms of work and volunteering. And so I developed a love for people. I went into my undergrad as a nutrition major, but I thought that that was too specialized—too specialized in that you were only helping someone in one way, and I want to help the whole person, the whole community, and the whole environment as well. I think social work’s a way to do that.
Why did you choose Fordham?
I chose Fordham because I felt that Fordham wanted me here. The outreach that Fordham does is amazing, and Fordham is so accessible and approachable in the way that you are able to guide your learning. If you come in not knowing exactly what you want to do, you have options, specialties, and certifications you can get that to bolster your application to other places or jobs.
I don’t know exactly what I want to do [in my career], and I feel that in other programs you may be too put into a box, and I feel that Fordham really allows you to explore different options, specialties, and focuses, and then build from there and learn as you go.
