A  journey, not a destination: Emerging professional identities of community work & youth work students

Ciara Bradley; Jamie Gorman; Hilary Tierney

doi:10.1921/jpts20572568

Authors

Ciara Bradley Maynooth University, Department of Applied Social Studies, Assistant Professor https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6492-9570
Jamie Gorman Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5153-2045
Hilary Tierney Maynooth University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1921/jpts20572568

Keywords:

community work, youth work, professional formation, education and training

Abstract

Abstract: Community work and youth work are distinct but complimentary social professions which share a vision for a values-based practice, rooted in the application of justice, equality and human rights for social change. In Ireland, the professional endorsement of initial tertiary education in community work and youth work began almost two decades ago. Yet little is known about how exactly such programmes foster the professional formation of new practitioners, about how students experience the formation process or how they articulate their professional identity at the point of qualification. Addressing this gap, this article presents the findings of a study which explored students’ perspective (three cohorts, n=75) on their professional formation journey through a Bachelor of Social Science in Community Work and Youth Work in one Irish university. As collaborators in the research, final year students undertook and analysed a narrative style interview with a class peer exploring their learning journey across the programme. This was followed by a collective analysis by the authors which identified key themes in students’ articulation of their professional identity as well as the crucial elements supporting professional formation from students’ perspective. The findings reveal the centrality of critical consciousness raising to the development of professional identity of community workers and youth workers. The findings illustrate how a combination of classroom learning, fieldwork and supervision, theoretical reflection and a focus on ethics and values were key elements in generating students’ professional identity as community workers and youth workers. Furthermore, students articulated a view that their learning journey will continue into and throughout their professional life. This suggests that professional identity formation in community work and youth work is a journey, not a destination.

Author Biographies

Ciara Bradley, Maynooth University, Department of Applied Social Studies, Assistant Professor

Ciara Bradley is a community worker and lecturer in the Department of Applied Social Studies, Maynooth University. She is co-editor of McGarry, K., Bradley, C., & Kirwan, G. (eds) (2024) Rights and Social Justice in Research: Advancing Methodologies for Social Change. Bristol, UK: Policy Press

Jamie Gorman, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia

Community worker and Adjunct Research Fellow at Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia

Hilary Tierney, Maynooth University

Associate Professor in the Department of Applied Social Studies at Maynooth, and Co-Director of the Centre for Youth Research and Development

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