Verklighetens utmaning - Mötet med klient, hur redo är den nyutexaminerade socionomen?

This scientific paper examines five newly qualified social workers (NQSW) in Sweden who are in an intermediate position after graduation between education and working life in social work. The study aimed to investigate how the graduates felt prepared after training to execute professional conversations and meetings in social work with clients. Qualitative interviews were conducted for this paper, where the results show that the NQSW felt partially prepared for this. Some challenges were seen in the result related to conversations and meetings, amongst these, were their role in the exercise of authority, that showed that they had met deeper dimensions of authority than what their education had prepared them for. Through theories related to different roles based on Erving Goffman (2011), analysis has been made to different roles that NQSW needs to take on, and its impact on them. Results show, among other things, that NQSW perceive it as a difficult balance between being personal and professional in meetings with clients. The result also highlights personal and professional development for self-awareness from the education as helpful, but there was a wish for more of this during the social work program. With theories of knowledge according to Gustavsson (2000; 2002), the results were also analyzed and presented about how NQSW obtained knowledge and how education made it possible to gather knowledge for conversations and meetings in the social work. It was found in the results, as in previous research, that theoretical knowledge from education that was linked to actual situations or practice, has been beneficial to NQSW in their professional practice. However, NQSW felt that the education could continue to be more related to practice and wished for more reality-based education. Based on this essay, one can also point out the importance of the transition between education and practical work. NQSW could be seen as they carried a certain vulnerability in the form of knowledge gaps, uncertainty of their role, and how practical social work is executed when the NQSW goes from education. They felt that introduction to the field was important given from the new workplaces. In this essay, they meant that they were given some opportunity and support in continuing developing their knowledge, related to meetings and conversations through further education and collegial support at their workplaces