Meet Ginelle Buda

Adoption specialist

1. When did you first know you wanted to work in adoption?

It just seemed like adoption issues kept popping up. Through graduate school, I became friends with a girl who was adopted, and her story fascinated me. Another friend at the time had a brother who was adopted. One of my professors also had two adopted children. It just seemed interesting, so when opportunities for internships came up, I looked into an agency that had an adoption department. The rest is history.

2. What classes/activities/clubs did you take in high school that you think were helpful in preparing you for your career?

In high school, I participated in volleyball, basketball, SADD, the thespians choir, the leadership conference committee, and the prom committee. All of these played an integral part in where I am today because they instilled leadership skills and taught me what it was like to be a part of a team. Those experiences and skills are necessary throughout life.

Being a social worker, in particular, I always need to set examples and stand up for certain things. Social workers work very much in a team atmosphere to provide colleagues with support in the highly emotional work we do and also to work as a team along side parents, teachers, and therapists to do what is best for a child and/or family.

3. In what activities or clubs did you participate in college that helped you achieve your goals?

I was involved in many volunteer activities and campus ministry activities that lead to the field of social work�helping others, taking social action, etc. I was also involved in a sorority, which, along with many other things, has a philanthropic component to it. However, my sociology and psychology classes helped me the most in deciding what I wanted to do as my future career.

4. What courses/programs of study did you take in college to work toward your career?

As stated above, sociology courses, anthropology courses, psychology courses, and some education and religion courses were most beneficial. I took some social work electives as well since my university did not offer a social work major. Basically, any classes discussing government, human development, behavior, and different cultures are the ones to take.

5. Did you participate in an internship/cooperative education program?

Yes. As part of a psychology course, I had an internship/co-op. I received credit but was not paid for my work. I worked for a semester at a child advocacy center. It was a facility that worked with abused children and was associated with the children's hospital. The experience was invaluable. Any experience you can receive out of the classroom, do it! You learn more and get a true taste of what you may be getting into.

6. What was your first job out of college?

I went right from undergraduate school to graduate school. I had two internships that were required of my grad school curriculum, and I ended up working where my second internship was.

7. What are the required skills that are needed in your field?

A social worker needs to be licensed by his or her state. To be licensed, you need to have majored in social work from an accredited school and pass an exam. However, it is more beneficial if one receives their Masters in Social Work (MSW or MSSA). This will ultimately allow one to practice privately, and it also opens more job opportunities, such as supervisors or directors, which are better paying jobs. The key to social work is experience though. Employers will recognize that over degrees if need be and if the position and laws allow.

8. Was there any kind of special training involved for your career after college?

Graduate school is almost a must if you do not have a bachelor's degree in social work (BSW) because you need to be licensed to work, and you can only be licensed by obtaining your BSW or MSW. Your own life and personal experiences can be the biggest training ground for social work.

9. What kind(s) of compensation can a new graduate expect in the field of adoption? What about after five years? Ten years?

It can be pretty discouraging. It depends where you live, but in the state of Ohio, the average salary with a master's degree is between $25,000 and $30,000, with the average being $28,000. Unfortunately, that is with a master's degree�the salary may be lower with only a bachelor's degree.

10. What kind(s) of personality type works best in this field?

To be a social worker, in addition to degrees, education, and experience, one needs to be open-minded, non-judgmental, patient, flexible, positive, a good communicator in writing and in speaking and interacting with others, and culturally sensitive. They also need to abide by the social worker code of ethics and have a healthy and strong support network of their own.

11. Are there any physical demands to the job?

Social work is physically and emotionally demanding. Depending on the type of social work, one may be required to lift patients (possibly the elderly or those with MRDD). Also, social workers are trained in physical restraint. However, it is usually more emotional than physical.

12. What are the three most important pieces of advice you would give someone who is interested in the field?

Follow your heart. Social workers are not always understood or respected. If you feel that this is the field you want to pursue, do not answer to anybody but yourself. We don't make the best money, but we truly make a difference in this world. It is the greatest feeling to know that. I have talked with numerous people in the business world and beyond, and no one that I have met has a more fulfilling job. Everyone always makes the comment that we have big hearts and save the world�we do. Social workers must be warm and fuzzy people, but we are required to have a hard shell too. We are required to be defensive at times, stand up for what we believe in, and speak up for those who do not have a voice or whose voice is not heard.

Also, travel and experience as much diversity as you can and grow comfortable with people of other races, genders, sexualities, and classes. Read the newspapers and watch the news; both are extremely helpful and relevant.

13. What do you wish you would have known about the field before you became an adoption specialist?

Social workers say social work finds them, and I think I may have to agree. It kind of is like a calling, as cheesy or clich� as it sounds.

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