Graduate Opportunities

Tusla is continuing to expand its role of supporting vulnerable children and families in communities across Ireland.

There are a wide range of upcoming vacancies in Social Work, Social Care and Administration, but whatever the role, each in its own way contributes to the vital work that the Agency does.

Working with the Agency offers challenges, but it also offers both training and promotional opportunities that enable you to grow in your role and your responsibilities.

One person who knows all too well about those opportunities is Clodagh, Graduate Recruitment Co-Ordinator with Tusla.

She completed a Business degree, specialising in HR, in May 2016, and worked in her native Mayo for a year before moving to Dublin to do two weeks’ temporary work in Tusla in November 2017… and she’s still with the Agency all these years later.

“I’m more shocked than anyone,” says Clodagh, laughing. “I was working in Tusla Recruit a little over a year before I got a temporary contract as a Grade V in 2019, then I was made permanent in 2020 when I reached Grade VI. I think it was sheer luck the way the opportunities came the way they did.

“The support and training was very good when I joined, but I had to hit the ground running in the Grade V and VI roles. I had to find my feet quite quickly – the Grade V was a big step up; I was taking on a lot of responsibility, but I could lean on my colleagues, and their support was second to none,” says Clodagh.

Speaking about her role in Tusla Recruit, Clodagh says: “There are a lot of promotions internally due to the nature of the job. If we have Grade IIIs and IVs eager to learn and who are looking for opportunities, we bring them in on other roles, even if it’s just for a few weeks. It’s a chance for them to sit in on meetings and have sight of the kind of work Grade Vs would do.”

Clodagh’s role involves her working with graduates and providing them with four training sessions in their college year on how best to prepare for the interview process that Tusla uses to recruit staff.

“We visit the colleges in January, prior to placement, and make sure graduates know if they are eligible to apply for a role,” she says.

“Tusla uses competency-based interviews, so we provide training for these in advance. We tell the graduates what we have to offer and explain the day-to-day work. We also explain the STAR technique for interviews and encourage them to avail of feedback from the interview process,” Clodagh adds.

Such visits and pep talks have resulted in 99% of applicants being placed on Tusla interview panels.

“It’s very busy, but staff are brilliant, and the positive attitude of colleagues really helps.”

Clodagh says that the volume of recruitment has increased since she joined the Agency, and that she hand her team want to keep up the standards that netted them an Overall Excellence award at the HR and Leadership Awards earlier this year.

In fact, Tusla attracted more than 76% of the available social work student body and employed 83% of the students who applied and interviewed with us through the Agency’s graduate recruitment programme.

The consistent approach to recruitment is paying off to judge by the statistics, and by what the graduates themselves have to say.

“Feedback from the students is brilliant, about the support that they get from the Agency and the fact that there is a team dedicated to helping them through the interview process.

Clodagh’s role is busy, but she finds working with student graduates very rewarding.

“It’s their first interaction with Tusla so we have a massive impact on their start with the Agency. We get some of the loveliest candidates in the door - students who never went through Recruitment before - and you see how eager they are… I’ve really enjoyed that,” says Clodagh. “There’s a satisfaction in seeing these students at the other end, going through caseloads.”

One person who appreciated the graduate recruitment programme is Kate, who came to the Agency as a mature student having done her degree in Social Science in Maynooth before taking a Master’s in Social Work at UCD.

“I found Tusla and Clodagh to be really helpful because the programme gave a very clear outline of what to expect in the interview,” says Kate. It was perfect for me, and a great experience to be able to interview for Tusla while still a student.

“The whole process was very supportive. I was in my early thirties and a single mum, and I wanted to get into the workplace quickly,” adds Kate, who did a placement in her final year with Harold’s Cross hospice as a medical social worker.

“I loved that,” she says.

And the good fortune continued when she took up her role in Tusla in 2021, working in child protection and welfare.

“I’ve been extremely lucky. I’m in a small team, and I feel so supported. I was learning from the ground up. I get great support from my Team Leader and the rest of my team – they eased me into the role.

“It was a gradual, step-by-step process, which is important because the job itself is important and there’s a lot to learn in terms of policies and procedures.”

And when it comes to further learning, Kate says that she is given the opportunities to do it.

“Because I’m CORU-registered, there is ongoing professional development required, Tusla is great at promoting that – my Team Leader is always encouraging me to do further learning. It benefits me and it’s important because we’re dealing with vulnerable people,” she adds.

Cassandra is another Tusla member of staff who benefited from the graduate programme. She now works as a social worker with the Assessment and Intervention team in Co. Meath.

After working in admin for several years, Cassandra returned to studies, completing a one-year access course in UCD before taking a degree in Social Science, followed by a post-graduate Master’s in Social Work at Maynooth University in 2021.

Easing her path from student to practicing social worker was a well-organised induction course for new starters that continued for several months, and which saw Cassandra attend weekly training in self-care and other supports to help in her new career.

“I work in a really good team, with a great Team Leader, who has more than 20 years’ experience. I receive regular supervision, which is essential and reassuring because I have quite a challenging role.

“I feel lucky I work where I do because I get great support from my colleagues. Everyone is busy, but if they see that you have had a difficult visit or call for example, your team will always support you.”

The other good news is that there is always a chance for further progression in the Agency.

“There are always posts coming up,” says Cassandra. “You can apply for a senior practitioner role when you are three years in practice. There are courses you can identify as part of your Continuous Professional Development; I’ve attended Pace Training, Assessing, and managing risks of sexual harm to safeguard children and lots more.

“The training provided is excellent. Tusla invest in their staff in terms of upskilling as we are tasked with assessing various types of risks and supporting families and children to overcome these difficulties,” she adds.

Social work is a challenging profession, but it has its rewards, too.

“The best part my role is building relationships with children and families,” says Cassandra. “When you get to close a case with a family and they’re in a much better place, that’s particularly rewarding.”

With people like Cassandra on the team, hopefully the ‘wins’ increase for the children and families that Tusla supports.