Success Story

 

For Dominic Watson, M.S., building a career in child welfare began with a little serendipity. As a young college graduate, Watson got into the field “by accident” when a friend got him a chance interview with his supervisor. “I interviewed well and he liked me. Once I started working in [child welfare] I loved it—I’ve been doing this for more than 15 years now and I can’t imagine myself doing anything else.”

Working in child welfare often means being available 24/7, with limited time for those in the field to pursue a graduate degree. Fortunately for Watson, Nova Southeastern University offered a solution. Watson and other interested members in his department were able to enter the Master of Human Services in Child Protection program at NSU’s Fischler College of Education & School of Criminal Justice through an arrangement that NSU had worked out with his employer at the time.

“[NSU] came to our office and held classes a few nights a week, in the evenings. Some classes were offered online. It was convenient for us and the teachers were very accommodating. They knew that everyone was working, so even though they gave us a lot of assignments, they worked with us and found assignments that were relevant to each of our jobs.”

Watson believes that his education at NSU had a direct impact on his career growth. Prior to receiving his master’s degree he served as a director of case management. Today, he is the executive director at a child welfare agency. When asked how the program prepared him for his new role he said, “I did a concentration in child welfare administration too, which helped because I had the opportunity to take a class on working with grants. Now, because I work for a smaller agency, we do grants—I’m actually in the process of working with a grant program now for the county.” Watson also credits the program for sharpening his business skills, including working with budgets.

Going through NSU’s program not only prepared Watson to take on an executive position in a field that means so much to him, but it also helped him create more meaningful connections with his coworkers—as many of the projects were teamwork-focused. Commenting on his professors, Watson said, “You could tell that all of the teachers cared and that this was something they wanted to do. It seemed like every one of them had a background in social services or some related field. They listened to us and took our opinions seriously.”

Through NSU, Watson found a way to become the best possible version of himself while continuing to serve the needs of children and families in his community. “It’s a thankless job, but when you see the end result, it’s always something good.”