Luke Roberts has found his purpose in life as a social worker and giving young people a voice, to be a very rewarding, challenging and powerful experience.
After completing his undergraduate degree overseas Luke Roberts (MSW ’09) felt a little lost and unsure where to go from there. A friend encouraged him to apply for the Master of Social Work at Flinders University as it aligned with his values and philosophies.
“I thought why not give it a go and applied. It was at my first social work lecture that it all just clicked. I knew I was in the right place,” says Luke.
Luke found his time at Flinders gave him a purpose, he says, “It was a compass which directed my strong beliefs in self-determination, social justice and advocating for the rights of marginalised people towards the profession I love.”
After graduating Luke worked with children and young people in a variety of roles, predominately with Anglicare-SA.
“I had many wonderful colleagues and supervisors who continued to help me grow and learn as a professional.”
Luke then moved on to an organisation-wide senior practitioner role where he provided supervision, training, consultation and development for Anglicare programs working with children and young people.
“Working with children and young people is a real passion of mine; to give a voice to those without one is a very rewarding, challenging and powerful experience,” says Luke.
As a practicing social worker, Luke developed a program to help support young people in need across Australia. He has also presented at national and international conferences and is now a Social Work lecturer at Flinders University.
“I like knowing I am part of a long legacy of people who wish to make the world a better place for others. To have that connection and identity with the Social Work discipline at Flinders, and all that it has achieved, is both uplifting but humbling.
“Now that I am teaching social work to emerging social workers, I get the experience of being able to give back to a profession and institution that has given me so much. It is a great feeling.”
Learn about studying social work at Flinders