The article shows how the social work sector provides a framework that fosters the construction of a particular attitude towards time, in connection with a future career as a social worker. Produced by the institute and supported by the teachers who deliver the training, the curriculum helps students to organise their study methods, understand the training, and engage with it, as they progress towards employment. However, this training does not establish total control over its members. The article shows how the training can be used in a variety of ways. The article demonstrates that, depending on their social positions, students comply to a greater or lesser extent with these professional prescriptions, even though the intensity of the required forms of work and content help to create a specific professional ethos.