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| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 290 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 291 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 294 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 285 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 280 | 0.00% |
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $60,220 | $28.95 | +2.6% |
| 2024 | $58,713 | $28.23 | +3.9% |
| 2023 | $56,519 | $27.17 | +1.9% |
| 2022 | $55,464 | $26.67 | +4.1% |
| 2021 | $53,271 | $25.61 | +3.2% |
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 244 | 35% |
| 2 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 406 | 30% |
| 3 | Delaware | 961,939 | 251 | 26% |
| 4 | North Dakota | 755,393 | 179 | 24% |
| 5 | Maine | 1,335,907 | 313 | 23% |
| 6 | Minnesota | 5,576,606 | 1,115 | 20% |
| 7 | Iowa | 3,145,711 | 617 | 20% |
| 8 | West Virginia | 1,815,857 | 357 | 20% |
| 9 | Idaho | 1,716,943 | 349 | 20% |
| 10 | South Dakota | 869,666 | 171 | 20% |
| 11 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 1,329 | 19% |
| 12 | New Mexico | 2,088,070 | 389 | 19% |
| 13 | Alaska | 739,795 | 137 | 19% |
| 14 | Oklahoma | 3,930,864 | 582 | 15% |
| 15 | Vermont | 623,657 | 92 | 15% |
| 16 | Wyoming | 579,315 | 87 | 15% |
| 17 | Washington | 7,405,743 | 1,039 | 14% |
| 18 | Alabama | 4,874,747 | 705 | 14% |
| 19 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 1,067 | 13% |
| 20 | Rhode Island | 1,059,639 | 134 | 13% |
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Monterey Park | 1 | 2% | $61,799 |
| 2 | Des Moines | 2 | 1% | $57,365 |
| 3 | Duluth | 1 | 1% | $52,285 |
| 4 | Joliet | 1 | 1% | $65,370 |
| 5 | Chicago | 1 | 0% | $65,592 |
University of Nevada - Las Vegas
University of Houston - Clear Lake
Chatham University

The University of Texas Permian Basin
University of Nevada - Reno
University of Illinois-Springfield
Northern Kentucky University

Campbellsville University
California State University Northridge
Heidelberg University

Seattle University

East Tennessee State University

Lancaster Bible College | Capital Seminary & Graduate School

Tuskegee University
North Carolina State University
American University

NYU Silver School of Social Work

Millikin University

Southern Connecticut State University
Portland State University
University of Nevada - Las Vegas
Rehabilitation And Therapeutic Professions
Szu-Ping Lee PT, PhD: Aging is happening globally. Our society requires rehabilitation specialists to care for our elderly and individuals recovering from injuries or other illnesses. A World Health Organization commissioned study estimated that 1 in 3 persons in the world will need some form of rehabilitation care in their lifetime, and this demand is growing. Therefore, the job market for rehabilitation specialists is expanding in many areas of the U.S. and abroad.
University of Houston - Clear Lake
Intercultural/Multicultural And Diversity Studies
Dr. Lisa Jones Ed.D.: I believe that you should not go into any career to "make money". However, you can maximize your salary potential by: * Loving what you do and expressing it through your constant professionalism. Employees do notice the small gestures and commitment to the field. * Being your authentic self. For example, if you do not know something, say so. It's okay to not know and to be vulnerable. That is how we learn. * Improving upon your skill(s) set. Seek ways to get more training, credentials, certificates, or professional development. * Being patient....you will have "character building" experiences that you should not let define you, but help you grow in the field. * Seeking out a mentor to help you navigate the field in the beginning. Later on, help others in the same manner. While trying to maximize your salary potential is a very practical goal, be mindful to guard your mental health. In most cases, salary increases involve much more work and time. If getting that salary increase requires you to sacrifice your mental health, is it really worth it? Alex, I know that my last statement may not be germane to the topic of maximizing salary potential, but I think it is extremely important. You may choose to delete it.
Melissa Bell: I advise new graduates to carefully consider their priorities when evaluating their first job opportunities. With numerous career paths and an abundance of job openings, it's essential for them to reflect on factors such as location preference, the social environment, and the support of peers in the workplace. Additionally, they should not overlook practical considerations like transportation and commuting. Articulating what matters most to them, as well as what holds less importance, can assist them in clarifying their career goals and making informed decisions. Moreover, It's crucial for new graduates to recognize the importance of being dependable, reliable, and skilled, and to thoroughly understand the job requirements of the positions they are considering. They should assess how they can achieve success in their careers by reflecting on their strengths and weaknesses. Recognizing areas for further skill development is paramount for professional growth and effectiveness in one's chosen career path. By addressing these areas, individuals can better serve the needs of their clients and communities, fostering success both personally and within their professional endeavors.

The University of Texas Permian Basin
Department of Social Work
Sam Terrazas Ph.D.: Social work is a profession rooted in professional ethics and requires a wide range of skills that vary depending upon the role a social worker holds in an organization. In general, social work skills that stand out on a resume are skills gained through specialized training and certifications, skills in culturally responsive practice, proficiency in languages, and skills in assessment and evaluation.
Sam Terrazas Ph.D.: Social workers need to be skillful in documentation in writing case notes, assessments, and good managers of their time. Managing a client's case requires social workers to be diligent and ensure that all required documentation is completed on time and within professional standards. Social workers must also be effective communicators understanding their own power and the multiple professional roles they hold.
Sam Terrazas Ph.D.: Social workers practice in various areas of practice and organizational auspices that may differ in the hard/technical skills that are most important. In general, the hard/technical skills most important can be categorized based on the level of education-BSW (Bachelors of Social Work) versus MSW (Masters of Social Work).
BSW's practice in a range of organizations providing various types of services; however, in general practice in the realm of case management that requires that ability to demonstrate cultural responsiveness, develop an alliance with clients, apply NASW and a state's ethics and professional standards of practice, conduct assessments, and to develop plans to meet a client's goals.
MSW's practice in many areas such as administration, clinical, public policy and advocacy, child welfare, public safety, and health care. Each of these practice areas requires specific technical skills; however, in general, MSW's are trained to assess individuals, families, groups, and communities. To that end, MSW's must understand the cultural context and how socio/economic local, state, federal policies impact social welfare problems such as poverty, intimate partner violence, and mental illness. MSW's must possess strong engagement skills/therapeutic alliance-building, diagnostic/evaluation skills, ethical application of interventions and therapeutic approaches, and advocacy skills.
University of Nevada - Reno
School of Social Work
Lillian Wichinsky Ph.D.: Social workers need to be prepared to work in integrated health and multidisciplinary settings and act as change agents across systems of care. They work with various communities and people, and therefore soft skills are very important to their success. Some of the most important soft skills include:
-Teamwork. ...
-Communication Skills
-Problem-Solving Skills
-Ethics
-Flexibility/Adaptability
-Leadership skills
Youngjin Kang Ph.D.: I believe that interpersonal skills (e.g., communication) are the most important skills. Human services professionals work with people from diverse backgrounds. They play an important role in the lives of those in need, between parties (e.g., court systems and agency), and make positive changes in a broader context as an advocate. To be able to do so, communication skills are essential. These skills include but are not limited to active listening, responding with influence, showing empathy and respect, knowing how to say no when there are boundaries, expressing the needs of the client in a professional manner, sending and responding to emails in a professional manner, using various communication methods properly, and using both verbal and nonverbal languages appropriately.
Youngjin Kang Ph.D.: Self-care skills. It is imperative for human services professionals to practice self-care regularly. Human services jobs are emotionally and physically draining and challenging, although they are rewarding. If you do not know how to take care of yourself and your needs, how can you take care of others? If you do not practice self-care regularly, you are likely to experience burnout - no resilience to go back to your highest ability to help others. Many helping professionals put their client's needs first and neglect their needs, but in the long run, this is not a smart thing to do.
Northern Kentucky University
College of Health and Human Services
Katherina Nikzad-Terhune Ph.D.: Regarding soft skills, we look for skills that are essential foundational skills within the profession. These include empathy, active listening, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills, to name a few. These are essential for effective alliance-building with our clients and for making unbiased and ethical decisions. As social workers, we are often in the business of communication. Rarely do we work in isolation, as much of our work involves collaboration with multidisciplinary teams and individuals in other professional domains. As such, effective communication, organization, time management, and collaborative skills are necessary.

Campbellsville University
Carver School of Social Work
Dr. Dianna Cooper: The "change theory" used in social work practice follows several steps, including engaging, assessing, planning, intervening, evaluating, terminating, and following up. Soft skills are most likely to occur in engagement, intervention, and termination. Social workers are trained to "start wherever the client is," understanding that clients can be individuals, families, groups, communities, or organizations. Social workers are trained to respect the client as the expert in their needs, honor self-determination, use a strengths-based approach, and respect difference while using inclusion. The training turns into soft skills such as being empathetic, warm, genuine, and respectful. Social workers also develop skills in knowing when to listen and when to nudge the client toward action. Social workers are trained to intervene and, when change is completed, to terminate. Helping clients know when to end services also requires soft skills of talking about hard topics, seeing a brighter future and setting goals, recognizing when change is happening, and saying goodbye respectfully.
Dr. Dianna Cooper: Individuals who complete a master's degree in social work (MSW) are likely to earn higher pay than individuals with a bachelor's degree (BSW). MSWs are also desirable in many settings, including hospitals and medical settings, schools, mental health counseling centers, police departments, probation offices, in-home therapeutic service agencies, and private practice. Most states now require social workers to be licensed. MSWs who want to bill insurances for direct service to clients must be licensed at the clinic level where they practice to credential with insurance companies.
California State University Northridge
Department of Social Work
Alejandra Acuna Ph.D.: Experience is valued in social work. Taking advantage of opportunities like internships and volunteer work is smart. Training and certification in an evidence-based program/practice (EBP), curricula, or intervention is a plus, although if there is a particular EBP used by a hiring agency, the agency usually pays for the time and cost of the training once a social worker is hired. Any additional skills relevant to the specific job- software skills, electronic recordkeeping, language proficiency - are worthy of highlighting in a resume. Grant writing skills also add value to resumes.
The reason most industries advertise with the statement, "will train the right person" is that we know (based on research conducted by Harvard University, the Carnegie Foundation, and Stanford Research Center) that interpersonal and intrapersonal communication skills (so-called "soft skills") make up 85% of job success and only 15% of job success comes from technical skills and knowledge. Interpersonal skills can probably be highlighted best in the cover letter and in the interview. Show up and let them see who you are - your warm, authentic, and empathic essence.
Alejandra Acuna Ph.D.: The coronavirus epidemic completely changed the work environment for social workers. While some were considered essential workers and continued in-person services, most had to shift to virtual services and become proficient in various online platforms as well as understand and work within the legal and ethical parameters surrounding telehealth (that is, the provision of health/mental health services remotely employing telecommunications technology). Further, building trusting relationships and creating caring communities is what social workers do and are the foundation of providing quality services, so finding creative ways to remotely connect to clients - individuals, families, groups, and communities - has been paramount.
Social workers are trained to create trauma- and resilience-informed systems (e.g., an organizational culture, structure, and treatment framework built on understanding, recognizing, and responding to all kinds of trauma) and practices (e.g., safety, choice, collaboration, trustworthiness, and empowerment). Now more than ever, these skills are valuable since everyone has been impacted by the double pandemic of racial discrimination amid coronavirus disease. The opportunity in this crisis is that we are moving away from pre-contemplation ("not thinking about it") and contemplation ("thinking about it") to preparation ("planning to make change") and action ("taking steps to make change"). These are exciting steps forward based on the Transtheoretical Model of Change (stages of change). While managing these stages, we can anticipate the stages that come later, which are maintenance ("maintaining the change") and relapse ("falling back into former patterns of behavior").
It is evident that front-line workers, like social workers, are intensely impacted by consistently responding to clients and patients who are affected by trauma. Building resilience is critical at the individual, family, community, institutional, and professional levels. We all need it now. Social work is sustainable in that our efforts to care for others are balanced with caring for ourselves, where no one is neglected or left behind.
Heidelberg University
Paige Atterholt: I think now, being in year 2 of the pandemic, I think if anything there will be more jobs for graduates. Just looking through the jobs online, there are many opportunities for graduates to get a job. I think the older community retired when things got bad, which opened the door for the younger generation.
Paige Atterholt: There are many ways a teacher can increase their earning potential. This can be done through continuing education, maybe looking at a Masters or more to move up on the pay scale. Teachers can advise student council, tutoring, or even look at coaching to earn more money. There's vast opportunities in the world of education! Schools always need teachers who are well-rounded.

Seattle University
History Department
Theresa Earenfight Ph.D.: As a historian of the European Middle Ages, I'm struck by how students this past year have acquired something scarce: historical empathy. The past can seem so remote, so very different from our lived experiences today, and this can make history seem irrelevant. But this fall, I was teaching a section on the bubonic plague, which historians of medicine now know was a global pandemic, not just an epidemic in Europe. Usually, students are fascinated by the gruesome medical details, but not this group.
They did not need or want to look death in the eyes. They wanted to know how did people react? How did they get back to normal? When we ticked off the list of reactions--fear, distrust of science (such as it was in 1348), xenophobia, scapegoating, economic collapse, hoarding supplies, turn to religion, gallows humor about worms crawling about corpses--they got it. When we talked about the aftermath--eat, drink, be merry, and protest the inequality--they got it. That is historical empathy, and I'm sad that this was how it had to be learned, but it will give them broader compassion that can encompass people alive today.

Dr. Frederick Gordon Ph.D.: Graduate students will need to refocus on the changing institutional role, being both remote and in-person, and impacting agency goals and performance.

Dr. Kurt Miller: What is exciting about the profession of social work is that they can be found in all countries. They work in rural and urban settings. They advocate in public, private, and non-profit organizations. They engage all types of communities. They collaborate with many other professionals. Rather than considering a specific locale for job opportunities, it is crucial to consider how social workers respond to all social contexts. Social workers are needed everywhere.

Dr. April Jones: The feedback from business leaders is that they wish to see a balanced mix of new graduates' skills. An unexpected gift mentioned is the ability to use spreadsheets, such as Excel. Companies do not expect to train new employees to use spreadsheets, though it turned out that spreadsheets are widely used (at varying levels of complexity) at all levels in organizations. An assumption here is that if a graduate already has good spreadsheet skills, then the graduate should also have the ability to quickly pick up on other, more complex business IT skills required by the organization.
Businesses also need to know if their new employees can effectively interact with internal or external audiences. In this regard, excellent presentation skills are the minimum expectation from businesses. Presentation skills (both formal and informal) include the ability to read people, communicate, and convey information appropriately to the different types of audiences they may encounter - and these may sometimes include bored, skeptical, adversarial, or even hostile audiences.
Every organization also requires graduates to show that they are good team-players. In addition to that, it is a significant advantage if graduates can also demonstrate good leadership skills in the context of teamwork. This is because new employees with leadership potential are viewed as those who are willing to go the extra mile, able to function with minimum supervision, can roll with the punches to jump back into the fray, and trusted to welcome (instead of to avoid) new assignments or challenges. Leadership skills are also seen as closely aligned with the possession of a corporate entrepreneurial mindset. Such employees are more willing to challenge the status quo, come up with out-of-the-box ideas, and help lead transformation efforts to guide the organization in the future.
North Carolina State University
School of Social Work
Dr. Karen Bullock Ph.D.: Healthcare jobs, which includes mental health practitioners, are in high demand during the pandemic. However, this trend is not a new phenomenon. COVID19 has illuminated the stark reality that social work, as a profession, contributes skilled, well-credentialed, and highly educated individuals to work effectively across health, human services, and educational settings to meet the needs of people who may be vulnerable to psycho-social, economic, political, and environmental factors that are determinants of health outcomes. Since the pandemic, it has become abundantly clear that social workers are essential in the health arena to enhance human well-being and to meet the basic to complex needs of our diverse population of individuals, families, and communities that are struggling in the wake of the pandemic, and the absence of a cure or vaccine.
Dr. Adelaide Kelly-Massoud: Well, every teacher and teacher candidate was thrust into distance learning. Misguided attempts to foster understanding often leaned our adult distant learning pedagogy. Teachers, and those who prepare teachers, found their job to research, define, design, and implement meaningful teaching and learning using a virtual platform. Words such as synchronous and asynchronous are now a part of our everyday vernacular. But there is a much more optimistic change on the horizon that we can thank coronavirus for.
Communication and collaboration have been forced to change. Parents and Teachers are more connected and have been put in a position to leverage technology to build networks of support and consistent dialog. I urge teachers to leverage this in their future as we work to reopening schools; we should learn from this experience to leverage technology to keep us connected.

NYU Silver School of Social Work
Office of Global and Lifelong Learning
Benjamin Sher: From my perspective as Director of NYU Silver's Office of Global and Lifelong Learning and former President of NASW-NYC, I would say absolutely. NASW National has pushed for professional social workers to be recognized as front-line workers. This does, unfortunately, differentiate PSW a bit from essential workers (doctors, nurses, allied health professionals). However, we have been and will continue to be a key part of the pandemic. There is more of a need for social workers as we see the emotional and social impacts of the virus on people. Professional social workers are the largest provider of mental health services in the country, and we are needed now more than ever.
The inequities in health care that the virus has exposed in our society has also made it essential for social workers to be a part of the solution to the social determinants of health and health disparities. Social Workers, trained in using a systems analysis and person-in-environment perspective, are key to grasping the pandemic problem as a public health issue, and we are very effective at organizing and addressing multiple biological-psychological-social-environmental-justice-spiritual needs for people and communities impacted by the virus. Many schools of social work have been outreached by their local governments to support the contract tracing efforts needed for widespread testing. This happened in both NY and NJ, and NASW-NYC advocated with NY State leadership to hire graduating students and MSW interns as contact tracers. An Op-Ed in City Limits was written on it.
Also - as that many community-based organizations have transitioned to telehealth and tele-mental health services and continue to remain so even as certain parts of the tri-state area are opening up, students who have had internship experience in this model will be very attractive graduating candidates this year.

Mary Garrison: I do think that COVID-19 will have a lasting impact on graduates both psychologically and economically. Graduates this year are experiencing a year like no other - not only is their senior year and graduation experiences altered, but the opportunities ahead are very different from in the past. Due to COVID-19, how "we do business" is different and therefore challenges both agencies/non-profits as well as those looking for their first professional job. There is a great need for front line work to be accomplished, COVID-19, or not. Graduates need to be open, flexible, and take on the challenge of what opportunities come their way.

Lorrie Greenhouse Gardella: In a social work textbook published in 1917, Mary Richmond advised social workers about the risks and benefits of new technology -- the telephone! One hundred years later, the risks and benefits of using new communications technologies are much the same. New technologies will continue to enhance but not replace in-person social work practice in the future.
Laura Burney Nissen Ph.D.: I see the ongoing rapid evolution of technology - and ongoing power struggles about the ethics of this development and deployment. Between smart cities, the internet of things, biotech, and blockchain (as examples), technological proliferation is ubiquitous. Some describe that a "tech solutionist" bias is in full swing - and concerningly - that racial bias is too often embedded in these technologies.
This isn't meant to impede true progress or modernization per se, but rather to simply assure that the future is democratized and equity is centered. Numerous really important questions linger. Who decides how technology should be part of modern life? Who provides oversight and ethical grounding? How does technology potentially help (and it can) address some of the social challenges ahead, and how might it exacerbate them? How will human rights, equity, and social justice concerns be identified and addressed? These are spaces where social workers of the future can probably make vital contributions.