How To Become An Oncology Social Work: What It Is and Career Path

What is an oncology social work and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted experts

Virginia Schwindt,

Sabrina Sullenberger Ph.D.

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an oncology social work. For example, did you know that they make an average of $25.74 an hour? That's $53,529 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 9% and produce 64,000 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to an oncology social work?

Virginia Schwindt

MSW Field Director/Associate Professor, Union University

Take the licensing test as soon as you are able to, and be open to where you work. It is great to want a specific population or employer, but being open to other experiences may be where God wants you to be. Don't limit yourself because, as a social worker, you can do so many different things.

ScoreOncology Social WorkUS Average

Salary

4.2

Avg. Salary $53,529

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

9.4

Growth rate 9%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

4.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.60%

Asian 3.32%

Black or African American 19.92%

Hispanic or Latino 12.27%

Unknown 5.43%

White 58.45%

Gender

female 85.60%

male 14.40%

Age - 44

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 44

Stress level

9.4

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

10.0

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

5.5

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an oncology social work

Explore oncology social work education requirements

Most common oncology social work degrees

Master's

48.8 %

Bachelor's

47.3 %

Associate

3.2 %

Start to develop specific oncology social work skills

Skills	Percentages
Social Work	25.91%
Patients	20.35%
Patient Care	6.71%
Crisis Intervention	5.95%
Multidisciplinary	4.44%

Complete relevant oncology social work training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New oncology social works learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an oncology social work based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real oncology social work resumes.

Obtain the necessary licensing

Becoming an licensed oncology social work usually require a college degree. However, you need to pass an exam to become a licensed oncology social work in most of states. 32 states require oncology social works to have license for their work. You can see the list of states below.

State	Education	Exam	License url
Kansas	Degree required	Third-party exam required	Licensed Master Social Worker
Alabama	Degree required	State exam required	Licensed Bachelor Social Worker (LBSW)
Arkansas	Degree required	Third-party exam required	Licensed Certified Social Worker
Hawaii	Degree required	Third-party exam required	Licensed Social Worker
Idaho	Degree required	Third-party exam required	Social Workers

Research oncology social work duties and responsibilities

Collaborate with multidisciplinary team to provide necessary referrals and counseling to achieve establish patient goals.
Provide psycho-social assessments for the in-patient oncology patients which include counseling and brokering of resources in the community.
Facilitate home care, rehabilitation, and emergency referrals.
Provide brief strategic and crisis counseling for patients and families experiencing acute psychiatric or psychological distress during the treatment process.

Prepare your oncology social work resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your oncology social work resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an oncology social work resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable oncology social work resume templates

Build a professional oncology social work resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your oncology social work resume.