Post job

Perinatal social worker education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a perinatal social worker. Perinatal social workers usually study social work, psychology, or sociology. 59% of perinatal social workers hold a bachelor's degree, and 23% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 55 real perinatal social worker resumes to see exactly what perinatal social worker education sections show.

The most common colleges for perinatal social workers are the Arizona State University and the Arizona State University.

There are also many online perinatal social worker courses to help get the education required to be a perinatal social worker.

What education do you need to become a perinatal social worker?

What degree do you need to be a perinatal social worker?

The most common degree for perinatal social workers is bachelor's degree, with 59% of perinatal social workers earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 23% and master's degree degree at 7%.
  • Bachelor's, 59%
  • Master's, 23%
  • High School Diploma, 7%
  • Associate, 5%
  • Other Degrees, 6%

What should I major in to become a perinatal social worker?

You should major in social work to become a perinatal social worker. 32% of perinatal social workers major in social work. Other common majors for a perinatal social worker include psychology and sociology.

Most common colleges for perinatal social workers

Perinatal social workers often get their degrees at Arizona State University, California State University - San Bernardino, and California State University - Sacramento. Here are the most common colleges for perinatal social workers in the US based on their resumes.
Perinatal social worker common collegePercentages
Arizona State University8.33%
California State University - San Bernardino8.33%
California State University - Sacramento8.33%
San Diego State University8.33%
Winthrop University4.17%

Best majors for perinatal social workers

Best colleges for perinatal social workers

The best colleges for perinatal social workers are Boston College, Case Western Reserve University, and Emory University.

A perinatal social worker with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for perinatal social workers. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become perinatal social workers.

1. Emory University

Atlanta, GA • Private

In-state tuition

$51,306

Enrollment

6,975

2. Boston College

Chestnut Hill, MA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,464

Enrollment

9,639

3. Case Western Reserve University

Cleveland, OH • Private

In-state tuition

$49,042

Enrollment

5,131

4. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

5. New York University

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$51,828

Enrollment

26,339

6. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC • Private

In-state tuition

$8,987

Enrollment

18,946

7. Inter American University of Puerto Rico Arecibo

Arecibo, PR • Private

In-state tuition

$5,872

Enrollment

3,553

8. Ohio State University

Columbus, OH • Private

In-state tuition

$10,726

Enrollment

45,769

9. Mississippi College

Clinton, MS • Private

In-state tuition

$18,026

Enrollment

3,036

10. St. Catherine University

Saint Paul, MN • Private

In-state tuition

$39,554

Enrollment

3,238

20 best online courses for perinatal social workers

Advertising disclosure

1. Social Policy for Social Services & Health Practitioners

coursera

In the U.S., social policy accounts for two-thirds of government spending. Knowing how policies are constructed, what values underlie them, and how they succeed or fail makes everyone more effective at work or in their civic role. This specialization includes an HONORS track in which learners will complete a professional social policy analysis.\n\nTeachers, health care workers, police, and social workers interact with policy daily, but all of us should care about the impact and effectiveness of...

2. Health for All Through Primary Health Care

coursera

This course explores why primary health care is central for achieving Health for All. It provides examples of how primary health care has been instrumental in approaching this goal in selected populations and how the principles of primary health care can guide future policies and actions. Two of the most inspiring, least understood, and most often derided terms in global health discourse are “Health for All” and “Primary Health Care.” In this course, we will explore these terms in the context...

3. Addiction & Mental Health - Chemically Speaking Two (2hrs)

udemy
4.7
(311)

Substance Abuse & Mental Health Interventions - Understand Drug & Alcohol Addiction & Mental Health. How to help people...

4. Addiction & Mental Health (Dual Diagnosis) Integrative 12hrs

udemy
4.7
(1,529)

Substance Abuse & Mental Health Interventions: Drug & Alcohol Addiction & Mental Health - Integrative Holistic Approach...

5. Emergency Care: Pregnancy, Infants, and Children

coursera

Welcome to the final course of lectures in your quest to master EMT basics. In this course, we will cover some of the highest-stress patient populations: pregnant patients and kids, also known as pediatrics. To wrap up your EMT knowledge we will end this course with information about hazmat situations, extricating patients from tight spots and finally how you write a note about your patient care. You will learn to ensure it communicates what your assessment of the patient was, what...

6. Health After Cancer: Cancer Survivorship for Primary Care

coursera

This course presents basic principles of cancer survivorship to primary-care physicians. Developed by a team of experts in caring for cancer survivors, and narrated by a primary-care physician, this course provides practical tips and tools that can be easily integrated into medical practice. You will learn about the complex physical and psychosocial needs and concerns of the growing number of cancer survivors, along with the key role that primary care physicians have in guiding these patients...

7. Providing Trauma-Informed Care

udemy
4.7
(1,276)

Exploring psychological trauma and how to provide care and compassion to trauma survivors...

8. Mental Health Ambassador Certificate

udemy
4.6
(1,115)

Be a leader in improving society's mental health and learn to provide mental health first aid...

9. Palliative Care Always Capstone Course

coursera

The Palliative Care Always Capstone course is designed to let you test your knowledge about palliative and help others understand the value of palliative care, while showing your creative side. In this course, you will impact community awareness about palliative care, promote self-care and wellness, show-off your communication skills in a virtual environment, and finish the course off by proving your thoughts on ways to offer psychosocial support to a patient and family...

10. Health Care Delivery in Healthcare Organizations

coursera

Have you ever needed health care and thought that there must be better ways to get or deliver health care? For example, have you found yourself thinking that there should be a way to get a diagnostic test or treatment at home? Or do you work in a healthcare organization and find yourself thinking that there must be better ways to deliver health care? If you have, this course is for you. Course content includes an overview of health care delivery including healthcare consumerism, the patient's...

11. Mental Health First Aid Skills -

udemy
4.4
(1,774)

This course is designed to provide the tools and knowledge for learners to help and support those experiencing MH issues...

12. Trauma Emergencies and Care

coursera

Welcome to Trauma Emergencies and Care. In this course, you will learn about some of the mechanics and physics of trauma on the human body, and how this can cause injury. You will continue to expand your new vocabulary with medical terminology, and learn how to describe the different injuries you may see. You will also learn about the trauma system itself- and when it is important to transport patients to a trauma center. Then we will dive into specific injuries based on what part of the body...

13. Traditional herbal medicine in supportive cancer care: From alternative to integrative

coursera

Please join us for an exciting and innovative journey, examining one of the most important and often overlooked aspects of the oncology setting: Traditional Herbal Medicine in Supportive Cancer Care. This course is presented with short lectures offering a wide range of issues related to the principles and practice of herbal medicine in cancer care. The course includes interviews with leading world experts from the field of Integrative Oncology, from the U.S. and Canada, as well as Europe, the...

14. Prehospital care of acute stroke and patient selection for endovascular treatment using the RACE scale

coursera

Acute stroke is a time-dependent medical emergency. In acute ischemic stroke, the first objective is to restore brain flow using sistemic thrombolytic treatment and, in patients with large vessel occlusion, by endovascular treatment. In hemorrhagic stroke there are also specific treatments that can improve the clinical outcome. The sooner the initiation of all these therapies the higher the clinical benefit. Thus, the organization of Stroke Code systems coordinated between emergency medical...

15. Addiction Treatment: Clinical Skills for Healthcare Providers

coursera

This course is designed with a singular goal: to improve the care you provide to your patients with substance use disorders. By delving into a model case performed by actors, seven Yale instructors from various fields provide techniques to screen your patients for substance use disorder risk, diagnose patients to gauge the severity of their use, directly manage treatment plans, refer out to treatment services, and navigate the various conditions that may limit your patient’s access to treatment...

16. Health Care IT: Challenges and Opportunities

coursera

A strong argument can be made that the health care field is one of the most information-intensive sectors in the U.S. economy and avoidance of the rapid advances in information technology is no longer an option. Consequently, the study of health care information technology and systems has become central to health care delivery effectiveness. This course covers the modern application of information technology that is critical to supporting the vision and operational knowledge of the health care...

17. HI-FIVE: Health Informatics For Innovation, Value & Enrichment (Social/Peer Perspective)

coursera

HI-FIVE (Health Informatics For Innovation, Value & Enrichment) Training is an approximately 10-hour online course designed by Columbia University in 2016, with sponsorship from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC). The training is role-based and uses case scenarios. No additional hardware or software are required for this course. Our nation’s healthcare system is changing at a rapid pace. Transformative health care delivery programs depend heavily on...

18. The Business of Health Care

coursera

This Specialization was designed to help you keep pace with the rapidly changing world of health and health care. Through partnership with Wharton and Penn Medicine, you’ll learn from experts in business acumen, health care management, and health care policy to develop the skills you’ll need to successfully navigate the quickly evolving landscape of this fast-growing field.* By the end of this specialization, you will have a strong foundational understanding of the American health care system,...

19. Value-Based Care: Managing Processes to Improve Outcomes

coursera

COURSE 3 of 7. This course is designed to introduce you to critical office-based processes that a value-based practice must manage in the drive towards improved patient outcomes. In Module 2, we’ll focus on office-based and clinical patient-based supporting functions. At every level in healthcare, guidelines, processes, and functions exist to improve outcomes, and following a consistent process will return the best effect. Refine your understanding of value and learn strategies to provide real...

20. COVID-19 Training for Healthcare Workers

coursera

COVID-19 is rapidly spreading across the globe and all providers must be prepared to recognize, stabilize and treat patients with novel coronavirus infection. Following completion of this short course physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals will have a unified, evidenced-based approach to saving the lives of patients with COVID-19, including those who are critically ill. Learning modules are broken into short videos presented in a richly illustrated and compelling manner. The...

Top 10 most affordable universities for perinatal social workers

The most affordable schools for perinatal social workers are Hunter College of the City University of New York, brigham young university, and california state university - long beach.

If the best universities for perinatal social workers are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for perinatal social workers.

1. Hunter College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,182

Cost of attendance

13,998

2. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

3. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

4. Florida International University

Miami, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,556

Cost of attendance

19,434

5. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Cost of attendance

21,623

6. California State University - Fullerton

Fullerton, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,886

Cost of attendance

17,645

7. Minot State University

Minot, ND • Private

In-state tuition

$7,064

Cost of attendance

15,576

8. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

9. Florida Atlantic University

Boca Raton, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$4,831

Cost of attendance

19,559

10. California State University - Fresno

Fresno, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,587

Cost of attendance

16,915

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for perinatal social workers

The hardest universities for perinatal social workers to get into are Boston College, Case Western Reserve University, and Emory University.

Some great schools for perinatal social workers are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for perinatal social workers based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. Boston College

Chestnut Hill, MA • Private

Admissions rate

28%

SAT average

1,429

2. Case Western Reserve University

Cleveland, OH • Private

Admissions rate

29%

SAT average

1,443

3. Emory University

Atlanta, GA • Private

Admissions rate

19%

SAT average

1,449

4. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

5. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,492

6. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

7. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,508

8. Fordham University

Bronx, NY • Private

Admissions rate

46%

SAT average

1,354

9. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC • Private

Admissions rate

23%

SAT average

1,398

10. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

Admissions rate

11%

SAT average

1,513

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for perinatal social workers

The easiest schools for perinatal social workers to get into are Nyack College, barry university, and adventhealth university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a perinatal social worker without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for perinatal social workers.

1. Nyack College

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

98%

SAT average

999

2. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

3. AdventHealth University

Orlando, FL • Private

Admissions rate

87%

SAT average

1,016

4. University of the Incarnate Word

San Antonio, TX • Private

Admissions rate

88%

SAT average

1,044

5. Kean University

Union, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

86%

SAT average

991

6. Washington Adventist Hospital

Takoma Park, MD • Private

Admissions rate

52%

SAT average

958

7. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

8. California University of Pennsylvania

California, PA • Private

Admissions rate

97%

SAT average

1,007

9. Fresno Pacific University

Fresno, CA • Private

Admissions rate

85%

SAT average

1,053

10. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

Average perinatal social worker salary by education level

According to our data, perinatal social workers with a Master's degree earn the highest average salary, at $67,173 annually. Perinatal social workers with a Bachelor's degree earn an average annual salary of $60,487.
Perinatal social worker education levelPerinatal social worker salary
Master's Degree$67,173
High School Diploma or Less$50,332
Bachelor's Degree$60,487
Some College/ Associate Degree$57,826

Perinatal social worker education FAQs

Search for perinatal social worker jobs

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Browse community and social services jobs