Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
What is a protective services social worker and how to become one
Protective Services social workers provide counseling, rehabilitation, or change of location services to children, individuals, or families dealing with traumatic events or domestic violence. It could even be a terminal illness. It is one of your duties to investigate any claim of abuse and neglect by conducting inspections and interviews. This could also be done by monitoring suspects. Also, you are to generate case reports and document every finding. In addition, you are to assist in relocating victims to safe institutions or safe homes. Consequently, you are to perform follow-up investigations of cases and also conduct a safety assessment.
You must have a minimum of a bachelor's degree in either social work, criminal justice, or psychology. You must be proficient in the use of a protective service database. Your sense of judgment and ability to scale through stressful situations has to be excellent. To be successful at this job, you must have exceptional communication abilities and interpersonal skills. You should earn an average of $50,718 per year.
What general advice would you give to a protective services social worker?
Virginia Schwindt
MSW Field Director/Associate Professor, Union University
Avg. Salary $51,488
Avg. Salary $59,228
Growth rate 9%
Growth rate 0.3%
American Indian and Alaska Native 1.51%
Asian 2.67%
Black or African American 13.37%
Hispanic or Latino 15.12%
Unknown 4.19%
White 63.14%
Genderfemale 81.44%
male 18.56%
Age - 42American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%
Asian 7.00%
Black or African American 14.00%
Hispanic or Latino 19.00%
White 57.00%
Genderfemale 47.00%
male 53.00%
Age - 42Stress level is very high
7.1 - high
Complexity level is advanced
7 - challenging
Work life balance is fair
6.4 - fair
Protective services social worker career paths
Key steps to become a protective services social worker
Explore protective services social worker education requirements
Start to develop specific protective services social worker skills
Skills Percentages Social Work 15.24% Protective Services 7.29% Crisis Intervention 6.91% Community Resources 6.38% Social Services 6.18% Complete relevant protective services social worker training and internships
Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New protective services social workers 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 a protective services social worker based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real protective services social worker resumes.Obtain the necessary licensing
Becoming a licensed protective services social worker usually require a college degree. However, you need to pass an exam to become a licensed protective services social worker in most of states. 32 states require protective services social workers 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 protective services social worker duties and responsibilities
- Manage a caseload TANF clients, assess clients eligibility to receive benefits, assist with placement of clients in various programs.
- Coordinate admissions of active duty service members and veterans to the inpatient rehabilitation/medical unit after suffering a new spinal cord injury.
- Perform related adoptions and supervisory visits for state adoptions.
Prepare your protective services social worker resume
When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your protective services social worker 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 a protective services social worker resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.
Choose from 10+ customizable protective services social worker resume templates
Build a professional protective services social worker 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 protective services social worker resume.
Apply for protective services social worker jobs
Now it's time to start searching for a protective services social worker job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:
- Browse job boards for relevant postings
- Consult your professional network
- Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
- Watch out for job scams
How did you land your first protective services social worker job
Are you a protective services social worker?
Share your story for a free salary report.
Average protective services social worker salary
The average protective services social worker salary in the United States is $51,488 per year or $25 per hour. Protective services social worker salaries range between $41,000 and $63,000 per year.
What am I worth?
How do protective services social workers rate their job?
Protective services social worker reviews
Working collaboratively with clients to help them understand themselves and experience their authentic selves. Learning from my clients.
Low pay
Being able to help and serve the public
Serving people, impacting change in communities, never boring
pay is low for what you need to do
Updated January 8, 2025
