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Welfare case worker education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a welfare case worker. Welfare case workers usually study social work, psychology, or sociology. 68% of welfare case workers hold a bachelor's degree, and 14% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 102 real welfare case worker resumes to see exactly what welfare case worker education sections show.

The most common colleges for welfare case workers are the Ohio State University and the Ohio State University.

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

What education do you need to become a welfare case worker?

What degree do you need to be a welfare case worker?

The most common degree for welfare case workers is bachelor's degree, with 68% of welfare case workers earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 14% and master's degree degree at 9%.
  • Bachelor's, 68%
  • Master's, 14%
  • Associate, 9%
  • Diploma, 5%
  • Other Degrees, 4%

What should I major in to become a welfare case worker?

You should major in social work to become a welfare case worker. 23% of welfare case workers major in social work. Other common majors for a welfare case worker include psychology and sociology.

Most common colleges for welfare case workers

Welfare case workers often get their degrees at Ohio State University, Youngstown State University, and Adams State University. Here are the most common colleges for welfare case workers in the US based on their resumes.
Welfare case worker common collegePercentages
Ohio State University23.53%
Youngstown State University11.76%
Adams State University5.88%
Metropolitan State University of Denver5.88%
University of Central Oklahoma5.88%

Best majors for welfare case workers

RankMajorPercentages
1Social Work22.9%
2Psychology20.0%
3Sociology8.6%
4Mental Health Counseling7.1%
5Human Services7.1%

Best colleges for welfare case workers

The best colleges for welfare case workers are Northeastern University, Johns Hopkins University, and Boston College.

A welfare case 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 welfare case 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 welfare case workers.

1. Hunter College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,182

Enrollment

16,205

2. University of Washington

Seattle, WA • Private

In-state tuition

$11,207

Enrollment

30,905

3. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

4. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Enrollment

31,503

5. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor, MI • Private

In-state tuition

$15,262

Enrollment

30,079

6. SUNY at Binghamton

Vestal, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$9,808

Enrollment

13,990

7. Northeastern University

Boston, MA • Private

In-state tuition

$51,522

Enrollment

13,760

8. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC • Private

In-state tuition

$8,987

Enrollment

18,946

9. Boston College

Chestnut Hill, MA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,464

Enrollment

9,639

10. SUNY College at Brockport

Brockport, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,412

Enrollment

7,015

20 best online courses for welfare case workers

Advertising disclosure

1. Social Policy for Social Services & Health Practitioners

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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. Equine Welfare and Management

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This unique course was developed by veterinarians at the world-renowned University of California, Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. The course will address horsemanship from a welfare perspective, within the context of “The Five Freedoms” of animal welfare. We’ll explore equine physiology, behavior and basic needs including housing, nutrition, hygiene and disease management. You’ll learn how to perform basic tasks to assess the overall condition of the horse and identify problem areas. We’ll...

3. Business Plan: Outlines , Templates & Case Study

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Learn Business Planning & Lean Thinking to develop a Complete Business Plan...

4. Crisis Intervention Seminar

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The emphasis is on the development of fundamental clinical skills in the area of crisis intervention...

5. Blockchain in Financial Services: Strategic Action Plan

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In this fourth and final course of the specialization, you will synthesize your learning into a Strategic Action Plan. The goals of this course are twofold: One, it’s for you to identify a specific need or problem within the financial services industry that can potentially be solved using blockchain technology. Two, it’s for you to investigate possible solutions to this problem, and to develop a strategic plan for how these solutions might be executed. You will accomplish different project...

6. International Law in Action: A Guide to the International Courts and Tribunals in The Hague

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International Law in Action explains the functions of each international court and tribunal present in The Hague, and it looks at how these institutions address contemporary problems. On the basis of selected cases, and through interviews with judges and lawyers, you will explore the role of these courts and tribunals and their potential to contribute to global justice. The first module of the course will investigate how judicial settlement is different from other more political forms of...

7. The Legal Implications of Social Media in the Workplace

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Regulatory and Case Law Considerations for Employers' Social Media Policy Development...

8. Executive Coaching and Business Case Development

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The Guide to Executive Coaching and Business Case Development Success...

9. Case Studies in Personalized Medicine

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Learn how advances in biomedicine hold the potential to revolutionize drug development, drug treatments, and disease prevention: where are we now, and what does the future hold? This course will present short primers in genetics and mechanisms underlying variability in drug responses. A series of case studies will be used to illustrate principles of how genetics are being brought to bear on refining diagnoses and on personalizing treatment in rare and common diseases. The ethical and...

10. Google Data Analytics Capstone: Complete a Case Study

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This course is the eighth course in the Google Data Analytics Certificate. You’ll have the opportunity to complete an optional case study, which will help prepare you for the data analytics job hunt. Case studies are commonly used by employers to assess analytical skills. For your case study, you’ll choose an analytics-based scenario. You’ll then ask questions, prepare, process, analyze, visualize and act on the data from the scenario. You’ll also learn other useful job hunt skills through...

11. [2023] Customer Service 2.0: Learn Digital Customer Service

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12. Learn Risk Management: Risk Planning in Agile and Scrum

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Complete Risk Management and Risk Planning Training: Identify Project Risks, Create Risk Plan and Monitor Risks in Scrum...

13. SQL CASE Statements

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Welcome to this project-based course, SQL CASE Statements. In this project, you will learn how to use SQL CASE statements to query tables in a database. By the end of this 2-hour long project, you will be able to write simple CASE statements to retrieve the desired result from a database. Then, we will move systematically to write more complex SQL CASE statements. Furthermore, we will see how to use the CASE clause together with aggregate functions, and SQL joins to get the desired result you...

14. Consulting Case Interviews & Guesstimates (CV tips included)

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Crack management consulting case interviews at Mc Kinsey, Bain, BCG, Deloitte, Accenture. Course includes solved examples...

15. Conflict Resolution for Co-Workers

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You'll learn diagnosis and resolution techniques for tense, sensitive conflicts with your co-workers, manager or peers...

16. Risk Management: Hazard Identification & Risk Assessment

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Risk Management: Hazard Identification & Risk Assessment (HIRA), Hazard Control & Mitigation, Risk Evaluation Techniques...

17. Management Consulting Cases for Job Interview

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A practical guide on how to prepare for a case interview and how to get into consulting firms Mc Kinsey, Bain, BCG, Pw C,...

18. How to Crack the Consulting Case Interview

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Get an insider's perspective on how to crack your case interviews and earn a top offer in consulting...

19. Software Architecture Case Studies

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Become an even better Software Architect by learning from real-world architecture case studies...

20. Microsoft Azure: Cloud Architecture Case Studies

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Top 10 most affordable universities for welfare case workers

The most affordable schools for welfare case workers are Hunter College of the City University of New York, california state university - long beach, and california state university - fullerton.

If the best universities for welfare case 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 welfare case 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. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

3. California State University - Fullerton

Fullerton, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,886

Cost of attendance

17,645

4. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

5. University of South Florida

Tampa, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,410

Cost of attendance

20,456

6. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

7. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Cost of attendance

21,623

8. Florida International University

Miami, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,556

Cost of attendance

19,434

9. Florida Atlantic University

Boca Raton, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$4,831

Cost of attendance

19,559

10. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Cost of attendance

16,714

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for welfare case workers

The hardest universities for welfare case workers to get into are Northeastern University, Johns Hopkins University, and Boston College.

Some great schools for welfare case 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 welfare case 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. Northeastern University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

19%

SAT average

1,466

2. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

Admissions rate

11%

SAT average

1,513

3. Boston College

Chestnut Hill, MA • Private

Admissions rate

28%

SAT average

1,429

4. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,492

5. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

6%

SAT average

1,512

6. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

7. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,508

8. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

9. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

10. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor, MI • Private

Admissions rate

23%

SAT average

1,434

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for welfare case workers

The easiest schools for welfare case workers to get into are Mount Saint Mary's University, nyack college, and bluefield college.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a welfare case 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 welfare case workers.

1. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

2. Nyack College

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

98%

SAT average

999

3. Bluefield College

Bluefield, VA • Private

Admissions rate

95%

SAT average

980

4. Wayland Baptist University

Plainview, TX • Private

Admissions rate

98%

SAT average

1,003

5. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,031

6. Kean University

Union, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

86%

SAT average

991

7. Ottawa University

Ottawa, KS • Private

Admissions rate

78%

SAT average

1,024

8. Notre Dame de Namur University

Belmont, CA • Private

Admissions rate

82%

SAT average

983

9. Waynesburg University

Waynesburg, PA • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,080

10. Texas Woman's University

Denton, TX • Private

Admissions rate

87%

SAT average

1,059

Average welfare case worker salary by education level

According to our data, welfare case workers with a Master's degree earn the highest average salary, at $61,114 annually. Welfare case workers with a Bachelor's degree earn an average annual salary of $47,923.
Welfare case worker education levelWelfare case worker salary
Master's Degree$61,114
Bachelor's Degree$47,923

Welfare case worker education FAQs

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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.

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