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Social Services

Healthcare Social Workers

Provide individuals, families, and groups with the psychosocial support needed to cope with chronic, acute, or terminal illnesses. Services include advising family caregivers. Provide patients with information and counseling, and make referrals for other services. May also provide case and care management or interventions designed to promote health, prevent disease, and address barriers to access to healthcare.

Median salary (BLS)

$67,880

10th–90th percentile (BLS)

$46k – $100k

Job outlook

+8% (faster than average)

AI exposure

Early-career check: graduates of the matching programs below typically earn $87,000 ten years after starting college — an early-career figure, vs. the all-experience BLS median above. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard.

Plan a path to Healthcare Social Workers

Qualification costsStack incomeBest cities/statesSchool ROIJob-posting fitTailored resume

Education

Typical entry: Master's degree

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How to qualify

EstimateLicense required

Cost to qualify

$64,200–$231,000

Time to qualify

7 yr

Renewal

$75/yr

  1. 1

    Bachelor's degree

    Degree

    Four years at public in-state rates — average published tuition & fees ≈ $11,610/yr, plus books. Private and out-of-state run higher; grant aid lowers most students' actual net price.

    $40,000–$150,000 · 4 years source

  2. 2

    Master's degree

    Degree

    Typically two years; average graduate tuition ≈ $20,000/yr at public universities (NCES).

    $24,000–$80,000 · 2 years source

  3. 3

    State license — supervised hours + exam

    License

    Most counseling and social-work roles (LCSW/LPC pattern) require supervised experience hours and a state exam.

    $200–$1,000 · 12 months · varies by state · renews every 2 yr source

Estimated typical U.S. route for "Healthcare Social Workers" — built from BLS education requirements and College Board 2024–25 average published prices (public, in-state tuition + fees + books). Not yet verified against a specific state's licensing rules — confirm with your state licensing board or program.

Typical progression

  1. Junior Healthcare Social Workers

    Entry / Junior

    $46,220

    ~2 yrs to advance

  2. Healthcare Social Workers

    Established

    $67,880

    ~3 yrs to advance

  3. Senior Healthcare Social Workers

    Senior

    $84,120

Key skills

A typical day

  • •Advocate for clients or patients to resolve crises.
  • •Educate clients about end-of-life symptoms and options to assist them in making informed decisions.
  • •Collaborate with other professionals to evaluate patients' medical or physical condition and to assess client needs.
  • •Refer patient, client, or family to community resources to assist in recovery from mental or physical illness and to provide access to services such as financial assistance, legal aid, housing, job placement or education.
  • •Utilize consultation data and social work experience to plan and coordinate client or patient care and rehabilitation, following through to ensure service efficacy.

Fields of study

Any field

Top colleges for Social Services

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Reputation-based selection; stats shown are outcome data per school.