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Master's Degree in Social Work

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Master’s Degrees in Social Work

33,436 Yearly Graduations
$44,536 Median Salary
$38,875 Median Debt
There are 322 colleges and univerities across the nation that offer a master's degree in social work. In recent years, the majority of the students getting degrees in this area were female, and 43% were from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group. Also, 1.2% of social work graduates were international students.

Education Levels of Social Work Majors

During the most recent year for which data is available, 33,436 people earned their master's degree in social work. This makes it the 3rd most popular master's degree program in the country.

The following table shows the number of diplomas awarded in social work at each degree level.

Education Level Number of Grads
Master’s Degree 33,436
Doctor’s Degree 761
Graduate Certificate 711

Earnings of Social Work Majors With Master’s Degrees

The median salary for graduates holding a master's degree in social work is $44,536. However, this can depend on a number of factors, such as where you live and the number of years experience you have. A better approximation of salary is to look at the typical range of salaries. In this case the low is $41,498 and the high is $48,052.

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Student Debt

The median student debt for graduates holding a master's degree in social work is $38,875. The length of time it takes you to graduate and what college you attend can affect this number quite a bit. The chart below shows the range of accumulated debt loads. On the high side of the range, $41,833 is the debt load, and the debt load on the low side is $29,979.

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Student Diversity

More women than men pursue their master's degree in social work. About 87.5% of graduates with this degree are female.

Gender Number of Grads
Men 4,168
Women 29,268
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The racial-ethnic distribution of social work master’s degree students is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity Number of Grads
Asian 1,112
Black or African American 5,915
Hispanic or Latino 5,911
White 17,506
International Students 413
Other Races/Ethnicities 2,579
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There are 322 colleges that offer a master’s degree in social work. Learn more about the most popular 20 below:

#1

Fordham University

Bronx, New York
1,036 Yearly Graduations
88% Women
55% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

Fordham University tops the list of the most popular school in the U.S. for social work majors who are seeking their master's degree. Each year, around 16,300 students seeking various degrees attend the university. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $56,920 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $23,112 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 1,036 people received their master's degree in social work from Fordham U. Around 55% of these students were from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group, and 88% were women.

#2

University of Southern California

Los Angeles, California
888 Yearly Graduations
84% Women
64% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

University of Southern California is the 2nd most popular school in the nation for students seeking a master's degree in social work. Each year, around 46,200 students seeking various degrees attend the university. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $63,468 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $63,468 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 888 people received their master's degree in social work from USC. Of these students, 84% were women and 64% were members of underrepresented racial-ethnic groups.

#4

Rutgers University - New Brunswick

New Brunswick, New Jersey
705 Yearly Graduations
87% Women
50% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

Rutgers University - New Brunswick is the 4th most popular school in the nation for students seeking a master's degree in social work. Each year, around 50,400 students seeking various degrees attend the university. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $12,900 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $18,696 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 705 people received their master's degree in social work from Rutgers New Brunswick. Around 50% of these students were from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group, and 87% were women.

679 Yearly Graduations
90% Women
65% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

The University of Texas at Arlington comes in at #5 on our list of the most popular colleges offering master's degrees in social work. Roughly 48,000 attend the school each year. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $9,206 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $9,015 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 679 people received their master's degree in social work from UT Arlington. Around 65% of these students were from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group, and 90% were women.

#6

Hunter College

New York, New York
622 Yearly Graduations
81% Women
60% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

Hunter College is the 6th most popular school in the nation for students seeking a master's degree in social work. Each year, around 24,000 students seeking various degrees attend the university. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $6,930 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $11,090 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 622 people received their master's degree in social work from Hunter. About 81% of this group were women, and 60% were students from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group.

#7

Simmons University

Boston, Massachusetts
551 Yearly Graduations
88% Women
31% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

Simmons University comes in at #7 on our list of the most popular colleges offering master's degrees in social work. Roughly 6,200 attend the school each year. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $43,060 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $27,152 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 551 people received their master's degree in social work from Simmons. About 88% of this group were women, and 31% were students from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group.

#8

New York University

New York, New York
501 Yearly Graduations
88% Women
32% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

New York University is the 8th most popular school in the nation for students seeking a master's degree in social work. Each year, around 52,700 students seeking various degrees attend the university. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $55,384 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $37,332 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 501 people received their master's degree in social work from NYU. Around 32% of these students were from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group, and 88% were women.

#9

University of Denver

Denver, Colorado
500 Yearly Graduations
87% Women
34% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

The 9th most popular school in the country for social work majors who are seeking their master's degree is University of Denver. Roughly 13,800 attend the school each year. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $55,260 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $55,260 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 500 people received their master's degree in social work from DU. Around 34% of these students were from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group, and 87% were women.

487 Yearly Graduations
89% Women
43% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

Columbia University in the City of New York is the 10th most popular school in the nation for students seeking a master's degree in social work. Roughly 30,100 attend the school each year. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $61,989 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $52,016 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 487 people received their master's degree in social work from Columbia. Of these students, 89% were women and 43% were members of underrepresented racial-ethnic groups.

#11

Aurora University

Aurora, Illinois
478 Yearly Graduations
90% Women
37% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

Aurora University comes in at #11 on our list of the most popular colleges offering master's degrees in social work. Roughly 6,200 attend the school each year. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $27,200 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $14,586 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 478 people received their master's degree in social work from Aurora. About 90% of this group were women, and 37% were students from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group.

#12

University of Maryland - Baltimore

Baltimore, Maryland
411 Yearly Graduations
85% Women
49% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

The 12th most popular school in the country for social work majors who are seeking their master's degree is University of Maryland - Baltimore. Roughly 7,100 attend the school each year. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $9,635 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $15,443 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 411 people received their master's degree in social work from UMB. Around 49% of these students were from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group, and 85% were women.

407 Yearly Graduations
89% Women
31% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

The 13th most popular school in the country for social work majors who are seeking their master's degree is Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis. Each year, around 29,300 students seeking various degrees attend the university. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $8,972 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $9,366 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 407 people received their master's degree in social work from IUPUI. Around 31% of these students were from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group, and 89% were women.

#14

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor, Michigan
384 Yearly Graduations
80% Women
32% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is the 14th most popular school in the nation for students seeking a master's degree in social work. Each year, around 47,900 students seeking various degrees attend the university. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $17,454 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $25,894 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 384 people received their master's degree in social work from U-M. Around 32% of these students were from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group, and 80% were women.

356 Yearly Graduations
86% Women
24% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

Ohio State University - Main Campus is the 15th most popular school in the nation for students seeking a master's degree in social work. Roughly 61,300 attend the school each year. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $11,525 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $12,092 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 356 people received their master's degree in social work from Ohio State. Around 24% of these students were from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group, and 86% were women.

327 Yearly Graduations
91% Women
40% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College comes in at #16 on our list of the most popular colleges offering master's degrees in social work. Each year, around 34,200 students seeking various degrees attend the university. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $8,038 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $9,132 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 327 people received their master's degree in social work from Louisiana State University. Around 40% of these students were from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group, and 91% were women.

#17

Wayne State University

Detroit, Michigan
326 Yearly Graduations
86% Women
35% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

Wayne State University comes in at #17 on our list of the most popular colleges offering master's degrees in social work. Each year, around 26,200 students seeking various degrees attend the university. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $14,140 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $17,682 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 326 people received their master's degree in social work from Wayne State. About 86% of this group were women, and 35% were students from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group.

#18

Boston University

Boston, Massachusetts
315 Yearly Graduations
89% Women
32% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

Boston University comes in at #18 on our list of the most popular colleges offering master's degrees in social work. Roughly 32,700 attend the school each year. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $61,050 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $61,050 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 315 people received their master's degree in social work from Boston U. About 89% of this group were women, and 32% were students from an underrepresented racial-ethnic group.

#19

Our Lady of the Lake University

San Antonio, Texas
309 Yearly Graduations
89% Women
64% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

Our Lady of the Lake University is the 19th most popular school in the nation for students seeking a master's degree in social work. Roughly 2,700 attend the school each year. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $30,200 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $17,316 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 309 people received their master's degree in social work from OLLU. Of these students, 89% were women and 64% were members of underrepresented racial-ethnic groups.

#20

Arizona State University - Skysong

Scottsdale, Arizona
292 Yearly Graduations
89% Women
43% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*

Arizona State University - Skysong comes in at #20 on our list of the most popular colleges offering master's degrees in social work. Each year, around 53,900 students seeking various degrees attend the university. The average in-state tuition for full-time undergraduates is $10,978 per year, while in-state graduate students, on average, pay $9,972 per year. During the most recent year for which we have data, 292 people received their master's degree in social work from ASU - Skysong. Of these students, 89% were women and 43% were members of underrepresented racial-ethnic groups.

Social Work Concentrations

Major Annual Degrees Awarded
33,304
82
50

References

*The racial-ethnic minority student count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the percentage of racial-ethnic minorities.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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