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Best Social Work Schools in the Great Lakes Region

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2023 Best Social Work Schools in the Great Lakes Region

48 Colleges
$35,459 Avg Salary
$27,818 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Social Work School for You

With 33,631 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, social work is the #6 most popular major in the United States.

There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Grad Degree Search has created its Best Social Work Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 48 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Social Work Schools in the Great Lakes Region

The following schools top our list of the Best Social Work Colleges.

Top 10 Best Social Work Schools

#1

University of Chicago

Chicago, IL

Our analysis found University of Chicago to be the best school for social work students who want to pursue a degree in the Great Lakes Region . Located in the city of Chicago, UChicago is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Social Work at University of Chicago

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Michigan - Ann Arbor. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Social Work Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. U-M is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Ann Arbor.

Full Social Work at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Social Work Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. UIUC is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Champaign.

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The excellent programs at University of Wisconsin - Madison helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best social work schools in the Great Lakes Region . UW - Madison is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Madison.

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The excellent programs at University of Wisconsin - Whitewater helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best social work schools in the Great Lakes Region . Located in the town of Whitewater, UW - Whitewater is a public college with a fairly large student population.

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Case Western Reserve University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best social work programs. Located in the large city of Cleveland, Case Western is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

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#7

Erikson Institute

Chicago, IL

Erikson Institute landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best social work programs. Located in the large city of Chicago, The Erikson Institute is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Read full report on Social Work at Erikson Institute

#8

Saginaw Valley State University

University Center, MI

Saginaw Valley State University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Social Work Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Saginaw Valley State University is a moderately-sized public school located in the medium-sized suburb of University Center.

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University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Social Work Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in the small city of Oshkosh, UW Oshkosh is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Social Work at University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh

Ohio State University - Main Campus came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Social Work Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Ohio State is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Columbus.

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Best Social Work Colleges by State

Explore the best social work schools for a specific state in the Great Lakes region.

State Degrees Awarded
Michigan 1,332
Illinois 1,812
Ohio 1,001
Indiana 615
Wisconsin 448

Social Work is one of 5 different types of programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Public Administration 13,571
Public Policy 3,737
Human Services 1,277
Community Organization & Advocacy 741
Other Public Administration 295

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Army Medicine.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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