Does a Master's Degree in Social Work Pay Off? Earnings, Debt & Schools

Other degree levels for this field: Associate degrees · Bachelor's degrees

This page shows what graduates with a master's degree in Social Work earn four years after graduating, what they typically owe, the schools that report these figures (listed alphabetically), and the occupations linked to this field by the federal CIP-to-SOC crosswalk. It covers 274 reporting units (schools, or groups of campuses that report together) with these figures.

Median earnings, 4 years after graduation

$65,123

All graduates nationally

Middle half of graduates nationally

$51,662–$79,737

25th to 75th percentile

In context: across the 61 master's-degree fields with earnings reported by at least 30 schools or school groups, the typical field's median is $74,139; this field's median of $65,123 is 12% below that. The middle half of its graduates differ by $28,075 (25th to 75th percentile), narrower than the typical field's $44,659, so earnings within this field are more tightly grouped than usual. These are group figures, not predictions for any graduate.

Schools reporting earnings for Social Work graduates

Listed alphabetically to start; MajorPays does not rank schools. Click a column heading to sort; shift-click more headings to sort by several columns as a group. Median earnings four years after graduation, master's degree, for programs with at least 30 graduates measured (249 reporting units; campuses that share one federal school ID report together and appear once). Schools with fewer graduates in the major, or whose figure the Department of Education withholds, are not listed.

School	State	Median earnings, 4 years after	Graduates measured
Adelphi University	NY	$71,718	245
Alabama A & M University	AL	$51,295	100
Alabama State University	AL	$49,696	33
Albany State University	GA	$56,072	30
Andrews University	MI	$59,083	33
Appalachian State University	NC	$54,939	68
Arizona State University Campus Immersion (reported together with 1 other campus under one federal school ID)	AZ	$67,462	713
Augsburg University	MN	$69,129	140
Aurora University	IL	$61,710	687
Austin Peay State University	TN	$59,382	47
Azusa Pacific University	CA	$77,518	129
Barry University	FL	$64,500	226
Baylor University	TX	$61,272	115
Binghamton University	NY	$63,907	72
Boise State University	ID	$64,464	293
Boston College	MA	$71,957	377
Boston University	MA	$72,136	459
Brescia University	KY	$50,197	44
Bridgewater State University	MA	$75,783	115
Brigham Young University	UT	$62,078	47
Bryn Mawr College	PA	$57,867	52
California Baptist University	CA	$72,590	67
California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt	CA	$74,253	72
California State University-Bakersfield	CA	$86,527	82
California State University-Chico	CA	$72,273	100
California State University-Dominguez Hills	CA	$84,628	140
California State University-East Bay	CA	$96,198	156
California State University-Fresno	CA	$80,905	72
California State University-Fullerton	CA	$81,397	165
California State University-Long Beach	CA	$82,395	412
California State University-Los Angeles	CA	$78,135	229
California State University-Monterey Bay	CA	$95,950	70
California State University-Northridge	CA	$81,505	192
California State University-Sacramento	CA	$84,100	188
California State University-San Bernardino	CA	$81,476	169
California State University-San Marcos	CA	$77,471	112
California State University-Stanislaus	CA	$84,837	121
Campbellsville University	KY	$55,212	182
Case Western Reserve University	OH	$60,228	399
Chicago State University	IL	$65,619	36
Clark Atlanta University	GA	$62,780	114
Cleveland State University	OH	$58,916	112
College of Staten Island CUNY	NY	$76,568	47
Colorado State University-Fort Collins	CO	$67,960	94
Columbia University in the City of New York	NY	$75,980	646
Concord University	WV	$57,680	94
CUNY Hunter College	NY	$76,071	768
CUNY Lehman College	NY	$77,884	151
Daemen University	NY	$58,349	33
Delaware State University	DE	$63,662	55
DePaul University	IL	$60,329	34
Dominican University	IL	$63,207	115
East Carolina University	NC	$61,461	91
East Tennessee State University	TN	$53,352	78
East Texas A&M University	TX	$60,618	87
Eastern Michigan University	MI	$66,873	127
Eastern Washington University	WA	$68,191	130
Erikson Institute	IL	$66,121	32
Fayetteville State University	NC	$52,915	52
Ferris State University	MI	$63,946	59
Florida Gulf Coast University	FL	$61,073	34
Florida State University	FL	$60,003	76
Fordham University	NY	$70,342	1,058
George Fox University	OR	$71,521	69
George Mason University	VA	$70,044	113
Georgia State University	GA	$55,629	92
Governors State University	IL	$62,482	96
Grand Valley State University	MI	$59,369	242
Howard University	DC	$75,734	139
Illinois State University	IL	$55,801	40
Indiana University-Indianapolis	IN	$59,903	389
Indiana University-Northwest	IN	$58,430	46
Indiana University-South Bend	IN	$53,764	71
Indiana Wesleyan University-Marion (reported together with 1 other campus under one federal school ID)	IN	$60,273	57
Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Metro	PR	$32,054	39
Jackson State University	MS	$48,920	101
Johnson C Smith University	NC	$61,497	70
Kean University	NJ	$66,931	126
Kennesaw State University	GA	$59,764	70
Keuka College	NY	$65,013	54
Kutztown University of Pennsylvania	PA	$57,834	49
Loma Linda University	CA	$80,685	83
Long Island University	NY	$69,549	163
Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College	LA	$59,370	193
Loyola University Chicago	IL	$65,097	354
Madonna University	MI	$62,583	63
Marshall University	WV	$61,852	80
Marywood University	PA	$61,536	189
Metropolitan State University of Denver	CO	$66,816	200
Miami University-Oxford	OH	$58,826	43
Michigan State University	MI	$64,368	31
Middle Tennessee State University	TN	$64,885	37
Millersville University of Pennsylvania	PA	$57,898	118
Minnesota State University-Mankato	MN	$71,402	44
Missouri State University-Springfield	MO	$54,418	47
Monmouth University	NJ	$66,697	151
Montclair State University	NJ	$66,259	75
Morgan State University	MD	$70,545	115
Nazareth University	NY	$59,937	145
New Mexico State University-Main Campus	NM	$58,551	64
New York University	NY	$72,690	718
Newman University	KS	$58,748	67
Norfolk State University	VA	$64,246	140
North Carolina A & T State University	NC	$64,009	44
North Carolina Central University	NC	$57,082	120
North Carolina State University at Raleigh	NC	$59,556	155
Northeastern Illinois University	IL	$59,663	61
Northern Kentucky University	KY	$55,285	112
Northwest Nazarene University	ID	$70,614	66
Nova Southeastern University	FL	$62,202	51
Ohio State University-Main Campus	OH	$62,275	447
Ohio University-Main Campus	OH	$60,384	72
Our Lady of the Lake University	TX	$62,913	542
Pacific University	OR	$66,596	34
Park University	MO	$61,582	62
Pennsylvania Western University	PA	$58,490	370
Portland State University	OR	$77,091	393
Quinnipiac University	CT	$71,091	35
Radford University	VA	$61,332	67
Rhode Island College	RI	$69,017	152
Roberts Wesleyan University	NY	$60,816	63
Rutgers University-Camden (reported together with 2 other campuses under one federal school ID)	NJ	$66,438	1,051
Saginaw Valley State University	MI	$64,391	43
Saint Ambrose University	IA	$54,215	50
Saint Cloud State University	MN	$68,318	81
Saint Leo University	FL	$62,036	129
Saint Louis University	MO	$57,853	151
Salem State University	MA	$69,819	224
Salisbury University	MD	$67,218	253
San Diego State University	CA	$78,813	160
San Francisco State University	CA	$94,452	45
Savannah State University	GA	$55,566	43
Seattle University	WA	$70,622	38
Seton Hall University	NJ	$68,884	50
Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania	PA	$56,543	52
Simmons University	MA	$69,292	830
Smith College	MA	$68,927	154
Southern Adventist University	TN	$52,732	42
Southern Connecticut State University	CT	$66,503	153
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville	IL	$62,412	42
Southern Illinois University-Carbondale	IL	$54,200	101
Southern University at New Orleans	LA	$55,119	168
Spalding University	KY	$59,014	38
Springfield College	MA	$68,674	205
Stephen F Austin State University	TX	$61,841	79
Stockton University	NJ	$63,291	98
Stony Brook University	NY	$67,350	421
SUNY Brockport	NY	$60,757	100
Syracuse University	NY	$61,656	119
Tarleton State University	TX	$59,672	37
Temple University	PA	$62,274	244
Texas State University	TX	$62,619	238
The College of Saint Rose	NY	$63,259	31
The College of Saint Scholastica	MN	$64,773	57
The University of Alabama	AL	$54,926	290
The University of Montana	MT	$60,362	45
The University of Tennessee-Knoxville	TN	$55,624	329
The University of Texas at Arlington	TX	$62,890	968
The University of Texas at Austin	TX	$64,396	184
The University of Texas at El Paso	TX	$62,434	30
The University of Texas at San Antonio	TX	$64,172	104
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley	TX	$64,161	118
Touro University	NY	$71,531	187
Troy University	AL	$58,560	145
Tulane University of Louisiana	LA	$55,716	59
Union University	TN	$54,660	120
University at Albany	NY	$64,213	268
University at Buffalo	NY	$60,612	316
University of Akron Main Campus	OH	$56,193	131
University of Alaska Anchorage	AK	$72,105	30
University of Arkansas	AR	$58,464	69
University of Arkansas at Little Rock	AR	$64,464	129
University of California-Los Angeles	CA	$85,426	158
University of Central Florida	FL	$58,123	115
University of Chicago	IL	$71,980	255
University of Cincinnati-Main Campus	OH	$57,587	120
University of Connecticut	CT	$68,882	248
University of Denver	CO	$65,203	373
University of Georgia	GA	$60,590	218
University of Hawaii at Manoa	HI	$65,263	135
University of Houston	TX	$68,032	235
University of Illinois Chicago	IL	$65,915	373
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign	IL	$64,120	244
University of Indianapolis	IN	$60,981	45
University of Iowa	IA	$58,268	114
University of Kansas	KS	$59,791	301
University of Kentucky	KY	$60,970	151
University of Louisville	KY	$59,074	339
University of Maine	ME	$64,301	62
University of Maryland, Baltimore	MD	$70,051	732
University of Memphis	TN	$61,683	93
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor	MI	$64,788	535
University of Minnesota-Duluth	MN	$62,641	52
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities	MN	$68,679	203
University of Missouri-Columbia	MO	$64,779	127
University of Missouri-Kansas City	MO	$63,357	105
University of Missouri-St Louis	MO	$57,905	99
University of Nebraska at Omaha	NE	$60,739	143
University of Nevada-Las Vegas	NV	$66,253	112
University of Nevada-Reno	NV	$73,580	167
University of New England	ME	$61,719	199
University of New Hampshire-Main Campus	NH	$62,970	141
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	NC	$62,611	190
University of North Carolina at Charlotte	NC	$55,192	130
University of North Carolina at Greensboro	NC	$59,609	50
University of North Carolina at Pembroke	NC	$59,853	77
University of North Carolina Wilmington	NC	$59,108	78
University of North Dakota	ND	$72,577	111
University of Northern Iowa	IA	$59,834	72
University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus	OK	$64,587	235
University of Pennsylvania	PA	$68,695	278
University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras	PR	$34,329	76
University of Saint Joseph	CT	$68,123	103
University of South Carolina-Columbia	SC	$56,741	371
University of South Dakota	SD	$60,964	61
University of South Florida	FL	$56,830	172
University of Southern California	CA	$73,829	2,146
University of Southern Maine	ME	$62,912	50
University of Southern Mississippi	MS	$51,523	118
University of St Francis	IL	$61,372	43
University of St Thomas	MN	$65,240	169
University of Toledo	OH	$56,004	80
University of Utah	UT	$67,368	267
University of Vermont	VT	$64,211	41
University of Washington-Seattle Campus (reported together with 1 other campus under one federal school ID)	WA	$77,163	446
University of Wisconsin-Green Bay	WI	$61,462	80
University of Wisconsin-Madison	WI	$62,101	255
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee	WI	$62,696	221
University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh	WI	$58,151	39
Utah State University	UT	$66,536	79
Utah Valley University	UT	$71,388	42
Virginia Commonwealth University	VA	$65,063	288
Walden University	MN	$63,559	473
Walla Walla University	WA	$56,969	133
Washburn University	KS	$59,993	94
Washington University in St Louis	MO	$63,805	256
Wayne State University	MI	$61,914	546
West Virginia University	WV	$58,265	124
Western Carolina University	NC	$58,911	71
Western Kentucky University	KY	$56,628	89
Western Michigan University	MI	$60,283	236
Western New Mexico University	NM	$63,313	147
Westfield State University	MA	$70,061	119
Wichita State University	KS	$59,219	93
Widener University	PA	$67,786	352
Winthrop University	SC	$56,287	89
Wright State University-Main Campus	OH	$58,382	61
Yeshiva University	NY	$70,744	97
Youngstown State University	OH	$61,197	82

See every school that awarded master's degrees in Social Work in 2023-24, including schools that do not report earnings, with the number of degrees awarded (IPEDS Completions).

Occupations O*NET associates with this field

Occupations that U.S. Department of Labor O*NET data links to Social Work programs, with each occupation's national median pay, projected job growth and yearly openings. They are listed in the order O*NET links them to this field; click a column heading to sort. This is a classification crosswalk, not evidence that graduates enter these jobs, and many of these occupations require more education, a license or experience beyond this credential. The figures describe the occupation, not the graduates of this major.

Career	Median pay, 2025	Projected growth, 2025–2035	Openings per year
Social and Community Service Managers	$80,390	+7.2%	18,500
Child, Family, and School Social Workers	$59,550	+4.4%	33,900
Healthcare Social Workers	$67,880	+8.5%	16,900
Social Workers, All Other	$71,900	+2.3%	5,800
Social Work Teachers, Postsecondary	$77,570	+2.6%	1,100
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers	$60,280	+10.3%	12,500
Marriage and Family Therapists	$66,940	+13.5%	6,900
Counselors, All Other	$50,860	+5.9%	4,300
Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists	$66,270	+3.0%	7,900

Frequently asked questions

Does a master's degree in Social Work pay off?

Graduates with a master's degree in Social Work earn a median of $65,123 four years after graduating. Earnings four years out are early-career pay, and they vary widely by school, job and place. Compare the pay with the cost of your own school on its graduate earnings page.

How much do college graduates earn overall?

See earnings by education level and by state.

Do Social Work graduates work in their field?

The National Survey of College Graduates (2023) asked employed graduates whose highest degree is a master's in social service and related fields how closely their job relates to their degree. About 74% said closely related, 16% somewhat related and 11% not related (roughly 884 thousand graduates). This is a broad group of fields, not only Social Work, and a job outside the field is not a bad outcome by itself.

Closely relatedSomewhat relatedNot related

Source: U.S. National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, National Survey of College Graduates, 2023 (Table 1-3, master's level, all occupations). Survey estimates, rounded by NSF. MajorPays selected and reorganized these figures; NSF has not approved or endorsed them.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education, College Scorecard field-of-study data (June 2026 release), licensed under Creative Commons Attribution; careers from O*NET 31.0 by the U.S. Dept. of Labor, ETA, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Career pay, growth and openings: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025) and Employment Projections (2025-2035). MajorPays has selected and reorganized these figures; neither agency has approved or endorsed them. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. MajorPays has modified all or some of the O*NET information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. Earnings are for graduates who received federal financial aid and were working and not enrolled four years after finishing (graduates of academic years 2014-15 and 2015-16, in 2021 dollars; the debt figures are for graduates of 2018-19 and 2019-20); the data says nothing about how much a school added to its graduates' earnings.