Social Worker Salaries by State
If you're entertaining becoming a social worker in the future, we've put together this little salary guide just for you! Take an in-depth look at what we can expect from job growth and salaries of this position will look like for the coming years.
Social workers respond to and prevent crisis situations by counseling individuals, families, and communities on ways to cope with everyday life and the situations that come along with it. They're frequently tasked with working with those in low socio-economic demographics, including severe poverty, the unemployed, those facing discrimination or inadequate housing, and other social situations in which they're required.
Social work is generally divided into 3 areas of expertise in which you can choose to specialize: child, family, and school care, medical and public health, and clinical social workers.
Social work is a growing field at 12%, 5 points above the average job growth rate of 7%. Although its not the most explosive healthcare-related field, there are still many opportunities available for those dedicated to the work.
How Much Do Social Workers Make?
How much a social workers can make via salary varies depending on the location of the job, experience of the individual, and the current demand.
Use the table at the end of this article to find out whether your state, or the state you eventually want to work in, pays its social workers above or below the national average.
As represented in the graph below, social worker can expect to earn a median hourly wage of $26.16, or $54,510 per year:
Return on Investment for Social Workers
In order to become a social worker, a bachelor's degree is the first hurdle you'll have to cross. Afterward, a minimum of 2 more years of higher education are required, but many are going on the pursue a doctoral degree when taking competition in the field into account.
However, social workers aren't known for earning the highest of salaries. If social work is in your future, its vital that you make prudent financial decisions moving forward to ensure your debt-to-income ratio once you're on the job is in your favor.
Best States for Social Worker Salaries
A major factor in determining what your salary may look like is the location in which you plan to work. However, this principle applies to nearly all occupations largely due to the varying cost-of-living rates across the country.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics collects salary and employment data for nearly all positions, nationwide. The following table includes all data compiled from the BLS from each state including total number of jobs and wages as of May 2016.
Search or sort the table to find out what you can expect to make if social work is in your future:
*Location quotients serve as a statistical representation of the concentration of a resource, like jobs, with a broader base area.