Make a Difference in Your Community and Your Career
Help individuals, families, and larger groups overcome challenges to improve their lives, relationships, and organizations when you pursue a career in social work. As a social worker, you'll play an integral role in your community, empowering those in need to identify and address the issues they face.
Whether you currently work in the field or have the desire to start, Our Lady of the Lake University's online Master of Social Work can help you achieve your personal and professional goals. You'll use your newly honed skills to help society and fight for justice in a profession that expects job growth to be 2.5 times the national rate at 16 percent.1
By graduation, you'll be prepared to change the lives of children and families in need — especially those in the Hispanic community, one of the fastest-growing populations in the U.S.
Top-Paying Job Titles With an MSW Degree
This rewarding field is filled with opportunities for those seeking to create positive change in the lives of others:
- 16 percent growth in job opportunities projected in the field of social work by 20261
- 23 percent increase in job opportunities for Mental Health Counselors and Marriage and Family Therapists projected by 20262
- $103,570 median annual salary in 2017 for Social and Community Managers in the insurance industry3
Professionals with a master's in social work are qualified for the highest-paying social work jobs and can anticipate earning the upper end of the pay scale.
Position | Top-Paying Field | Annual Mean Wage | Employment Growth Rate |
Health Care Social Workers | Insurance and Employee Benefit Funds | $69,8604 | 20%1 |
Mental Health/Substance Abuse Social Workers | Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools | $61,3605 | 19%1 |
Marriage and Family Therapists | State Government, Excluding Schools and Hospitals | $70,2606 | 23%7 |
Mental Health Counselors | Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services | $65,6808 | 23%2 |
Social and Community Service Managers | Insurance Carriers | $103,5703 | 18%9 |
Child, Family, and School Social Workers | Elementary and Secondary Schools | $62,69010 | 14%1 |
More MSW Job Titles to Consider
As the entire healthcare field expands, so do the available titles — and skills required — for social work professionals. You'll find work across industries; in private, corporate, and nonprofit organizations; and in rural and urban areas. In addition to the titles above, you'll also qualify to work as a:
- Case Manager
- Community Coordinator
- Human Services Worker
- Life Skills Counselor
- Job Coach
- Outpatient Health Specialist
- Mental Health Counselor
- Public Health Manager
Career Resource Articles
The articles below highlight different roles social workers play in greater detail. You can click to read, bookmark them now, or browse additional social work articles in our resource center.
- Military social worker infographic and article
- Foster care through adoption infographic
- Help children infographic
- Medical social worker
- Prison social worker
Join a Professional Organization to Support Your Career
Graduates who specialize in social work and relocate to a different area to pursue gainful employment can look to the various nationally recognized professional social work organizations to help them in their professional endeavors.
- National Association of Social Workers
- Clinical Social Work Association
- National Organization of Forensic Social Work
- Society for Social Work Leadership in Health Care
- Society for Social Work and Research
- Latino Social Workers Organization
- American Case Management Association
Find Out More
To learn more about how the award-winning online Master of Social Work from Our Lady of the Lake University supports your career growth and expands your options in treatment, call 855-275-1082 or request more information.
Sources
1Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2017-18 Edition, Social Workers, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/ooh/community-and-social-service/social-workers.htm (visited August 13, 2018).
2https://www.bls.gov/ooh/community-and-social-service/substance-abuse-behavioral-disorder-and-mental-health-counselors.htm
3https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes119151.htm
4https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes211022.htm
5https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes211023.htm
6https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes211013.htm
7https://www.bls.gov/ooh/community-and-social-service/marriage-and-family-therapists.htm
8https://www.bls.gov/oes/2016/may/oes211014.htm#ind
9https://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/social-and-community-service-managers.htm#tab-1
10https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes211021.htm