The Master’s degree of Social Work (MSW) is a graduate-level program designed for social work professionals who want to pursue advanced roles or leadership opportunities in the field. It is considered to be a high-demand credential, and graduates will find that there are a variety of MSW career paths that they can pursue.
Subject matter review and approval September 2026:
Mary Kay Tuohy, DSW, professor of professional practice and social work, Department of Sociology & Anthropology, Rowan University
What Can You Do With an MSW Degree?
The MSW degree prepares graduates for a variety of advanced roles in social work. These are just a few of the careers with MSW you can consider:
- Clinical social worker / mental health therapist
- School social worker
- Drug & alcohol counselor
- Policy advocate or community organizer
- Healthcare or medical social worker
- Child welfare
- Nonprofit program director or program manager
Top Jobs You Can Pursue With an MSW Degree
Those who are interested in clinical social worker jobs will want to consider earning an MSW degree. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), a bachelor’s degree is required for some entry-level social work positions, but most clinical social worker positions require candidates to have an MSW degree. The BLS anticipates that employment levels for social workers will increase by about 6 percent between 2024 and 2034, and demand for MSW gradates remains strong.
These are some of the jobs with an MSW degree that you can consider:
Clinical Social Worker / Mental Health Therapist
A clinical social worker is a licensed mental health professional who is able to assess, diagnose and treat individuals with mental health conditions or behavioral health disorders. Clinical social workers may work in hospitals, clinics or private practice, and they often provide therapy and counseling services.
Clinical social work requires licensure to become an LCSW or LMSW.
School Social Worker
School social workers collaborate with school administrators, families and students to provide mental health management and crisis support services in educational settings. They support the social and emotional needs of K-12 students and work with school teams to address individual behavioral or social-emotional needs.
Drug & Alcohol Counselor
Drug and alcohol counselors assess and treat individuals managing addiction and co-occurring behavioral health conditions, often working alongside medical providers to coordinate detox, treatment and recovery support. Drug and alcohol counselors work in inpatient and outpatient treatment centers, hospitals and community mental health agencies.
Policy Advocate or Community Organizer
Policy advocates work with legislators and community leaders to shape legislation that addresses the needs of local populations, often with an emphasis on equity and community reform. These professionals frequently partner with both nonprofit organizations and government agencies.
Health Care or Medical Social Worker
Medical social workers work in hospitals, long-term care facilities and rehabilitation centers to provide patients, their family members, and their caregivers with support as they receive treatment. They often work to help patients navigate medical decisions and care plans, and they connect patients and caregivers to community resources. This is a growing area of practice as health systems increasingly recognize the value of embedding social work directly into care teams.
Child Welfare
Social workers in child welfare work closely with young people and families involved in the foster care system, conducting safety assessments, developing family preservation and reunification plans, and coordinating services across schools, courts and community agencies. It is one of the field’s most demanding and directly impactful specialties, requiring strong crisis-response skills alongside long-term case planning.
Nonprofit Program Director or Manager
This is a natural leadership path for MSW graduates. Individuals with practical social work experience, a passion for a specialty area and a graduate degree can take on this role, developing and implementing community-based programs, overseeing staff and budgets, and making a direct impact on the community they serve.
What Skills Does an MSW Help You Build?
The MSW program is a career-focused graduate degree designed to build the practical and technical skills needed to advocate for people and connect them with essential services. Graduates also develop the leadership and advocacy skills needed to advance in the field and champion the needs of others, through a hybrid learning format that blends both in-person learning and online learning.
These are the skills that you will develop throughout the MSW degree program:
Clinical Assessment & Therapy Approaches
With an emphasis on mental health and wellbeing this program equips students with knowledge, values, and skills to empower individuals and communities toward healthy lives. Students learn theory and practice to assess, diagnose and treat behavioral conditions and support mental health needs. This includes direct training in structured treatment protocols including CBT, trauma-focused CBT, prolonged exposure and EMDR, and practicing clinical ethics through simulation that mirrors the real decision-making bodies they’ll encounter in practice settings.
Advocacy & Social Justice Leadership
Rowan’s program treats equity as central to mental health and wellbeing, with the curriculum deeply rooted in justice at every level of training. Students build cultural humility: an ongoing practice of self-reflection and openness to each client’s lived experience.
Case Management & Crisis Response
Through coursework and hands-on practicum experience, students learn to manage clinical caseloads and respond to individuals in crisis. Some practicum placements are in medical settings, where social work’s role in care coordination is expanding. Students also learn to document outcomes in ways that demonstrate the value of social work in healthcare and other underserved practice areas.
Program Development & Community Outreach
The coursework prepares students to develop and implement community outreach efforts. They learn the fundamentals of effective program development, grounded in the NASW Code of Ethics. Students also build the technical skills needed for program work and the interpersonal skills required for empathetic, professional communication.
Ethical Practice & Professional Communication
With a curriculum rooted in ethics, students learn about the ethical guidelines and laws that anchor the field of social work, especially as they relate to service members. They also develop the interpersonal skills required for empathetic and professional communication in their roles.
Where Do MSW Graduates Work?
Depending on the specialty area that you prefer or your personal career goals, you will find that there are many MSW degree jobs to consider.
These are just some of the places where you can get jobs with an MSW degree:
Hospitals & Health Systems
Hospitals and healthcare systems frequently employ MSW graduates for their social worker positions. Hospital and healthcare social workers play a critical role in today’s evolving landscape, as they often work to connect patients and caregivers with the services they need as they navigate their care plan, including support for mental health and substance abuse issues.
Schools & Educational Organizations
As schools and educational facilities around the country continue to prioritize the mental health and well-being of students, there is expected to be an increase in the number of school social worker jobs available. School social workers play an active role in any school community and have an opportunity to connect with students and provide them with the help they need.
Government Agencies
Government agencies (such as elder care, child welfare and more) often employ social workers to develop and implement community assistance programs in collaboration with nonprofit organizations, ensuring that vulnerable members of the community have access to the resources they need to live healthy and productive lives.
Nonprofit & Community Organizations
Graduates with MSW degrees are found throughout nonprofit and community agencies providing direct services, administrative roles, policy and/or community organizing roles. Social workers in these work settings may provide counseling services, or they may work to connect members of a targeted population with the services and resources they need, enhancing their social work practice.
Private Practice (With Licensure)
Clinical social workers who are licensed may be able to work in private practice, where they can provide counseling services, including group therapy, for clients who are struggling with mental health disorders or behavioral health concerns.
Is an MSW Worth It for Career Advancement?
An MSW degree is considered the terminal degree in the field. It is required for insurance reimbursement and is a requirement for hiring for numerous opportunities at agencies that accept government funding. The median annual wages for social workers is about $61,000 per year, with 10% earning more than $99,500. This increase is largely with MSW graduates with clinical licensure (LCSW) working in healthcare, private practice or leadership roles. The MSW is also the required licensure pathway for anyone pursuing clinical social work practice, which is where the strongest long-term earning potential in the field lies.
How Rowan University Prepares You for MSW Careers
Field experiences and an individual approach to academics and advising are central to the Rowan MSW program. Having meaningful relationships and one-on-one conversations with each student are important to the faculty who founded the program in 2023. Through ongoing mentorship and support, faculty and staff guide students to explore a wide range of professional opportunities. About half of the students who enroll have an idea of what they would like to pursue professionally, while the other half enter the program still exploring their options. For these students, personalized advising and hands-on experiences can help them identify their interests, discover new possibilities and find the path that’s right for them.
Field Placements & Clinical Training
All students work with the director of field education, who specializes in connecting students with field placements and clinical training opportunities that align with their career goals. Paid placements are also prioritized for students who want or need them.
Expert Faculty With Real-World Experience
All courses are taught by social workers with valuable professional experience, allowing them to share their insight and expertise with students.
Career Pathways Aligned With State Licensure
The curriculum for this program is aligned with state licensure requirements, allowing students to prepare for licensure after graduation.
Flexible Program Structure for Working Adults
Designed with working adults in mind, the MSW degree at Rowan offers a flexible structure that allows students to balance their coursework with their existing responsibilities. The program works to find paid practicum placements for students who need them, limit the number of days required on campus and hold classes in the evening to accommodate the needs of working students and practicum placements.
Ready to Start Your MSW Journey?
Now you know what you can do with an MSW degree — which means it’s time to get started earning your new degree in the social work field. The need for qualified, empathetic and responsive social workers is rising, and you can answer the call.
Why Pursue an MSW Degree Through Rowan?
Rowan University offers a flexible, career-driven MSW degree that provides specialized practice in mental health equity and well-being. This specialty prepapres graduates to address disparities in access to mental healthcare and to advocate for underserved populations across clinical, medical and community settings, with hands-on familiarity in the range of treatment options being used to address them. The degree prepares students for social work leadership roles in various settings, including schools, hospitals and private practice.
Learn more about our admissions process, and request more information about our MSW degree today.
About Rowan
Since its founding in 1923, Rowan University has evolved from a teacher preparation college to a public research institution ranked among the top 100 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. Rowan University offers bachelor’s through doctoral degrees and professional certificates in person and online to nearly 25,000 students through its main campus in Glassboro and its eight other locations in southern New Jersey. Rowan focuses on practical research at the intersection of health care, engineering, science and business, while ensuring excellence in undergraduate education. The University has earned national recognition for innovation; commitment to high-quality, affordable education; and the development of public-private partnerships. A Carnegie-classified R2 (high research activity) institution, Rowan is the fastest-growing public research university in the Northeast and among the nation’s top 10 fastest-growing, as reported by The Chronicle of Higher Education. In 2025, Rowan opened New Jersey’s only veterinary school and is one of only two universities in the nation to offer M.D., D.O., and D.V.M. medical degrees.