2023 Best Social Work Schools in Pennsylvania
Finding the Best Social Work School for You
With 2,251 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, social work is the #19 most popular major in Pennsylvania.
There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Social Work Schools in Pennsylvania ranking. Our analysis looked at 24 schools in Pennsylvania to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Social Work Schools in Pennsylvania
The colleges and universities below are the best for social work majors pursuing a .
Top 10 Best Social Work Schools
Our 2023 rankings named Elizabethtown College the best school in Pennsylvania for social work students. Located in the large suburb of Elizabethtown, Etown is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
Social Work majors at Etown take out an average of $27,000 in student loans while working on their egree.
Full Social Work at Elizabethtown College Report
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Pennsylvania. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Social Work Schools in Pennsylvania list. Located in the city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Bryn Mawr College. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Social Work Schools in Pennsylvania list. Bryn Mawr is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Bryn Mawr.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Social Work Schools in Pennsylvania list. Bloomsburg is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Bloomsburg.
Social Work majors at Bloomsburg take out an average of $27,000 in student loans while working on their egree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $215, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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Out of the 24 schools in Pennsylvania that were part of this year’s ranking, West Chester University of Pennsylvania landed the # 5 spot on the list. WCUPA is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of West Chester.
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Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best social work programs. Located in the distant town of Slippery Rock, SRU is a public school with a medium-sized student population.
Social Work majors at SRU take out an average of $27,000 in student loans while working on their egree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $252.
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Alvernia University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for social work students. It came in at #7 on the list. Alvernia is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Reading.
On average, social work graduates from Alvernia take out $49,875 in student loans while working on their degree.
Full Social Work at Alvernia University Report
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With a ranking of #8, Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania did quite well on this year’s best schools for social work students. Ship is a moderately-sized public school located in the fringe town of Shippensburg.
On average, social work graduates from Ship take out $27,000 in student loans while working on their degree.
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Widener University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Social Work Schools in Pennsylvania list. Widener is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Chester.
After completing their degree, social work graduates from Widener carry an average student debtload of $31,000.
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Temple University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best social work programs. Temple is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Philadelphia.
Social Work majors at Temple take out an average of $26,000 in student loans while working on their egree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $319, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
Request InformationBest Social Work Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region
Explore all the Best Social Work Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| New York | 5,784 |
| Maryland | 1,072 |
| New Jersey | 1,893 |
| District of Columbia | 243 |
| Delaware | 100 |
More Social Work Rankings in Pennsylvania
Social Work Related Rankings by Major
One of 5 majors within the area of study, social work has other similar majors worth exploring.
Majors Similar to Social Work
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Public Administration | 16,905 |
| Human Services | 13,238 |
| Public Policy | 6,430 |
| Community Organization & Advocacy | 3,096 |
| Other Public Administration | 588 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 24 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.