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2023 Most Popular Online Social Work Schools

68 Colleges
$37,651 Avg Salary
$26,679 Avg Student Debt

In 2020-2021, 58,326 people earned a degree or certificate in social work, making the major the #13 most popular in the United States.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. 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 help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Most Popular Online Social Work Schools ranking. This report analyzed 68 schools in the United States to see which ones were the most popular online programs for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from schools with online programs.

Check out the online social work programs at these schools if you want to attend one of the most popular in the United States.

#1

Purdue University Global

Indianapolis, IN

Our 2023 rankings named Purdue University Global the most popular online school in the United States for social work students. Located in the city of Indianapolis, Purdue University Global is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Social Work majors at Purdue University Global take out an average of $50,338 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read full report on Social Work at Purdue University Global

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Southern California. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Popular Online Social Work Schools list. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Social Work at University of Southern California

#3

Troy University

Troy, AL

Out of the 68 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Troy University landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the remote town of Troy, TROY is a public college with a large student population.

On average, social work graduates from TROY take out $30,584 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read More…

#4

Brandman University

Irvine, CA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Brandman University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Most Popular Online Social Work Schools list. Brandman is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Irvine.

On average, social work graduates from Brandman take out $38,298 in student loans while working on their degree.

Full Social Work at Brandman University Report

#5

Western Kentucky University

Bowling Green, KY

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Western Kentucky University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Popular Online Social Work Schools list. Located in the small city of Bowling Green, WKU is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Social Work majors at WKU take out an average of $26,000 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 $220.

Full Social Work at Western Kentucky University Report

#6

Texas State University

San Marcos, TX

Texas State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for social work students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the city of San Marcos, Texas State is a public college with a fairly large student population.

After completing their degree, social work graduates from Texas State carry an average student debtload of $23,000. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $163, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read More…

Colorado State University - Fort Collins came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Online Social Work Schools ranking. Colorado State is a very large public school located in the medium-sized city of Fort Collins.

After completing their degree, social work graduates from Colorado State carry an average student debtload of $23,000. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $222.

Full Social Work at Colorado State University - Fort Collins Report

#8

South Texas College

McAllen, TX

South Texas College came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Online Social Work Schools ranking. Located in the midsize city of McAllen, South Texas College is a public school with a very large student population.

Social Work majors at South Texas College take out an average of $5,098 in student loans while working on their egree.

Full Social Work at South Texas College Report

#9

Western New Mexico University

Silver City, NM

With a ranking of #9, Western New Mexico University did quite well on this year’s best schools for social work students. Western New Mexico University is a small public school located in the remote town of Silver City.

While working on their degree, social work majors at Western New Mexico University accumulate an average of around $34,590 in student debt.

Read More…

University of Massachusetts Amherst did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for social work students. It came in at #10 on the list. UMass Amherst is a very large public school located in the suburb of Amherst.

Read More…

Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Most Popular Online Social Work Schools award.

Rank College Location
11 Walden University Minneapolis, MN
12 Capella University Minneapolis, MN
13 University of Arkansas at Little Rock Little Rock, AR

View the Most Popular Online Social Work Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

More Social Work Rankings

Social Work is one of 5 different types of programs to choose from.

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 26 schools only.

  • 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.

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