How much does a child, family, and school social worker make?

The median pay is $28.63 per hour — roughly $59,500 a year, with the real range running from about $20.33/hr (10th percentile) to $45.93/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Do you need a degree to be a child, family, and school social worker?

The typical entry-level education is: Bachelor's degree. Overall preparation level: considerable preparation (Job Zone 4 of 5).

What does a child, family, and school social worker actually do all day?

Maintain case history records and prepare reports. Interview clients individually, in families, or in groups, assessing their situations, capabilities, and problems to determine what services are required to meet their needs. Serve as liaisons between students, homes, schools, family services, child guidance clinics, courts, protective services, doctors, and other contacts to help children who face problems, such as disabilities, abuse, or poverty.

Community & Social Services

Child, Family, and School Social Workers

Provide social services and assistance to improve the social and psychological functioning of children and their families and to maximize the family well-being and the academic functioning of children. May assist parents, arrange adoptions, and find foster homes for abandoned or abused children. In schools, they address such problems as teenage pregnancy, misbehavior, and truancy. May also advise teachers.

What it pays
Child, Family, and School Social Workers earn a median of $28.63/hr — about $59,500 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $20.33/hr; the top 10% earn $45.93/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)

What you'd actually do

Maintain case history records and prepare reports.
Interview clients individually, in families, or in groups, assessing their situations, capabilities, and problems to determine what services are required to meet their needs.
Serve as liaisons between students, homes, schools, family services, child guidance clinics, courts, protective services, doctors, and other contacts to help children who face problems, such as disabilities, abuse, or poverty.
Develop and review service plans in consultation with clients and perform follow-ups assessing the quantity and quality of services provided.
Address legal issues, such as child abuse and discipline, assisting with hearings and providing testimony to inform custody arrangements.
Counsel parents with child rearing problems, interviewing the child and family to determine whether further action is required.

How you get there

Typical entry-level education: Bachelor's degree. Overall preparation: considerable preparation (Job Zone 4 of 5).

The feel of the work

Much of the work happens outdoors; you're around people constantly; time pressure is a real part of the job; it rewards working independently. (Compared against the other 818 careers in the guide.)

Working for yourself

About 0.2% of child, family, and school social workers are self-employed.

Who it tends to fit

This work tends to fit people who are people-focused, organized and detail-focused and analytical.

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Quick questions

How much does a child, family, and school social worker make?: The median pay is $28.63 per hour — roughly $59,500 a year, with the real range running from about $20.33/hr (10th percentile) to $45.93/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Do you need a degree to be a child, family, and school social worker?: The typical entry-level education is: Bachelor's degree. Overall preparation level: considerable preparation (Job Zone 4 of 5).
What does a child, family, and school social worker actually do all day?: Maintain case history records and prepare reports. Interview clients individually, in families, or in groups, assessing their situations, capabilities, and problems to determine what services are required to meet their needs. Serve as liaisons between students, homes, schools, family services, child guidance clinics, courts, protective services, doctors, and other contacts to help children who face problems, such as disabilities, abuse, or poverty.

Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS. Tasks & interests: O*NET. Career pathways shown in the app are draft archetypes — verify before relying on them. Trailhead is a free career guide for students — honest numbers, no hype.

Trailhead is operated by FLEXVermont LLC. It is intended for high-school students age 13 and older, and the educators and families who support them, and is not directed to children under 13. Trailhead is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not offer professional, financial, or career advice, and its wage figures and pathways are estimates that may not fit your situation — they should not be relied on as the sole basis for any decision.