Find Healthcare Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Clinical/Medical Social Work Major

Find Schools Near

Clinical/Medical Social Work

160 Bachelor's Degrees Annually
2,051 Master's Degrees Annually
#67 in Popularity
$58,470 Median Salary

Types of Degrees Clinical/Medical Social Work Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many clinical/medical social work graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level Number of Grads
Master’s Degree 2,051
Bachelor’s Degree 160
Associate Degree 120
Graduate Certificate 113
Basic Certificate 43
Undergraduate Certificate 33
Doctor’s Degree 14

What Clinical/Medical Social Work Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to clinical/medical social work and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.

Knowledge Areas for Clinical/Medical Social Work Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

undefined
  • Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
  • Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
  • English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
  • Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
  • Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.

Skills for Clinical/Medical Social Work Majors

A major in clinical/medical social work prepares you for careers in which the following skill-sets are crucial:

undefined
  • Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
  • Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
  • Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
  • Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
  • Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Abilities for Clinical/Medical Social Work Majors

Clinical/Medical Social Work majors often go into careers where the following abilities are vital:

undefined
  • Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
  • Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
  • Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
  • Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

What Can You Do With a Clinical/Medical Social Work Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with clinical/medical social work:

Job Title Job Growth Rate Median Salary
Healthcare Social Workers 20.1% $56,200
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers 19.4% $44,840
Mental Health Counselors 23.1% NA
Social Work Professors 9.4% $68,300
Substance Abuse and Behavioral Disorder Counselors 23.2% NA

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Clinical/Medical Social Work?

160 Bachelor's Degrees Annually
92% Percent Women
57% Percent Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
This major is dominated by women with about 92% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of clinical/medical social work majors is as follows:

undefined
Race/Ethnicity Number of Grads
Asian 2
Black or African American 1
Hispanic or Latino 69
White 67
International Students 1
Other Races/Ethnicities 20

Geographic Diversity

Americans aren’t the only ones with an interest in Clinical/Medical Social Work. About 0.6% of those with this major are international students.

How Much Do Clinical/Medical Social Work Majors Make?

Salaries According to BLS

Average salaries range from $49,630 to $77,520 (25th to 75th percentile) for careers related to clinical/medical social work. This range includes all degree levels, so the salary for a person with just a bachelor’s degree may be a little less and the one for a person with an advanced degree may be a little more.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Median Salary for a Clinical/Medical Social Work Major  ( 49630 to 77520 )
0K
250K
Median Salary for a High School Graduate  ( 30000 to 57900 )
0K
250K
Median Salary for a Bachelor's Degree Holder  ( 45600 to 99000 )
0K
250K
Median Salary for an Advanced Degree Holder  ( 55600 to 125400 )
0K
250K

Some degrees associated with clinical/medical social work may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to clinical/medical social work have obtained the following education levels.

undefined
Education Level Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED) 1.3%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production) 1.6%
Some College Courses 1.8%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree) 4.7%
Bachelor’s Degree 15.8%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master. 2.5%
Master’s Degree 52.7%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level. 5.2%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession. 4.1%
Doctoral Degree 9.6%
Post-Doctoral Training 1.7%

Online Clinical/Medical Social Work Programs

In 2020-2021, 47 schools offered a clinical/medical social work program of some type. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level Colleges Offering Programs Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year) 0 0
Certificate (1-2 years) 5 1
Certificate (2-4 Years) 0 0
Associate’s Degree 8 1
Bachelor’s Degree 5 3
Post-Baccalaureate 0 0
Master’s Degree 26 3
Post-Master’s 1 0
Doctor’s Degree (Research) 4 1
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice) 1 0
Doctor’s Degree (Other) 0 0

Is a Degree in Clinical/Medical Social Work Worth It?

The median salary for a clinical/medical social work grad is $58,470 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 47% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $371,400 after 20 years!

undefined

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to clinical/medical social work.

Major Number of Grads
Mental Health Counseling/Counselor 7,609
Substance Abuse/Addiction Counseling 5,433
Other Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions 4,069
Marriage and Family Therapy/Counseling 3,405
Psychiatric/Mental Health Services Technician 2,779
Community Health Services/Liaison/Counseling 2,526
Clinical Pastoral Counseling/Patient Counseling 328
Genetic Counseling/Counselor 288
Trauma Counseling 56
Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy 13
Medical Family Therapy/Therapist 12

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Featured Schools

Find Healthcare Schools Near You

Our free school finder matches students with accredited healthcare schools across the U.S.