| The purpose of licensing and certification in social
work is to assist the public through identification
of standards for the safe professional practice of social
work. Each jurisdiction defines by law what is required
for each level of social work licensure. Typically,
there are four categories of practice that jurisdictions
may legally regulate. |
 |
| Bachelors: |
Baccalaureate social work degree upon graduation; |
| Masters: |
Master's degree in social work (MSW) with no
post-degree experience; |
| Advanced Generalist: |
MSW with two years post-master's supervised
experience; and |
| Clinical: |
MSW with two years post-master's direct clinical
social work experience. |
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Social work regulatory boards generally require that social
work degrees must be obtained from programs of social work
that are accredited by the Council
on Social Work Education (CSWE), Canadian
Association of Schools of Social Work (CASSW), or other
nationally recognized accrediting agencies. Degrees earned
outside the U.S. and Canada must be determined to be equivalent.
One widely used equivalency service is the CSWE
International Social Work Degree Recognition and Equivalency
Service (iswdres@cswe.org).
Non-social work degrees are accepted in some instances
at the Bachelors level. Some jurisdictions regulate only
one of these practice levels, while most regulate two or
more levels of social work practice. A summary table containing
the licensing requirements may be accessed through the Social
Work Laws & Regulations Comparison Guide.
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