Licensed Clinical Social Workers vs Healthcare Social Workers
Median pay is about $8k higher for Healthcare Social Workers. The usual entry education is master's plus license for Licensed Clinical Social Workers and master's for Healthcare Social Workers.
marks the higher pay or growth. Education, difficulty and the AI rows depend on what you want, so they are not marked.
| Measure | Licensed Clinical Social Workers | Healthcare Social Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Pay | ||
| Median pay | $60,280 | $67,880, higher |
| Entry pay 25th percentile | $47,070 | $56,710, higher |
| Experienced pay 75th percentile | $79,730 | $82,240, higher |
| Outlook, 2025 to 2035 | ||
| Projected growth | +10% Growing fast, higher | +8.5% Growing fast |
| Openings a year | 12,500 | 16,900 |
| Getting in | ||
| Typical education | Master's plus license | Master's |
| Difficulty modeled | 3.6 / 5 | 3.6 / 5 |
| AI | ||
| Displacement risk modeled | Moderate | Low |
| AI exposure modeled, percentile | 61st pct | 47th pct |
Where the skills differ
Only Licensed Clinical Social Workers
- Monitoring
Only Healthcare Social Workers
- Active Learning
Both lean on active listening, speaking, reading comprehension, critical thinking, writing.
More comparisons
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Pay and outlook: BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2025-2035). Skills: O*NET 30.3. Difficulty, displacement risk and AI exposure are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.