Professional
What can you do with a Social Work degree?
Quick answer
A Social Work degree commonly leads to roles such as newly qualified social worker, family support worker and personal adviser (leaving care). Five years after graduating, Social Work graduates had median earnings of £32,900 (middle half: £22,700–£40,300), and 91.4% were in sustained work or further study (DfE LEO, 2023–24 tax year). The largest employer sector for Health and social care graduates is education (34.4% of those in work).
Social work is a professional qualifying course when approved. First roles are usually in local authorities or related services. Official figures appear when an extract is loaded.
- Median pay after 1 year
- £32,200
- Median pay after 5 years
- £32,900
- In work or study after 5 years
- 91.4%
- Earnings rank at 5 years
- 85 of 146 subjects
- Top employer sector
- Education
- Graduates in latest cohort
- 3,655
On this page
What jobs can you get with a Social Work degree?
Graduates commonly start as newly qualified social worker, family support worker, personal adviser (leaving care) or youth worker. Social Work also builds skills that employers outside the obvious routes ask for, so many graduates move into roles that do not name the subject at all.
Newly qualified social worker
Holds a protected caseload under ASYE-style arrangements where the employer provides them.
Skills these adverts often ask for
- assessments
- case recording
- supervision
Family support worker
Skills these adverts often ask for
- home visits
- parenting programmes
- safeguarding flags
Personal adviser (leaving care)
Skills these adverts often ask for
- pathway plans
- housing liaison
- advocacy
Youth worker
Skills these adverts often ask for
- group work
- risk logs
- partnerships
Role examples and skills are CourseToJob editorial guidance, not a guarantee of a job. Pay for individual roles varies by employer and location; we do not attach a salary to a role unless an official source publishes one.
Where do Social Work graduates work?
Five years after graduating, the largest employer sectors for Health and social care graduates in UK employment were education (34.4%), health and social work (28.9%) and public administration and defence (13.1%). One year after graduating, the most common sector was education (34.8%).
| Industry sector | Share of graduates in work | Median earnings in that sector |
|---|---|---|
| Education | 34.4% | £32,900 |
| Health and social work | 28.9% | £27,800 |
| Public administration and defence | 13.1% | £35,500 |
| Administrative and support services | 7% | £21,600 |
| Professional, scientific and technical services | 6.2% | £29,100 |
| Wholesale and retail | 2.8% | £21,600 |
| Other service activities | 1.4% | £27,400 |
| Hospitality (accommodation and food) | 1% | £22,300 |
Most common specific industries
- Primary education — 28.8% of graduates in work, median £34,400
- Administration of the State and the economic and social policy of the community — 11.2% of graduates in work, median £35,900
- Other social work activities without accommodation — 9.6% of graduates in work, median £26,400
- Hospital activities — 7.2% of graduates in work, median £31,800
- Accounting; bookkeeping and auditing activities; tax consultancy — 4.1% of graduates in work, median £37,900
- Other human health activities — 3.6% of graduates in work, median £31,500
How much do Social Work graduates earn?
Official dataSocial Work graduates had median earnings of £32,200 one year after graduating and £32,900 five years after graduating in the 2023–24 tax year. The median across all first-degree graduates of GB higher education institutions was £33,700 at five years.
| Years after graduating | Median earnings | Middle half earned | In work or further study | All-subject median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year after graduatingGraduated 2021/2022 | £32,200DfE LEO, Tax year 2023-24 | £26,000–£35,500 | 93.7% | £26,400 |
| 3 years after graduatingGraduated 2019/2020 | £33,300DfE LEO, Tax year 2023-24 | £24,500–£38,400 | 93.5% | £30,000 |
| 5 years after graduatingGraduated 2017/2018 | £32,900DfE LEO, Tax year 2023-24 | £22,700–£40,300 | 91.4% | £33,700 |
| 10 years after graduatingGraduated 2012/2013 | £36,200DfE LEO, Tax year 2023-24 | £23,800–£45,400 | 88.2% | — |
How one-year earnings have changed
Which universities have the highest-earning Health and social care graduates?
Among universities in our index with at least 50 Health and social care graduates measured, Glasgow Caledonian University had the highest median earnings five years after graduating (£40,100), followed by Robert Gordon University (£39,700) and University of Portsmouth (£39,200).
| University | Median earnings | Graduates measured |
|---|---|---|
| Glasgow Caledonian University | £40,100 | 65 |
| Robert Gordon University | £39,700 | 85 |
| University of Portsmouth | £39,200 | 65 |
| Open University | £38,100 | 380 |
| Southampton Solent University | £37,900 | 60 |
| Anglia Ruskin University | £36,600 | 70 |
| London Metropolitan University | £36,200 | 50 |
| Cardiff Metropolitan University | £36,100 | 80 |
| De Montfort University | £35,900 | 70 |
| University of Winchester | £35,900 | 50 |
Is Social Work the right degree for you?
EditorialYou may enjoy it if
- You can hold risk, law, and a family’s story in the same visit.
- You accept that the job is regulated and inspected.
- You want placements, not only campus seminars.
It may not suit you if
- You wanted a purely academic sociology degree.
- You dislike court reports, duty rotas, or recording.
- You expected an easy emotional workload.
Interview questions for Social Work graduate roles
EditorialNewly qualified social-worker and family-support interviews usually test law in practice, recording, and how you hold risk. These prompts are editorial illustrations, not a local-authority bank.
You arrive for a visit and nobody answers. What do you do, and what do you write?
What it tests. Professional curiosity, recording, and not closing the case in your head.
A parent asks you not to write something down. How do you respond?
What it tests. Transparency about records and why some things cannot stay off the file.
Two professionals disagree about risk. How do you contribute in a meeting?
What it tests. Evidence, the child’s lived experience, and not collapsing into the loudest voice.
How would you explain a child-protection process to a family in plain English?
What it tests. Anti-oppressive communication without hiding the legal reality.
You are over caseload and a new referral arrives. What do you do?
What it tests. You escalate capacity; you do not silently drop a child.
Course interviews. UK social work degrees commonly interview applicants. The university sets the format. That admissions interview is separate from an NQSW job interview after the course.
Illustrative question types for the roles above, not questions from a named employer.
Find Social Work graduate jobs
Searched by the entry-level roles aboveSearch UK vacancies connected to social work. These are role matches, not guaranteed graduate-level jobs: read the experience, qualifications and work-permission requirements in each full advert.
Salary filters and ordering use the provider’s data, which can include estimates. Cards below show employer-listed pay only. Cached searches can be up to 30 minutes old; the employer’s advert confirms availability.
Checking vacancies for Newly qualified social worker…
Prepare your application with graduate cv examples, student cv examples, the free CV builder and the application tracker.
Is there an apprenticeship alternative to Social Work?
EditorialSocial worker apprenticeships are offered by some local authorities. This note is editorial.
Research exact university programmes
We have not added verified programme records for this subject yet. Use the official university catalogue for current courses, fees and entry requirements.
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Planning to study Social Work in the UK?
Check the exact programme, entry requirements and total cost before applying. International applicants should also confirm qualification equivalence, English-language evidence and visa requirements.
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Universities for Social Work in our index
119 universitiesAn editorial provision index, not a live UCAS catalogue: confirm current courses on UCAS. CourseToJob is not UCAS.Open Social Work in the full university explorer.
Show all 119 universities
Undergraduate applications are made on UCAS, not here.
Social Work degree: frequently asked questions
What jobs can you do with a Social Work degree?
Common starting roles include newly qualified social worker, family support worker, personal adviser (leaving care) and youth worker. Five years after graduating, the most common sectors for Health and social care graduates in work were education (34.4%), health and social work (28.9%) and public administration and defence (13.1%). These are examples, not guaranteed jobs: your experience, location and further training matter.
How much do Social Work graduates earn in the UK?
DfE Longitudinal Education Outcomes data for the 2023–24 tax year shows median earnings for UK-domiciled Social Work graduates of £32,200 one year after graduating, £33,300 three years after graduating, £32,900 five years after graduating and £36,200 ten years after graduating. Each figure describes a different graduating cohort, not one person's pay rise, and it is gross pay for those in sustained employment, not a starting salary offer.
Is a Social Work degree worth it?
It depends on what you want to do. On the official data, 91.4% of Social Work graduates were in sustained employment or further study five years after graduating, with median earnings of £32,900. For comparison, the median across all first-degree graduates of GB higher education institutions was £33,700 at the same point. That places Social Work 85 of 146 subject groups by five-year median earnings. Earnings are only one factor: enjoyment of the subject, accreditation and the route into your target job matter too.
Which universities have the highest-earning Health and social care graduates?
Among universities in our index with at least 50 graduates measured, the highest five-year median earnings for Health and social care were at Glasgow Caledonian University (£40,100), Robert Gordon University (£39,700) and University of Portsmouth (£39,200). These figures reflect entry grades, subject mix and where graduates work, so they are not a measure of teaching quality.
Can international students study Social Work in the UK?
Yes, most UK universities accept international applicants, but entry requirements, recognised qualifications, English-language evidence and overseas tuition fees depend on the university and programme. Check the university course page and international admissions team, then check visa requirements on GOV.UK.
Skilled Worker visas
Sponsorship depends on the job's occupation code and the current Skilled Worker rules, not on a subject's median pay. A Skilled Worker decision uses the higher of the general threshold and the SOC going rate. Subject LEO medians are not sufficient. Read the Skilled Worker job rules on GOV.UK.
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