Careers / Child, Family, and School Social Workers
Child, Family, and School Social Workers — Career Decision Dashboard
United States
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Report generated from official BLS OEWS and O*NET data — United States.
Median annual wage
$59,550
United States, 2025
Employment
392,550
United States, 2025
Typical education
Bachelor's Degree
Job Zone 4
Skills identified
35
10 related careers
Career overview
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.
- O*NET code
- 21-1021.00
- Job zone
- 4
- Experience required
- Over 2 years, up to and including 4 years
Typical tasks
- 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.
- Consult with parents, teachers, and other school personnel to determine causes of problems, such as truancy and misbehavior, and to implement solutions.
- Arrange for medical, psychiatric, and other tests that may disclose causes of difficulties and indicate remedial measures.
Choose a location
Salary analysis — United States
10th percentile
$42,280
25th percentile
$48,270
75th percentile
$76,070
90th percentile
$95,530
Most important skills
- Active Listening4.9
- Speaking4.5
- Social Perceptiveness4.1
- Critical Thinking4.1
- Service Orientation4.0
- Judgment and Decision Making4.0
- Reading Comprehension4.0
- Monitoring3.9
- Complex Problem Solving3.9
- Writing3.8
- Time Management3.8
- Coordination3.8
What skills do you need?
Select the skills you already have
Skills listed are those O*NET rates at importance 3.0 or above for this occupation. Set your own level on the same 0–7 O*NET scale.
Skill coverage
0%
0 of 18 identified skills
Matched
0
Missing
18
Your selected skills cover approximately 0% of the skills identified for this occupation in O*NET. This is a coverage measure of listed skills only — it is not a qualification, hiring or interview outcome.
Skills to develop
| Skill | Importance | Required level | Your level | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Active Listening | 4.9 | 4.8 | Not selected | 4.8 |
| Social Perceptiveness | 4.1 | 4.6 | Not selected | 4.6 |
| Speaking | 4.5 | 4.1 | Not selected | 4.1 |
| Critical Thinking | 4.1 | 4.3 | Not selected | 4.3 |
| Service Orientation | 4.0 | 4.1 | Not selected | 4.1 |
| Reading Comprehension | 4.0 | 4.1 | Not selected | 4.1 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 4.0 | 4.0 | Not selected | 4.0 |
| Writing | 3.8 | 4.1 | Not selected | 4.1 |
| Monitoring | 3.9 | 3.9 | Not selected | 3.9 |
| Negotiation | 3.8 | 4.0 | Not selected | 4.0 |
| Time Management | 3.8 | 3.9 | Not selected | 3.9 |
| Coordination | 3.8 | 3.9 | Not selected | 3.9 |
| Persuasion | 3.8 | 3.9 | Not selected | 3.9 |
| Complex Problem Solving | 3.9 | 3.5 | Not selected | 3.5 |
| Active Learning | 3.4 | 3.8 | Not selected | 3.8 |
| Instructing | 3.1 | 3.3 | Not selected | 3.3 |
| Learning Strategies | 3.1 | 3.1 | Not selected | 3.1 |
| Systems Analysis | 3.1 | 3.0 | Not selected | 3.0 |
Ordered by required level gap multiplied by O*NET importance. No prediction or recommendation is implied.
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Compare with Child, Family, and School Social WorkersHow salary varies by location
| Location | Median | Employment | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose, CA | $87,600 | 2,120 | 2025 |
| Norwich, CT | $81,830 | 450 | 2025 |
| Salisbury, MD | $81,520 | 120 | 2025 |
| Longview, WA | $80,450 | 130 | 2025 |
| Olympia, WA | $80,430 | 580 | 2025 |
| Hartford, CT | $79,920 | 2,200 | 2025 |
| New Haven, CT | $78,970 | 810 | 2025 |
| Bridgeport, CT | $78,970 | 1,140 | 2025 |
| CT | $78,970 | 5,230 | 2025 |
| Greeley, CO | $78,530 | 280 | 2025 |
| Hanford, CA | $78,270 | 130 | 2025 |
| Springfield, MA | $78,250 | 1,190 | 2025 |
| Waterbury, CT | $77,710 | 430 | 2025 |
| Vallejo, CA | $77,490 | 280 | 2025 |
| Boston, MA | $77,420 | 7,070 | 2025 |
| Bremerton, WA | $77,300 | 240 | 2025 |
| Kiryas Joel, NY | $77,260 | 870 | 2025 |
| Pittsfield, MA | $76,440 | 200 | 2025 |
| MD | $76,390 | 4,710 | 2025 |
| Springfield, IL | $76,330 | 830 | 2025 |
Career transition paths
Compare the skills of a career you hold today with Child, Family, and School Social Workers to see shared skills, target-only skills and skill overlap.
Build a transition comparisonCareer and skills data: O*NET 31.0.
Salary and employment data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025 (May 2025 release).
Figures are periodic published survey snapshots, not real-time market rates.