4 Social Worker Resume Examples & Writing Guide
Written By Samuel Johns
Reviewed By Geoffrey ScottFrom what certifications you need to how to write your summary and work history, we've got all your questions about writing a social worker resume covered. Compare your own resume to our four social work resume examples to make sure yours is aligned with social work hiring managers' expectations.
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Social Worker Resume Template [Text Format]
- Manage a caseload of 22 patients, working closely with each individual to set specific goals, achieving 75% of goals within a year
- Create individualized treatment plans tailored to the specific mental and physical health needs of each patient
- Connect patients with available community resources for successful discharge and transition and conduct follow-up appointments
- Facilitate 3-5 weekly counseling groups focusing on substance abuse, working with groups of adolescents, mothers, and veterans
- Provided psychosocial assessments and psychotherapy services
- Evaluated and provided treatment planning and crisis intervention for those with mental illnesses
- Collaborated with colleagues to develop programs for clients
- Successfully launched events and programs for the community with up to 500 participants
Licensed Independent Social Worker (LISW) | Association of Social Work Boards, Ohio
Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) | National Board for Certified Counselors
Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor II (LCDC II) | Ohio Chemical Dependency Professionals Board
- Case assessment
- Life-skills counseling
- Case planning
- Addiction treatment
- Crisis intervention
- Organization
- Collaboration
- Interpersonal skills
- Communication skills
We’ve prepared social worker resume samples for you regardless of your social work specialty and experience level.
Entry-level social worker resume (no experience)
If you’re looking for your first job as a social worker, use a resume like this:
Entry-level social worker resume highlights
- Internship experience: An internship is a great way to break into permanent employment, so always list internships on your resume if you’ve completed any.
- Volunteer work: Along with internships, relevant volunteer work is a great way to show you’ve developed the skills you’ll need for a full-time social work position.
School social worker resume
To successfully land a job as a school social worker, you need a resume that highlights your training and experience working with students. Draw on this example for ideas:
School social worker resume highlights
- Licenses: Check with your jurisdiction to see what licenses you’ll need to work as a social worker in a school, and display them prominently on your resume. For example, this resume has a dedicated licenses section that features a Licensed Clinical Social Worker certification issued by the state of Maine.
- Appropriate action verbs: Using strong action verbs like “advocate,” “communicate,” “develop,” and “administer” immediately conveys your ability to support the students you work with by demonstrating the specific actions you take to address their needs.
Social worker (supervisor) resume
Leading a team of social workers is no easy feat. Show you’re capable of doing the job with a resume similar to this one:
Social worker supervisor resume highlights
- Leadership skills: As a supervisor of other social workers, this applicant makes sure their resume indicates they have strong leadership skills. For example, they talk about managing a team of 15, approving payroll, and improving team efficiency.
- MSW: Employers can immediately see that this candidate has an advanced understanding of the social work field because they hold a Master of Social Work degree. If you don’t have a degree that’s directly relevant to social work, you can list any relevant coursework you performed instead.
Day in the life of a social worker
Curious about what a day in the life of a social worker looks like? Join Tesha Rozell at work in this vlog:
How to write a social work resume
We’ve put together these four tips to help you write a job-winning social worker resume.
1. Start off strongly in your resume summary
A good resume summary should hook the hiring manager by summing up your social work career highlights in 3–5 sentences and get them interested in reading your full resume.
Here is a good social work resume summary that you can copy, paste, and fill in the blanks:
Compassionate and dedicated social worker with [X] years of experience in [specific area, e.g., child welfare, medical social work, etc.]. Proven ability to [key skill or achievement, e.g., manage complex cases, advocate for clients, etc.] and [another key skill or achievement, e.g., provide crisis intervention, develop individualized care plans, etc.]. Skilled in [specific skill, e.g., facilitating group therapy sessions, conducting assessments, etc.] with a strong understanding of [relevant guidelines or policies, e.g., NASW guidelines, HIPAA regulations, etc.]. Adept at [additional skill or experience, e.g., collaborating with multidisciplinary teams, providing training and supervision, etc.]. Committed to improving the well-being of clients through [specific approach or value, e.g., evidence-based practices, client-centered care, etc.]. Seeking to leverage my expertise to contribute to [organization name or type of organization, e.g., a reputable health care facility, a dedicated social service agency, etc.].
2. Add numbers to detail your successes as a social worker
It’s always the best strategy to add numbers to your resume bullet points. It shows employers what you’ve achieved — and what they can expect of you as a new hire.
Here are five examples of quantified bullet points for a social worker resume:
- Provided mental health services to 500+ service members annually, resulting in a 30% decrease in reported stress-related issues
- Conducted 200+ crisis intervention sessions, successfully de-escalating 95% of high-risk situations
- Implemented a new resilience training program, increasing overall unit readiness by 20%
- Facilitated 150+ group therapy sessions, improving peer support networks and reducing isolation among service members by 25%
- Coordinated with multidisciplinary teams to develop and execute 300+ individualized treatment plans, achieving a 90% compliance rate
3. Highlight your social work licenses and certifications
Listing your certifications on your resume is essential if you’re a social worker because many states and counties require them. You should check with your state or local government to find out which licenses are required to work in your jurisdiction.
Here’s how to list your social work certifications on your resume. This candidate is applying to work as a school social worker in New York City and has researched what they need to add to their resume to legally work in that role:
Certifications on a social work resume
CERTIFICATIONS
- Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) (New York State Education Department), 20XX
- Provisional School Social Worker Certificate (New York State Education Department), 20XX
- Child Abuse Identification and Reporting Workshop Completed: 20XX
- School Violence Intervention and Prevention Workshop Completed: 20XX
- Dignity for All Students Act (DASA) Workshop Completed: 20XX
- Fingerprint Clearance (New York State Education Department), 20XX
4. Add social work skills and keywords to your resume
Social workers need to have advocacy and safeguarding skills, and employers will be looking closely at your resume to make sure you have them.
The job description is a great source of skills you should add to your resume, because that’s where hiring managers tell you directly which skills they’re looking for. When you’re building your resume, carefully review the job description and identify any skills you have that match the ones listed. Then, add them to the skills section of your resume.
You should also highlight how you’ve applied your skills at work by including specific examples in your work history section and social work cover letter. For example, if you mention “crisis intervention” as a skill, state how many crisis intervention sessions you’ve held.
Here are the most in-demand skills and other keywords we pulled from 724 real social worker job desriptions in case you’re finding it difficult to locate keywords in the job description:
DataKeywords Count Weight Degree in Social Work 20 1.0 Mental Health 17 0.9 Teamwork 14 0.7 Licensed Clinical Social Worker 13 0.7 Maintain Accurate 12 0.6 Crisis Intervention 11 0.6 Care Plans 11 0.6 Community Resources 10 0.5 Professional Development Assistance 10 0.5 Behavioral Health 9 0.5 Discharge Planning 9 0.5 Treatment Plans 8 0.4
Resume examples for different industries
Not sure what your resume should look like? The best way to learn is by taking inspiration from resume examples written by other candidates in your industry.
Average social worker salaries in the US
After you’ve written your resume, make sure you use it to apply for jobs within a fair salary range.
The following table includes information from the most recent US Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics report (May 2024). Here are the ten states with the highest salaries for social workers, as well as the national average for your reference when applying for work.
Top 10 states by average social worker salary
| State | Salary / Year |
|---|---|
| Connecticut | $80,180 |
| District of Columbia | $80,040 |
| New Jersey | $79,610 |
| New York | $75,270 |
| Maryland | $73,490 |
| California | $73,150 |
| Washington | $73,080 |
| Massachusetts | $70,620 |
| Rhode Island | $69,960 |
| Illinois | $69,430 |
| National Average | $62,920 |
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4 Social Worker Resume Examples & Writing Guide
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