• Home
• Find Social Work Graduate Programs
• Social Work Rankings
• Universities
• About the Guide

• Step 1: Choose field
• Step 2: Set priorities
• Step 3: Your ranking of Social Work programs

• Choosing a program
• Your application
• Taking the GRE
• Funding / Scholarships
• Other rankings
• Should you go?
• Graduate assistantships

The rankings below have been generated just for you using the priorities you set on this page. You can change your priorities or get rankings for a different field.

How to Read Your Ranking

• Programs are ranked by their score, a weighted sum of the items you chose. (Details)
• Descriptions of each item are listed at the bottom of the page. (You can also see a description by mousing over items at the top of the table.)
• Your weight for each item is shown beneath the item at the top of the table. Weights range in magnitude from 0 (not important) to 5 (extremely important).
• A positive weight means that you prefer larger values for the item. A negative weight means that you prefer smaller values for the item.
• Green values are at least one standard deviation better than the mean. Red values are at least one standard deviation worse than the mean.
• Data sources can be found below.

Do you think these rankings are useful? If so, you can help spread the word by linking to phds.org from your own site or blog.
Here is a direct link to your ranking.
Here are some other ways to help us.

Rank	Department	Your Score	Yrs (-3)	Job (2)	Cost / Year (-5)	Deg / Yr (3)	UG Acc (-1)	SAT-M (1)	SAT-V (1)
Adjust your weights →			-+	-+	-+	-+	-+	-+	-+
1.	Social Work, Washington University in St Louis	13.5	6.6	72%	$16,938	8.6	19%	730	710
2.	Social Work, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	12.3	4.5	80%	$13,288	4.2	36%	650	640
3.	Social Work, University of Georgia	12.2	4.9	75%	$12,500	7.4	62%	615	610
4.	Social Work, University of Pittsburgh-Main Campus	9.7	6.6	81%	$14,947	6.6	49%	625	610
5.	Social Work, University of Pennsylvania	8.7	6.5	65%	$18,171	6.0	21%	725	705
6.	Social Work, University of California-Berkeley	8.1	6.2	87%	$24,521	6.8	25%	685	645
6.	Social Work, University of Chicago	8.1	8.7	83%	$17,977	5.6	40%	715	725
8.	Social Work, SUNY at Albany	7.8	8.2	78%	$12,595	7.8	56%	575	555
9.	Social Work, Case Western Reserve University	7.4	5.7	81%	$23,627	8.2	68%	690	650
9.	Social Work, University of Wisconsin-Madison	7.4	8.2	84%	$12,640	5.0	71%	650	615
11.	Social Work, Jackson State University	6.7	5.9	95%*	$16,554	1.8	48%	601*	588*
11.	Social Work, University of Maryland-Baltimore	6.7	5.2	72%	$17,205*	6.2	59%*	601*	588*
13.	Social Work, Boston College	5.9	7.7	77%	$17,233	4.0	31%	680	655
14.	Social Work, University of Utah	5.5	5.0	82%	$18,534	5.2	86%	601*	588*
15.	Social Work, University of South Carolina-Columbia	5.4	4.7	73%	$18,616	6.2	67%	580	570
16.	Social Work, Columbia University in the City of New York	5.1	7.7	67%	$37,544	15.4	13%	725	715
16.	Social Work, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign	5.1	6.2	77%	$14,714	2.4	68%	675	615
16.	Social Work, University of Washington-Seattle Campus	5.1	6.5	68%	$12,626	4.4	67%	610	590
19.	Social Work, The University of Texas at Austin	5.0	4.9	67%	$22,744	7.6	51%	630	605
20.	Social Work, The University of Tennessee	4.5	4.7	59%	$13,774	4.2	44%	555	555
Rank	Department	Your Score	Yrs (-3)	Job (2)	Cost / Year (-5)	Deg / Yr (3)	UG Acc (-1)	SAT-M (1)	SAT-V (1)
Adjust your weights →			-+	-+	-+	-+	-+	-+	-+
21.	Social Work, The University of Texas at Arlington	4.4	6.2	79%	$18,441	7.8	79%	545	515
22.	Social Work, New York University	4.2	9.7	86%	$38,829	17.2	37%	665	665
23.	Social Work, SUNY at Buffalo	3.5	9.0	100%	$15,595	2.0	56%	595	565
24.	Social Work, Bryn Mawr College	2.1	9.0	69%	$15,522	3.6	46%	635	670
25.	Social Work, University of Illinois at Chicago	1.5	8.7	68%	$15,476	5.4	58%	605	570
26.	Social Work, Norfolk State University	1.1	7.2	100%	$14,359	1.8	73%	435	445
27.	Social Work, Clark Atlanta University	1.0	6.5	75%	$13,231	2.6	47%	470	462
28.	Social Work, University of California-Los Angeles	0.7	6.7	67%	$24,007	4.0	23%	665	630
29.	Social Work, Portland State University	0.1	10.5	92%	$13,829	3.4	70%	520	520
30.	Social Work, University of Southern California	-0.4	6.6	58%	$25,036	4.4	27%	690	665
31.	Social Work, University of Louisville	-0.5	5.2	77%	$23,571	4.8	81%	550	555
32.	Social Work, Stony Brook University	-0.7	7.6*	75%*	$16,702*	0.8	51%	610	570
33.	Social Work, The University of Alabama	-0.8	6.8	69%	$17,578	3.4	74%	565	565
34.	Social Work, Fordham University	-1.0	6.7	85%	$31,947	7.0	50%	590	600
35.	Social Work, Howard University	-1.4	5.7	60%	$21,682	4.4	47%	565	560
36.	Social Work, University of Kentucky	-1.5	7.5*	80%*	$17,401*	1.6	79%	575	565
37.	Social Work, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities	-1.9	9.8	79%	$18,082	2.8	70%	630	600
38.	Social Work, Simmons College	-2.6	6.7	100%	$29,640	3.4	67%	545	560
39.	Social Work, Virginia Commonwealth University	-2.7	7.7	73%	$19,853	4.4	74%	525	535
40.	Social Work, Ohio State University-Main Campus	-2.8	7.6	62%	$18,544	4.2	73%	580	560
Rank	Department	Your Score	Yrs (-3)	Job (2)	Cost / Year (-5)	Deg / Yr (3)	UG Acc (-1)	SAT-M (1)	SAT-V (1)
Adjust your weights →			-+	-+	-+	-+	-+	-+	-+
41.	Social Work, Smith College	-3.4	5.9	91%	$43,160	8.4	48%	620	645
42.	Social Work, Rutgers University-New Brunswick/Piscataway	-3.9	11.0	71%	$17,566	3.4	61%	615	580
43.	Social Work, CUNY Graduate School and University Center	-4.2	8.7	71%	$24,056*	4.4	59%*	601*	588*
44.	Social Work, Arizona State University at the Tempe Campus	-4.9	6.9	58%	$18,454	3.2	91%	560	550
45.	Social Work, University of Houston	-5.2	10.0	80%	$20,890	4.4	81%	550	520
46.	Social Work, Loyola University Chicago	-5.7	8.7	92%	$28,595	2.8	74%	585	590
47.	Social Work, Yeshiva University	-6.3	7.3	65%	$32,345	7.4	78%	615	605
48.	Social Work, Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College	-6.5	7.7	60%	$21,510	2.6	78%	600	575
49.	Social Work, University of Kansas Main Campus	-7.2	12.0	69%	$19,525	3.6	69%	601*	588*
50.	Social Work, Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis	-7.7	7.6*	75%*	$20,873*	0.6	74%	500	495
51.	Social Work, Michigan State University	-7.8	7.9	75%	$24,701	1.2	76%	585	555
52.	Social Work, Barry University	-7.9	7.0	60%	$20,791	3.0	70%	470	475
53.	Social Work, Florida International University	-8.0	7.4	82%	$30,924	2.8	61%	550	555
54.	Social Work, Catholic University of America	-8.7	7.7	77%	$36,157	7.2	82%	565	580
55.	Social Work, University of Denver	-9.2	7.7	61%	$29,240	5.0	82%	585	580
56.	Social Work, Tulane University of Louisiana	-11.4	9.2	77%	$39,526	3.4	45%	680	670
57.	Social Work, University of Hawaii at Manoa	-13.2	18.2	80%*	$14,819*	1.6	65%	570	535
58.	Social Work, Adelphi University	-17.2	14.3	73%	$29,401	3.4	68%	565	545

Unranked Social Work Graduate Schools

Item Descriptions

Your Score

Your customized program score is a weighted sum of points for each item. The weights were selected on this page. For an item with importance weight W, a program receives W × S points for being S standard deviations above average. Larger values are better.

Years to Degree (Yrs)

Median time lapse from entering graduate school at the doctorate-granting institution to receipt of doctorate in years. Note that time spent obtaining a master's degree at a different institution is not counted. Your weight = -3. Smaller values are better. (SED, 2000-2004)

Placement Rate (Job)

Percentage of doctorate recipients from the program with definite plans at graduation (either a job or a postdoctoral position). Your weight = 2. Larger values are better. (SED, 2000-2004)

Cost Per Year (Cost / Year)

Low yearly cost (tuition, fees, room and board, other expenses) for an out of state student living on campus. Assumes median tuition remission. Your weight = -5. Smaller values are better. (IPEDS, 2001-2005)

Doctorates Granted per Year (Deg / Yr)

The average number of doctorates granted by the program per year between 2001 and 2005. Your weight = 3. Larger values are better. (IPEDS, 2001-2005)

Undergraduate Acceptance Rate (UG Acc)

The percentage of applicants the institution accepts into its undergraduate programs. Your weight = -1. Smaller values are better. (IPEDS, 2005)

Math SAT Score (SAT-M)

The average of the 25th and 75th percentile mathematics SAT scores for undergraduates at the institution. Your weight = 1. Larger values are better. (IPEDS, 2005)

Verbal SAT Score (SAT-V)

The average of the 25th and 75th percentile verbal SAT scores for undergraduates at the institution. Your weight = 1. Larger values are better. (IPEDS, 2005)

Missing Values

Missing values have been replaced with the average value for all programs in the field.

Data Sources

Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System

IPEDS is an annual, comprehensive set of surveys of all colleges and universities in the United States. The surveys are conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics.  Learn more

National Research Council

The National Research Council conducts assessments of doctoral programs in the United States every 10 to 15 years). The data we use are from the most recent assessment, the 1995 study Research-Doctorate Programs in the United States: Continuity and Change. Learn more about the NRC study's methods here; order a copy here. The next NRC assessment is scheduled for release in Summer 2009.  Learn more

Survey of Earned Doctorates

The NSF/NIH/NEH/USED/USDA/NASA Survey of Earned Doctorates is an annual survey of all new recipients of doctorates from US universities at graduation. The average of the response rates for the 2000–2004 surveys was 92%.  Learn more

Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering

The Survey is an annual assessment of the number and characteristics of graduate students and postdoctoral researchers in science, engineering, and health-related fields. It is conducted by the National Science Foundation.  Learn more