Georgia has 7 CSWE-accredited MSW programs anchored by two nationally ranked universities in Athens and Atlanta, and enriched by one of the largest concentrations of HBCU social work programs in the South. The University of Georgia in Athens ranks 20th nationally, the strongest social work program in the state and one of the top public MSW programs in the country. Georgia State University in Atlanta holds a national ranking of 51st, making Georgia one of a small number of states with two separately ranked MSW programs.
Clark Atlanta University holds a historically significant position: the School of Social Work traces its accreditation to 1928 through CSWE's predecessor body, making it the nation's first accredited school of social work at an HBCU. CAU operates within the Atlanta University Center Consortium alongside Morehouse and Spelman colleges, and its Afrocentric pedagogical framework distinguishes it from any other Georgia MSW program. Georgia's three HBCU MSW programs collectively span the Atlanta metro (Clark Atlanta), coastal Georgia (Savannah State), and southwest Georgia (Albany State), providing a distributed HBCU presence across the state.
Georgia's licensing structure is distinctive in that the state issues only two social work license levels: the LMSW and the LCSW. Unlike most states, Georgia does not offer a bachelor's level social work credential, meaning all ASWB exam-based licensure in the state begins at the master's level. MSW graduates apply for the LMSW after passing the ASWB Master exam, then accumulate 3,000 hours of supervised clinical experience over at least 36 months before qualifying for the LCSW.
All 7 CSWE-Accredited MSW Programs in Georgia
Scored on the same seven-factor model used in the national ranking. All data sourced from the CSWE accreditation directory and official program pages (.edu). Accreditation years are Initial Accreditation Dates from the CSWE directory. UGA ranking (#20 nationally) and GSU ranking (#51) confirmed from each school's official website. Clark Atlanta accredSince 1928 reflects accreditation by CSWE's predecessor body; CSWE as currently constituted was founded in 1952. KSU program website shows three concentrations; CSWE directory lists one. Valdosta State campus closed 2022; Albany State campus closed 2018; both programs are now fully online. KSU MSW/MBA described by KSU as first such dual degree in Georgia.
- #1 National #20
University of Georgia School of Social Work
Athens, GA · On-Campus or Online
9.3
60 credits 900 field hours ? Advanced Standing Accred. since 1966Why It Ranks Here
The University of Georgia School of Social Work has held CSWE accreditation since 1966 and is ranked 20th nationally and 10th among public graduate social work programs by U.S. News and World Report, the highest confirmed national ranking of any Georgia program. Three specializations are offered: Micro Practice (clinical), Macro Practice (systems change and leadership), and Integrated Practice (combining clinical and macro competencies), one of the few programs nationally offering all three within a single MSW. Dual-degree programs with Law (JD) and Public Health (MPH) are available. Three graduate certificates are offered alongside the MSW: Substance Use Counseling, Nonprofit Management and Leadership, and Gerontology. Full-time students study at the Athens campus, with access to all three specializations; extended-time and online students attend the Gwinnett campus or study remotely and may pursue the Micro Practice specialization. Online delivery has been available since 2020. Advanced Standing is available. UGA is Georgia's flagship R1 land-grant university in Athens.
Public (University of Georgia, R1 flagship). Contact the program for current in-state and out-of-state tuition rates.
View program page → - #2
Clark Atlanta University School of Social Work
Atlanta, GA · On-Campus or Online
7.8
60 credits 900 field hours ? Advanced Standing Accred. since 1928Why It Ranks Here
Clark Atlanta University's School of Social Work has held CSWE accreditation since 1928, the oldest social work program in Georgia, and describes itself as the nation's first accredited school of social work at a historically Black college or university. The accredSince date of 1928 reflects accreditation by CSWE's predecessor body, the American Association of Schools of Social Work; CSWE as currently constituted was founded in 1952. Two specializations are offered: Children, Youth and Families and Behavioral Health. The program employs an Afrocentric framework as a core curriculum element, described as a culturally grounded practice model that integrates cultural experiences, values, and interpretations across people of African descent, providing a distinctive pedagogical approach uncommon among MSW programs. Online delivery has been available since 2023. Advanced Standing is available. Clark Atlanta is a private HBCU in Atlanta's historically Black university cluster (Atlanta University Center Consortium) alongside Morehouse and Spelman colleges. No dual-degree programs are listed in the CSWE directory.
Private (Clark Atlanta University, HBCU). Contact the program for current tuition rates and financial aid information.
View program page → - #3 National #51
Georgia State University Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, School of Social Work
Atlanta, GA · On-Campus or Online
7.2
60 credits 900 field hours ? Advanced Standing Accred. since 2001Why It Ranks Here
Georgia State University's School of Social Work has held CSWE accreditation since 2001 and is ranked 51st nationally by U.S. News and World Report, the second nationally ranked program in Georgia. Two specializations are offered: Mental Health and Wellness, which trains students in clinical assessment, diagnosis, and evidence-based intervention; and Community Practice and Leadership, which prepares graduates for advocacy, coalition building, and systems change. The Mental Health and Wellness specialization is available both in-person and online; Community Practice and Leadership is offered in-person only. The program is described by GSU as Georgia's only online Advanced Standing MSW program, with Advanced Standing completable in 12 months with 500 practicum hours. Standard program field hours are 900. Online delivery became available in 2022. GSU is an R1 public research university in downtown Atlanta with a high proportion of first-generation and urban community students. No dual-degree programs are listed in the CSWE directory.
Public (Georgia State University, R1 urban research university). Contact the program for current in-state and out-of-state tuition rates.
View program page → - #4
Kennesaw State University Wellstar College of Health and Human Services
Kennesaw, GA · On-Campus
7.0
60 credits 900 field hours ? Advanced Standing Accred. since 2005Why It Ranks Here
Kennesaw State University's MSW program, housed in the Wellstar College of Health and Human Services, has held CSWE accreditation since 2005. Three specialization tracks are offered: Micro Practice (clinical), Macro Practice, and Integrated/Combined Practice, a breadth of specialization options uncommon among Georgia programs. The program offers an MSW/MBA dual degree, described by KSU as the first combined MSW and Master of Business Administration program in Georgia. The dual-degree track combines 54 MSW credits and 30 MBA credits (saving 6 credits from each standalone degree) and is designed to be completed through coordinated summer and fall coursework. No online delivery is currently offered; the program operates from the Kennesaw campus. Advanced Standing is available. KSU is a public university in Kennesaw in Cobb County, in the northern Atlanta metropolitan area, providing access to Atlanta's large healthcare, nonprofit, and social services labor market.
Public (Kennesaw State University). Contact the program for current in-state and out-of-state tuition rates.
View program page → - #5
Savannah State University Department of Social Work
Savannah, GA · On-Campus
6.7
60 credits 900 field hours ? Advanced Standing Accred. since 1998Why It Ranks Here
Savannah State University's Department of Social Work has held CSWE accreditation since 1998. Two specializations are offered: Clinical Practice and Social Administration (management and organizational leadership), with an optional Dual Specialization available for students who complete additional concentration courses in the alternate track. The Social Administration specialization is uncommon among Georgia programs and prepares graduates for management, program administration, and leadership roles in social service organizations. Advanced Standing is available at 33 credit hours, completable in 12 months beginning in summer. No online delivery is currently offered; field placements are daytime only. Savannah State is a historically Black public university and the only CSWE-accredited MSW program in southeastern Georgia. Savannah's growing tourism, healthcare, and port economy includes Memorial Health University Medical Center, St. Joseph's/Candler Health System, and a significant nonprofit social services sector serving one of Georgia's most historically underserved coastal communities. No dual-degree programs are listed in the CSWE directory.
Public (Savannah State University, HBCU). Contact the program for current in-state and out-of-state tuition rates.
View program page → - #6
Valdosta State University Department of Social Work
Online, GA · Online
6.3
60 credits 900 field hours ? Advanced Standing Accred. since 1997Why It Ranks Here
Valdosta State University's Department of Social Work has held CSWE accreditation since 1997 and operated from its Valdosta campus through 2022, when the program transitioned to fully online delivery. An Advanced Generalist concentration is offered. Advanced Standing is available. VSU is a public university in Valdosta in south Georgia. The fully online format makes VSU's MSW accessible to students across Georgia and beyond, including students in rural south Georgia, where campus access to an MSW program is otherwise limited. VSU's long accreditation history (since 1997) supports its score despite the relatively recent loss of campus delivery. Students arrange local field placements in their home communities. No dual-degree programs are listed in the CSWE directory.
Public (Valdosta State University). Contact the program for current tuition rates.
View program page → - #7
Albany State University Department of Social Work
Online, GA · Online
5.8
60 credits 900 field hours ? Advanced Standing Accred. since 2011Why It Ranks Here
Albany State University's Department of Social Work received CSWE accreditation in 2011 and operated from its Albany campus through 2018, when the program moved fully online. A Children, Youth and Families concentration is offered. Advanced Standing is available. Albany State is a historically Black public university in Albany in southwest Georgia. The Children, Youth and Families concentration aligns with persistent child welfare workforce needs in southwest Georgia's rural counties, which have among the highest rates of child poverty and child welfare caseloads in the state. The fully online format allows students statewide, particularly in underserved rural southwest and south-central Georgia, to access an HBCU-rooted MSW education. Students arrange local field placements in their home communities. No dual-degree programs are listed in the CSWE directory.
Public (Albany State University, HBCU). Contact the program for current tuition rates.
View program page →
Job Market for MSW Graduates in Georgia
Atlanta is Georgia's dominant social work labor market and one of the largest in the Southeast. Emory Healthcare, Wellstar Health System, Grady Health System, and the Children's Healthcare of Atlanta are the primary healthcare social work employers in the metro area, collectively employing hundreds of medical and clinical social workers across inpatient and outpatient settings. The Georgia Department of Family and Children Services (DFCS), headquartered in Atlanta, is the largest public-sector employer of social workers in the state, with child protective services and family support social workers in every county.
Atlanta's concentration of nonprofit organizations, community mental health centers, and behavioral health agencies creates additional MSW-level positions. The Atlanta Community Food Bank, United Way of Greater Atlanta, and a dense cluster of faith-based and mission-driven nonprofit organizations round out the metro labor market. Georgia's large military presence, including Fort Moore (formerly Fort Benning) near Columbus and Robins Air Force Base near Warner Robins, generates ongoing military social work demand across central and southwest Georgia.
Savannah is the second major social work labor market in Georgia. Memorial Health University Medical Center and St. Joseph's/Candler Health System are the primary healthcare employers, while coastal Georgia's history of poverty and racial economic inequality, particularly in Chatham County and surrounding coastal communities, creates sustained demand for child welfare, community mental health, and family services social workers. The Port of Savannah's economic growth is expanding Savannah's healthcare and human services sector, creating new social work employment.
Southwest and south Georgia face persistent social work workforce shortages in rural counties with high rates of poverty, child maltreatment, and limited behavioral health access. Programs at Valdosta State and Albany State, both now fully online, are positioned to serve the workforce pipeline for these communities. Students arrange field placements locally, connecting with rural DFCS offices, behavioral health agencies, and community organizations in their home counties.
Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, Georgia; Georgia Secretary of State, Professional Licensing Boards.
How We Ranked These Programs
Each program is scored on the same seven-factor model used in the national ranking. The state ranking uses identical criteria and weights. No Georgia-specific adjustments are made. Programs are ordered by composite score. For the full methodology, see our ranking methodology page.
- CSWE Accreditation (25%): Active accreditation status and continuous accreditation history.
- Program Leadership (15%): Faculty credentials, research output, and peer-assessment scores.
- Pathways (15%): Concentration variety, Advanced Standing availability, and dual-degree options.
- Delivery Format (15%): Online, hybrid, and in-person availability; start-term flexibility.
- Employer Signal (15%): Field placement hours required, practicum site depth, and documented placement infrastructure.
- Cost & Affordability (10%): Published tuition per credit or per year, in-state vs. out-of-state differential.
- Reputation (5%): U.S. News peer-assessment scores and institutional recognition.