Maine has 3 CSWE-accredited MSW programs, each with a distinct geographic and academic profile. The University of Maine School of Social Work in Orono, tied with UNE for the longest accreditation history in the state since 1990, is the flagship land-grant research university's program, offering an Advanced Generalist concentration, a Behavioral Health certificate, on-campus and online delivery, and Advanced Standing. The University of New England Department of Social Work, also accredited since 1990, is now fully online after its Portland campus closed in 2024, offering the broadest concentration and certificate portfolio of the three Maine programs: four concentrations (Substance Use Disorders, Healthcare, School Social Work, Trauma) and five certificates. The University of Southern Maine School of Social Work, accredited in 2001 and housed within the Muskie School of Public Service in Portland, serves the state's largest social work labor market with an Advanced Generalist concentration and online option since 2019.
Maine's social work context is defined by several intersecting challenges: the opioid crisis, which has placed Maine among states with the highest overdose death rates per capita in the Northeast; persistent rural poverty and social isolation in northern, western, and Downeast Maine; a rapidly aging population that is driving gerontological and home and community-based care workforce demand; and a growing asylum seeker and refugee population in Greater Portland that has created new demand for culturally competent social workers with multilingual capacity. The concentration portfolios of UMaine and UNE both reflect these pressures, with behavioral health, substance use disorders, and healthcare concentrations directly aligned with Maine's most acute workforce needs.
Maine social work licensing is administered by the Maine Board of Social Worker Licensure within the Department of Professional and Financial Regulation. The LMSW and LCSW follow the standard national exam-based pathway. Maine has documented social work workforce shortages in rural areas and northern counties, and the online delivery options at all three programs are significant tools for reaching workers in those communities who cannot access on-campus instruction.
Which MSW programs in Maine are CSWE-accredited?
Every CSWE-accredited MSW program in the state is listed here, 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. UNE Portland campus closed 2024; now fully online. USM online added 2019.
- #1
University of Maine School of Social Work
Orono, ME · On-Campus or Online · CSWE-accredited since 1990
7.5
60 credits 900 field hours ✓ Advanced StandingThe University of Maine School of Social Work has held CSWE accreditation since 1990, tied for the longest accreditation of any MSW program in Maine. One concentration is listed: Advanced Generalist. A Behavioral Health certificate is available. Advanced Standing is available. Online delivery was added in 2018. Weekend and evening delivery options are offered per the CSWE directory. UMaine is the flagship land-grant research university of Maine, located in Orono near Bangor in central Maine. The land-grant identity and the flagship institutional status give UMaine a distinctive position: it has the broadest statewide research mission of any Maine university, the largest campus, and the deepest integration with Maine state government agencies that are major social work employers. The Behavioral Health certificate addresses Maine's significant opioid crisis and behavioral health workforce needs. UMaine's proximity to the Penobscot Indian Nation at Indian Island, immediately adjacent to Orono, and the Passamaquoddy Tribe in eastern Maine connects the program to tribal social work practice contexts that are relatively accessible from the Orono campus.
Public (University of Maine, flagship land-grant research university). Contact the program for current in-state and out-of-state tuition rates.
University of Maine School of Social Work - #2
University of New England College of Professional Studies, Department of Social Work
Portland (Online), ME · Online · CSWE-accredited since 1990
7.0
60 credits 900 field hours ✓ Advanced StandingThe University of New England Department of Social Work has held CSWE accreditation since 1990, tied with UMaine for the longest accreditation history of any MSW program in Maine. Four concentrations are offered: Substance Use Disorders, Healthcare, School Social Work, and Trauma. Five certificates are available: Addictions, School Social Work, Trauma, Clinical Social Work, and Medical Social Work, making UNE's certificate portfolio the most extensive of any Maine MSW program. Advanced Standing is available. UNE has been online since 2009, making it one of the earliest MSW programs in the country to offer fully online delivery. The Portland campus and Biddeford campus were both closed for MSW delivery by 2024 per the CSWE directory; delivery is now fully online. UNE is a private university based in Portland and Biddeford. Despite the campus closures for MSW instruction, UNE retains a strong national reputation for online health professions education. The four-concentration portfolio reflects the specific practice areas where licensed social workers are in highest demand in Maine: substance use disorder treatment (Maine has faced a severe opioid crisis), healthcare social work across Maine's hospital and community health systems, school social work in underfunded rural districts, and trauma-informed practice. UMaine's slightly higher position reflects its public flagship status and on-campus options alongside online; both programs share the 1990 accreditation date.
Private (University of New England). Contact the program for current tuition rates.
University of New England College of Professional Studies, Department of Social Work - #3
University of Southern Maine Muskie School of Public Service, School of Social Work
Portland, ME · On-Campus or Online · CSWE-accredited since 2001
6.0
60 credits 900 field hours ✓ Advanced StandingThe University of Southern Maine School of Social Work, housed within the Muskie School of Public Service, has held CSWE accreditation since 2001. One concentration is listed: Advanced Generalist. Advanced Standing is available. Online delivery was added in 2019. USM is a public university in the University of Maine System, located in Portland, Maine's largest city and primary social work labor market. The Muskie School of Public Service context gives USM's MSW program a distinctive public policy orientation, situating social work education within a broader school focused on public affairs, policy, and service. Portland's social work market, which includes Maine Medical Center (the state's largest hospital), the growing behavioral health provider network, and a substantial immigrant and asylum seeker population in the Greater Portland area, provides a rich field placement and employment environment. The 2001 accreditation date, later than both UMaine and UNE's 1990 accreditation dates, is the primary factor placing USM third.
Public (University of Southern Maine). Contact the program for current in-state and out-of-state tuition rates.
University of Southern Maine Muskie School of Public Service, School of Social Work
How long does an MSW take in Maine, and what does it cost?
An MSW in Maine takes two years of full-time study, and what it costs turns mostly on whether the program is public or private. The Master of Social Work here is built on 60 credits and 900 hours of supervised field placement. Every one runs an Advanced Standing track, which finishes the degree in about a year for BSW holders. 2 sit at public universities and one at a private one, which is usually the largest single difference in what you will pay. Each card links to the program's own tuition page. The field-hour rules that apply everywhere are set out in our guide to CSWE accreditation.
What is the job market like for MSW graduates in Maine?
Portland and the Greater Portland area are the center of Maine's job market for MSW graduates. Maine Medical Center, the state's largest hospital and an academic medical center affiliated with Tufts University School of Medicine, is the primary healthcare social work employer. MaineHealth, the health system that includes Maine Medical Center and a network of affiliated hospitals across southern and central Maine, employs social workers across inpatient, outpatient, home health, and specialty care settings. Northern Light Health, another major Maine health system headquartered in Brewer (adjacent to Bangor), operates Eastern Maine Medical Center and a statewide network of affiliated hospitals that employ social workers in central and northern Maine. The Preble Street Resource Center in Portland, Maine Immigrant and Refugee Services, Catholic Charities Maine, and the network of organizations serving Greater Portland's growing asylum seeker population have expanded significantly since 2017, creating substantial demand for culturally competent social workers with multilingual capacity.
The behavioral health sector is the most rapidly growing employer of MSW graduates in Maine. Spurwink Services, Sweetser, Milestone Foundation, and the network of community mental health centers contracted under Maine's Medicaid system employ licensed clinical social workers across the state. Addiction treatment providers including Milestone, the Counseling Center in Bangor, and the opioid treatment programs operated under the Maine Office of Behavioral Health contract are significant employers of social workers with behavioral health and substance use disorder training. The Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), including the Office of Child and Family Services, the Office of Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services, and the Office of Aging and Disability Services, employs the largest concentration of public-sector social workers in the state.
Rural Maine, particularly Washington County in the Downeast region, Piscataquis County in north-central Maine, and the western Oxford and Franklin counties, face significant social work workforce shortages. School social workers in rural districts, community behavioral health providers, and the limited rural hospital systems all rely on practitioners who are willing to work in geographically isolated communities. The online delivery options at all three Maine MSW programs are the primary mechanism for reaching students in these communities.
Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, Maine; Maine Board of Social Worker Licensure.
Which MSW program in Maine has been accredited the longest?
University of Maine has been accredited the longest of any MSW program in Maine, holding CSWE accreditation since 1990, which is 36 years of continuous standing as of 2026. The state's newest accredited program, University of Southern Maine, dates to 2001.
Longevity is worth something specific: it means a program has met the Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards across many reaffirmation cycles rather than once. It is not the same as quality, and a recently accredited program has been held to the current standards rather than grandfathered against older ones. Both hold identical standing for licensure.
Can you earn an MSW online in Maine in 2026?
You can earn an MSW online in Maine at every one of the state's three accredited programs: University of Maine, University of New England and University of Southern Maine. Each records an online option in the CSWE Directory of Accredited Programs.
Accreditation covers every approved delivery method under the same degree, so an online MSW carries the same standing for licensure as the on-campus version and the ASWB examination does not distinguish between them. Field placement is the part that stays local: coursework is delivered online, but the 900 supervised hours happen at an agency, which for most students means one within commuting distance of home.
How did we rank these Maine MSW programs?
We ranked these Maine MSW programs on the same seven-factor model used in the national ranking, applied identically to every accredited program in the state. The state ranking uses identical criteria and weights. No Maine-specific adjustments are made. Programs are ordered by composite score. For the full methodology, see our ranking methodology page.
Accreditation is 25% of the score because it is the only pass-or-fail factor here: Maine licenses no graduate of an unaccredited program. Accredited programs in Maine run from one holding that status since 1990 to one accredited as recently as 2001, and a longer record means more reaffirmation cycles survived.
Weights: CSWE accreditation 25%, program leadership 15%, pathways 15%, delivery format 15%, employer signal 15%, cost 10%, reputation 5%. Each factor is defined in full on our ranking methodology page.
How do you become a licensed social worker in Maine?
You become a licensed social worker in Maine by completing a CSWE-accredited MSW, passing the ASWB examination at the level your license requires, and, for a clinical license, logging supervised hours afterwards. Licensing here is administered by the Maine social work licensing board. Maine offers more than one route to licensure, pick the branch that matches the kind of practice you want. License names, exams, and supervised-hour requirements come from the ASWB Social Work Regulatory Database.
Master's social work license route in ME
MSW → LMSW
- 1
Earn a CSWE-accredited MSW.
- 2
Pass the ASWB Masters exam and apply for the LMSW (Licensed Master Social Worker).
Clinical social work license route in ME
MSW → LMSW-CC → LCSW
- 1
Earn a CSWE-accredited MSW.
- 2
Pass the ASWB ASWB Exam Not Required exam and register as the LMSW-CC (Licensed Masters Social Worker, Clinical Conditional).
- 3
Complete 3,200 hours of supervised practice over at least 2 years and pass the ASWB Clinical exam, then apply for the LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker 1), which authorizes independent clinical practice and clinical diagnosis.
Maine social work licenses at a glance
Master's license
Licensed Master Social Worker
Pre-clinical (associate) license
Licensed Masters Social Worker, Clinical Conditional
Clinical license
Licensed Clinical Social Worker 1
Source: Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Social Work Regulatory Database, 2026. License requirements change, so always confirm current rules with the Maine licensing board before applying.
Common questions about MSW programs in Maine
Common questions about MSW programs in Maine, on accreditation, cost, format and licensure.
How many CSWE-accredited MSW programs are in Maine?
What do social workers earn in Maine?
What are Maine's social work licensing requirements?
Which Maine program is best for students interested in substance use disorder and addictions?
Which Maine program is best for students in Portland or southern Maine?
Where does the data on this page come from?
The data on this page comes from the sources below, and from nothing else: no commercial directories, no other ranking sites.
- CSWE Directory of Accredited Programs covers which Maine programs hold accreditation, the year each was first accredited, approved campus locations, concentrations, dual degrees and plan-of-study options.
- Individual program pages (.edu) supply curriculum detail, field-hour requirements, delivery format and cohort scheduling. Each program card links to the page it was written from.
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, Maine supplies the employment and wage figures in the job-market section, May 2025 release.
- ASWB Social Work Laws and Regulations Database supplies license names, examination levels and supervised-hour requirements, read 2026.
- Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education supplies the research classification used in the ranking model.
What are the best MSW programs near Maine?
The best MSW programs near Maine are in the neighboring states below, all CSWE-accredited. Licensure is state by state, so check a program across the border against the rules where you intend to practice.