by our College Data Analytics Team
[Social Work](/majors/social-services-public-administration/social-work/) programs reward a close look at where graduates go on to earn the most. The highest-paying schools turn a social work degree into the strongest early-career earnings.
For its 2026 highest-paid-graduates ranking, College Factual looked at 4 schools to find where social work graduates earn the most.
What’s on this page:
If you want to know which schools send social work graduates into the highest-paying careers, see the list below.
For graduate earnings in social work, no school beat Weber State University this year. Set in the city of Ogden, Weber State University is a public institution. Early-career social work graduates from Weber State University make a median of around $52,076 per year.
Strong graduate earnings at University Of Utah earned it the #2 place for social work. Located in the city of Salt Lake City, University Of Utah is a public institution. Social Work graduates of University Of Utah earn a median of about $55,294 a year early in their careers.
A rank of #3 makes Utah Valley University one of the highest-paying schools for social work. Set in the city of Orem, Utah Valley University is a public institution. Students who complete the social work program here go on to a median salary of roughly $51,140.
Utah State University produces some of the highest-paid graduates in social work, landing the #4 spot this year. Utah State University is a public school located in the city of Logan. After graduating, social work degree recipients from Utah State University typically earn about $44,469 annually.
This ranking is produced by College Factual, 2026 edition. The methodology measures the salaries social work graduates go on to earn early in their careers, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard field-of-study earnings and IPEDS).
Ranking method: College Major Earnings · 4 schools evaluated.
*Salary figures reflect median early-career earnings (about 5 years after graduation) and may vary by how long a person takes to complete their degree.
More about our data sources and methodologies.