Best Child programs in North Carolina, ranked by enrollment
Provide social services and assistance to improve the social and psychological functioning of children and their families and to maximize the family well-being and the academic functioning of children.
24 schools in North Carolina run programs that feed this job, graduating 1,517 people a year. The job pays a median of $59,610 in North Carolina across about 13,010 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in North Carolina that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
1 programs in North Carolina that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in North Carolina (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own North Carolina page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 44.0701In North Carolina → | 1,517 | 100.0% | 24 | $37,264 | $26,140 |
Top 24 schools in North Carolina
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 14 of the 24 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of North Carolina at Charlotte Charlotte, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 179 | Social Work | $28,425 | 69% | — | 80% |
| 2 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 158 | Social Work | — | 91% | — | 15% |
| 3 | Appalachian State University Boone, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 152 | Social Work | $32,725 | 75% | — | 90% |
| 4 | University of North Carolina Wilmington Wilmington, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 151 | Social Work | $38,380 | 71% | — | 64% |
| 5 | North Carolina State University at Raleigh Raleigh, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 143 | Social Work | $35,485 | 85% | — | 42% |
| 6 | East Carolina University Greenville, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 117 | Social Work | $35,745 | 63% | — | 89% |
| 7 | North Carolina Central University Durham, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 103 | Social Work | $30,615 | 42% | — | 87% |
| 8 | Western Carolina University Cullowhee, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 96 | Social Work | $36,727 | 60% | — | 82% |
| 9 | University of North Carolina at Greensboro Greensboro, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 94 | Social Work | $30,509 | 56% | — | 89% |
| 10 | Fayetteville State University Fayetteville, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 86 | Social Work | $29,726 | 38% | — | 82% |
| 11 | North Carolina A & T State University Greensboro, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 71 | Social Work | $27,508 | 57% | — | 50% |
| 12 | Johnson C Smith University Charlotte, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 44 | Social Work | — | 34% | $21,563 | 45% |
| 13 | Winston - Salem State University Winston-Salem, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 39 | Social Work | $29,617 | 47% | — | 78% |
| 14 | Methodist University Fayetteville, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 13 | Social Work | — | 44% | $24,551 | 75% |
| 15 | Barton College Wilson, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 12 | Social Work | $38,312 | 46% | $23,133 | 94% |
| 16 | Elizabeth City State University Elizabeth City, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 12 | Social Work | — | 44% | — | 64% |
| 17 | Mars Hill University Mars Hill, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 9 | Social Work | $41,643 | 45% | $20,402 | 68% |
| 18 | Shaw University Raleigh, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 9 | Social Work | $31,138 | 22% | $16,542 | 80% |
| 19 | Meredith College Raleigh, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Social Work | — | 70% | $19,552 | 74% |
| 20 | Warren Wilson College Swannanoa, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Social Work | — | 42% | $22,259 | 71% |
| 21 | Campbell University Buies Creek, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Social Work | — | 61% | $23,331 | 87% |
| 22 | Central Piedmont Community College Charlotte, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Social Work | — | 31% | — | — |
| 23 | Livingstone College Salisbury, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 4 | Social Work | — | 28% | $15,903 | 59% |
| 24 | Bennett College Greensboro, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Social Work | — | 25% | $23,744 | 51% |
All 24 schools in North Carolina
Every school in North Carolina with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of North Carolina at Charlotte | Charlotte | Public | 179 | 1 |
| University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | Chapel Hill | Public | 158 | 1 |
| Appalachian State University | Boone | Public | 152 | 1 |
| University of North Carolina Wilmington | Wilmington | Public | 151 | 1 |
| North Carolina State University at Raleigh | Raleigh | Public | 143 | 1 |
| East Carolina University | Greenville | Public | 117 | 1 |
| North Carolina Central University | Durham | Public | 103 | 1 |
| Western Carolina University | Cullowhee | Public | 96 | 1 |
| University of North Carolina at Greensboro | Greensboro | Public | 94 | 1 |
| Fayetteville State University | Fayetteville | Public | 86 | 1 |
| North Carolina A & T State University | Greensboro | Public | 71 | 1 |
| Johnson C Smith University | Charlotte | Private not-for-profit | 44 | 1 |
| Winston - Salem State University | Winston-Salem | Public | 39 | 1 |
| Methodist University | Fayetteville | Private not-for-profit | 13 | 1 |
| Barton College | Wilson | Private not-for-profit | 12 | 1 |
What child, family, and school social workers earn in North Carolina
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $59,550. North Carolina pays above the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in North Carolina
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.
How to get in
The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Child, Family, and School Social Workers page.
How to become a Child
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in North Carolina
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 8 majors mapped to Child, Family, and School Social Workers6 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 42.2703Developmental and Child Psychology
- 42.2710Developmental and Adolescent Psychology(no graduates reported)
- 43.0110Juvenile Corrections
- 44.0701Social Work
- 44.0702Youth Services/Administration
- 44.0703Forensic Social Work
- 44.0799Social Work, Other
- 51.1510Infant/Toddler Mental Health Services(no graduates reported)
Common questions
Answers for people weighing child, family, and school social workers programs in North Carolina.
What degree do you need to become a Child?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Social Work, which awarded 1,517 degrees in North Carolina in 2024-25, 100.0% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Child?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 1 programs to this occupation. The largest are Social Work. Together they graduate about 1,517 people a year in North Carolina.
How much do child, family, and school social workers earn in North Carolina?+
The median is $59,610 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 0.1% above the U.S. median of $59,550. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for child, family, and school social workers growing?+
BLS projects a +3.4% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 35,100 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in North Carolina?+
24 institutions in North Carolina reported graduates from at least one of the 1 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do child, family, and school social workers work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Case Manager, School Social Worker, Family Service Worker, Family Protection Specialist among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 21-1021.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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