Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers

What Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers Do

Assess and treat individuals with mental, emotional, or substance abuse problems, including abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and/or other drugs. Activities may include individual and group therapy, crisis intervention, case management, client advocacy, prevention, and education.

Career Outlook

National employment outlook, 2024–2034.

Related work experience

None

On-the-job training

Internship/residency

Self-employed

4.8%

Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.

Key Knowledge Areas

Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.

• Therapy and Counselingimportance 4.8/5
• Psychologyimportance 4.7/5
• English Languageimportance 3.9/5
• Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 3.8/5
• Education and Trainingimportance 3.7/5
• Sociology and Anthropologyimportance 3.6/5
• Public Safety and Securityimportance 3.3/5
• Medicine and Dentistryimportance 3.0/5

Work Environment

What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.

• Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams5.0/5
• E-Mail4.9/5
• Telephone Conversations4.8/5
• Contact With Others4.8/5
• Indoors, Environmentally Controlled4.6/5
• Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team4.5/5

Related Careers

• Healthcare Social Workers
• Marriage and Family Therapists
• Rehabilitation Counselors
• Clinical and Counseling Psychologists
• Child, Family, and School Social Workers
• Registered Nurses
• Psychiatrists
• Psychologists, All Other

Careers With Similar Skills

Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.

• Human Resources Assistants, Except Payroll and Timekeeping98% skill match
• Psychiatrists98% skill match
• Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists98% skill match
• Healthcare Social Workers98% skill match
• Child, Family, and School Social Workers97% skill match
• Interviewers, Except Eligibility and Loan97% skill match
• Rehabilitation Counselors97% skill match
• Special Education Teachers, Secondary School97% skill match

Transferable Skills

Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.

• Social Perceptivenessimportance 4.3/5
• Coordinationimportance 3.9/5
• Service Orientationimportance 3.9/5
• Complex Problem Solvingimportance 3.9/5
• Persuasionimportance 3.8/5
• Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 3.5/5
• Negotiationimportance 3.4/5
• Instructingimportance 3.3/5

Software & Technologies

Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.

Work Style

Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.

• Empathy
• Cooperation
• Sincerity
• Dependability
• Social Orientation
• Stress Tolerance
• Optimism

Career Interests

This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.

• SocialHigh
• InvestigativeMedium
• ConventionalMedium
• ArtisticLow
• EnterprisingLow
• RealisticLow

Where This Career Is Most Concentrated

Metro areas where mental health and substance abuse social workers make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).

1. 1Bangor, ME4.25× national avg
2. 2Pueblo, CO3.82× national avg
3. 3Amherst Town-Northampton, MA3.77× national avg
4. 4Napa, CA3.44× national avg
5. 5Pittsfield, MA3.42× national avg

Possible Career Moves

A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.

• Marriage and Family TherapistsLateral Move
• Healthcare Social WorkersLateral Move
• PsychiatristsCareer Change
• Rehabilitation CounselorsLateral Move

See the full career path from Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers →

Related Education Programs

Schools that offer related fields of study, based on the NCES CIP-SOC crosswalk — not a guarantee that graduates enter this specific career.