Best Online Social Work Programs in Rochester, MN (2026)

Updated June 11, 2026 BLS data College Scorecard On this page

Rochester, Minnesota has 5 accredited schools offering social work programs. Rochester has a population of about 121,638. Median household income is $87,767 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 50.1% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Rochester, MN metro area, the top-earning social work-related role is Healthcare Social Worker at a median $80,590 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

The 5 accredited institutions below are the closest among the 5 schools in our directory that offer social work programs near Rochester. Distances are calculated from Rochester city center.

How We Rank Schools

Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:

Graduation rate 30%
Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
Average net price (lower is better) 20%
Retention rate 15%
Fully online availability 10%

Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Rochester. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

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Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Minnesota schools on the Minnesota social work page.

Rochester is part of the Rochester, MN metro area (BLS area code 40340). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Minnesota statewide.

Occupation	Median Wage	Source	COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Child, Family, and School Social Worker	$62,090	Rochester, MN	$68,381
Healthcare Social Worker	$80,590	Rochester, MN	$88,756
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Worker	$77,030	Rochester, MN	$84,835
Social Worker, All Other	$80,490	Rochester, MN	$88,645
Social and Community Service Manager	$80,460	Rochester, MN	$88,612
Social and Human Service Assistant	$48,300	Rochester, MN	$53,194
Community Health Worker	$44,630	Rochester, MN	$49,152

Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.

Rochester at a Glance

Metric	Value	Source
Population	121,638	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income	$87,767	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+	50.1%	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)	90.8 (below U.S. average)	BEA RPP 2024
Social Work-related employment in Olmsted County	3,518 workers, 371 establishments	BLS QCEW 2024 annual

Austin, MN – 34.3 mi away (25,105 pop)
Owatonna, MN – 37.8 mi away (25,567 pop)
Winona, MN – 40.2 mi away (30,208 pop)
Faribault, MN – 44.3 mi away (24,012 pop)
Northfield, MN – 45.8 mi away (22,005 pop)

Frequently Asked Questions

Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering social work programs near Rochester. The closest is Rochester Community and Technical College in Rochester, MN (2.6 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is St Olaf College (46.4 miles). 4 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying social work-related roles near Rochester are: Healthcare Social Worker ($80,590), Social Worker, All Other ($80,490), Social and Community Service Manager ($80,460). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Minnesota statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Austin instead of Rochester?

Austin, MN is 34.3 miles from Rochester and has its own set of local social work programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

Rochester’s median household income of $87,767 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Rochester while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Minnesota public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.

How do I verify a program is accredited?

Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.

Other Programs Available in Rochester

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Rochester:

Data verified: June 11, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.

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