Best Online Social Work Programs in Saint Joseph, MO (2026)

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

Saint Joseph, Missouri has 5 accredited schools offering social work programs. Saint Joseph has a population of about 71,542. Median household income is $55,578 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 22.7% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In Missouri, the top-earning social work-related role is Social Worker, All Other at a median $98,740 annually (BLS, May 2025).

The 5 accredited institutions below are the closest among the 5 schools in our directory that offer social work programs near Saint Joseph. Distances are calculated from Saint Joseph 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 Saint Joseph. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

Published tuitionContact school for pricing

Online programsYes

Published tuitionContact school for pricing

Online programsYes

Published tuitionContact school for pricing

Online programsYes

Published tuitionContact school for pricing

Online programsYes

Published tuitionContact school for pricing

Online programsYes

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

Saint Joseph is part of the St. Joseph, MO-KS metro area (BLS area code 41140). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Missouri statewide.

Occupation	Median Wage	Source	COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Child, Family, and School Social Worker	$49,060	St. Joseph, MO-KS	$56,782
Healthcare Social Worker	$59,840	St. Joseph, MO-KS	$69,259
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Worker	$49,560	MO statewide	$57,361
Social Worker, All Other	$98,740	MO statewide	$114,282
Social and Community Service Manager	$63,850	St. Joseph, MO-KS	$73,900
Social and Human Service Assistant	$40,150	St. Joseph, MO-KS	$46,470
Community Health Worker	$48,770	MO statewide	$56,447

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.

Saint Joseph at a Glance

Metric	Value	Source
Population	71,542	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income	$55,578	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+	22.7%	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)	86.4 (below U.S. average)	BEA RPP 2024
Social Work-related employment in Buchanan County	1,569 workers, 584 establishments	BLS QCEW 2024 annual

Leavenworth, KS – 30.7 mi away (46,445 pop)
Gladstone, MO – 40.2 mi away (27,114 pop)
Liberty, MO – 41.9 mi away (30,614 pop)
Kansas City, KS – 44.2 mi away (151,709 pop)
Kansas City, MO – 46.2 mi away (1,590,762 pop)

Frequently Asked Questions

Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering social work programs near Saint Joseph. The closest is Missouri Western State University in Saint Joseph, MO (2.0 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is University of Kansas (59.9 miles). 5 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 Saint Joseph are: Social Worker, All Other ($98,740), Social and Community Service Manager ($63,850), Healthcare Social Worker ($59,840). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Missouri statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Leavenworth instead of Saint Joseph?

Leavenworth, KS is 30.7 miles from Saint Joseph 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.

Saint Joseph’s median household income of $55,578 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Saint Joseph while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Missouri 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 Saint Joseph

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

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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