Military social workers play a critical role in meeting the unique needs of service members, veterans and military families.

In the United States, there are over two million active and reserve troops currently serving in the military and some 18.2 million veterans. Military service members, veterans and their families face a host of unique challenges, including higher risk for mental health issues, economic disparities and a lack of sufficient transitional services to aid them in their return to civilian life.

For those interested in providing service members, veterans and military families with the resources they need to thrive in every aspect of their lives, from mental health to job readiness and employment, military social work can be an extremely rewarding career path.

A brief history of military social work

In the aftermath of the first World War, returning U.S. military service members were grappling with the trauma and hardship of combat on a massive scale. It became increasingly clear that veterans faced unique challenges when it came to mental health needs and readjusting to civilian life, but that resources to address these needs were severely lacking. In response, Smith College launched the first ever military social work program in 1919 in the hopes of training students to address the unique mental health care needs of veterans and service members.

Contemporary military social work has come a long way since then, propelled in large part by the Center for Innovation and Research on Veterans & Military Families (CIR) and the Military and Veterans Programs (MVP) at the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work. CIR was launched in 2009 at the tail end of the Iraq war, and USC soon became the first major educational institution to offer a military social work track for MSW students.

Career paths for the military social worker

According to Associate Professor and CIR Director Carl Castro, while the large majority of USC MSW students on the military track are veterans or military-connected spouses, relatives or friends, “the only prerequisite for pursuing a military social work education is caring about the military community.”

Military social workers go on to pursue a number of challenging and rewarding careers. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is the single largest employer of social workers in the world, making it an obvious choice for many military social workers. Through the VA, military social workers can find positions in everything from clinical work at VA hospitals to policymaking at the institutional level.

Some MSW graduates choose to enlist in the military themselves and become uniformed social workers, often serving active-duty troops at a military base. Others elect to work in government agencies or the nonprofit sector to provide organizational support to veterans and military families, with a growing number of alumni launching their own nonprofit organizations to address issues specific to the military community.

Studying military social work at USC

At the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, the military social work track in the MSW program consists of three major components: core classwork, an immersion course and a field placement.

Core classwork includes four courses: a foundational course detailing the theoretical applications of evidence-based treatments within military populations; two clinical care courses that explore the mental health needs of service members and military families; and a community engagement course that examines the institutions and community organizations that collectively support the armed forces.

USC immersion courses are intensive, week-long experiences in which students learn about military social work on the ground, whether by meeting with government agencies in Washington, D.C., to discuss policy or traveling abroad to get an intimate look at life in a combat zone.

Finally, every student participates in a field placement in which they learn the specific skills and interventions necessary to serve military populations effectively. “Students are placed according to their unique social work interests, and get to work directly with service members, veterans or military families to implement the skills that they’re learning in real time,” Castro said.

Through a rigorous curriculum, world-class research faculty and a holistic approach to providing military families and veterans with integrated health and social services, MVP has established itself as the vanguard of military social work in the U.S. “No other institution can offer MSW students the depth and diversity of experience, the level of faculty expertise, or the degree of program customization offered by this program,” Castro said.

Learn more about how you can build the foundation for a fulfilling career in military social work at USC.