Women of color are the backbone of the social work profession. They comprise approximately 36 percent of the workforce, with Black social workers overall representing 19.9 percent of the profession. Given that 80.5 percent of social workers are women, this translates to about 16 percent of all social workers being Black women (Zippia, 2025). Latina women account for roughly 10 percent, Asian women for 2.6 percent, and Native women for 0.5 percent. These figures underscore the gendered and racialized composition of the field. Among new Master of Social Work (MSW) graduates, 22 percent identified as Black/African American and 14 percent as Hispanic/Latina (National Association of Social Workers [NASW], 2020), reinforcing the centrality of women of color to the profession’s future.
Despite this strong representation, women of color in social work face entrenched inequities. Black women social workers earn 22 percent less than White peers with the same degree, and both Black and Latina MSWs report higher student debt burdens than their White counterparts (Institute for Women’s Policy Research [IWPR], 2024; NASW, 2020). Burnout and financial strain are widespread, with surveys showing that 82 percent of social workers report not earning a living wage, a burden disproportionately borne by women of color (IWPR, 2024). These inequities are compounded by occupational segregation, as women of color are overrepresented in care and service roles that are undervalued and underpaid compared to other professions requiring advanced degrees.
The Department of Education’s recent decision to exclude social work degrees from the category of “professional degrees” intensifies these challenges. Under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, loan limits for social work students were reduced from $50,000 annually/$200,000 lifetime to $20,500 annually/$100,000 lifetime (Snopes, 2025). This reclassification effectively denies social workers professional recognition, despite the advanced graduate training and licensure requirements inherent to the field. The excluded programs—social work, nursing, counseling, and public health—are all female-dominated professions, raising concerns about structural bias in how “professional” is defined (Newsweek, 2025).
The intersection of these numbers and this policy decision reveals a troubling pattern. Women of color, who make up more than one-third of the social work profession, are disproportionately impacted by the Department of Education’s reclassification. Already facing wage inequities, higher debt burdens, and systemic undervaluation, they now confront reduced access to graduate education financing and diminished recognition of their professional status. This decision not only undermines the economic stability of women of color in social work but also destabilizes a workforce that disproportionately serves marginalized communities most affected by systemic inequities.
This is not a neutral bureaucratic adjustment. It is a systemic devaluation of women of color’s labor in social work, exacerbating existing inequities and threatening the sustainability of a profession essential to public health and social equity. By stripping social work of its professional designation, the Department of Education sends a clear message: the expertise, advanced training, and licensure of women of color in social work are less valued than those in male-dominated professions.
The consequences are profound. Reduced loan limits will deter future students—particularly women of color—from pursuing graduate education in social work, shrinking the pipeline of professionals at a time when demand for trauma-informed, community-based care is rising. Wage inequities will deepen as the profession loses its professional status, further marginalizing Black women and other women of color who already bear the brunt of systemic undervaluation. Communities most affected by poverty, racism, and transgenerational trauma will suffer as the workforce serving them becomes less sustainable.
In sum, the Department of Education’s reclassification of social work degrees as non-professional is both a gendered and racialized policy decision. It undermines women of color’s economic stability, devalues their expertise, and destabilizes a profession essential to advancing equity and justice. Advocacy must center these realities: women of color are not only the majority of the social work profession but also the most impacted by policies that strip away recognition and resources. Protecting the professional status of social work is therefore not just about titles—it is about safeguarding equity, sustainability, and justice for the communities social workers serve.
References (APA 7)
Institute for Women’s Policy Research. (2024, December). Unequal burden: Challenges facing Black women social workers (IWPR #5D22). https://iwpr.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Black-Women-Social-Workers-research-brief-2024.pdf
National Association of Social Workers. (2020, December 11). New report provides insights into new social workers’ demographics, income, and job satisfaction. https://www.socialworkers.org/News/News-Releases/ID/2262/New-Report-Provides-Insights-into-New-Social-Workers-Demographics-Income-and-Job-Satisfaction
Newsweek. (2025, November 21). Full list of degrees not classed as ‘professional’ by Trump admin. https://www.newsweek.com/full-list-degrees-professional-trump-administration-11085695
Snopes. (2025, November 22). Inspecting claim Education Department stopped counting nursing, other programs as ‘professional degrees’. https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/trump-professional-degrees-nursing/
Zippia. (2025). Social worker demographics and statistics in the US. https://www.zippia.com/social-worker-jobs/demographics/
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