Medical Social Worker
Last updated · Confirm dates, fees and eligibility on the official website before you apply.
Helps patients and families deal with the non-clinical side of illness - money, schemes, discharge, housing and mental health - in a hospital or health programme. Reached through BSW or MSW.
- Route in
- Earliest entry: Undergraduate. Also entered at: Undergraduate, Postgraduate. Direct entry. 2 courses lead here
- Entry pay
- ₹15,000 – ₹28,000 / monthly Any experience
- Where you work
- Hospitals (medical social work), UN and international agencies, NGOs and development organisations, Government welfare departments
How people get in
Getting in
Earliest entry point. Undergraduate level.
Other levels people enter from. Undergraduate, Postgraduate.
Where people work
Outlook
Hospitals (medical social work), UN and international agencies, NGOs and development organisations, Government welfare departments.
Indicative starting salary
Understand the role
15,000 - 28,000 per month at entry level.
This is an indicative range, not a quote. Actual pay varies with employer, city, sector and the specific role.
The route in, step by step
6 steps from where you are now.
Class 12, any stream Required
Any stream. Empathy and organisation both matter here.
BA or BSW - Bachelor of Social Work Required
Three years, with fieldwork built in.
MSW with a medical and psychiatric specialisation Required
Two years. Medical social work is a defined MSW specialisation and hospital posts ask for it by name.
Complete hospital fieldwork Required
Placement in a hospital setting - wards, counselling, discharge planning and family work. It is where you learn to function inside a clinical hierarchy.
Work in a hospital or health programme Required
Patient and family counselling, welfare scheme linkage, discharge planning, and support for chronic and terminal illness. Connecting poor patients to schemes they qualify for is often the most materially useful thing anyone does for them.
Senior medical social worker, or programme roles Optional
Heading a hospital social work department, or public health programme work with government or NGOs.
Courses that lead here
2 mapped routes into this career.
What it pays
Indicative bands.
| Stage | Pay band | What changes |
|---|---|---|
| Any experience | ₹15,000 – ₹28,000 / monthly | Varies by employer |
These are ranges, not offers. Pay varies by city, employer size, sector and your own skill more than by job title. Treat the band as the shape of the market, not as a number you can hold anyone to.
Common questions
The ones people actually ask about this work.
What qualification do you need to become a Medical Social Worker?
The earliest entry point is undergraduate level. People also enter from: Undergraduate, Postgraduate.
Where does a Medical Social Worker usually work?
Hospitals (medical social work), UN and international agencies, NGOs and development organisations, Government welfare departments.
What does a Medical Social Worker earn to start?
15,000 - 28,000 per month is a typical entry-level range. Pay varies with employer, city and sector.
Test this against your own priorities
Pay, hours and entry route matter differently to different people. Compare this against the alternative you are actually weighing, rather than against the average.