Travel Social Work Jobs: How Do They Work?
Travel social work jobs can offer high pay, but typically require years of experience. Learn about the typical travel social work jobs and working with an agency.
- Travel social work offers short-term assignments across the U.S. with the potential for significantly higher pay than traditional roles.
- Most travel social work positions require a master’s degree in social work, advanced licensure, and at least two years of experience.
- Weekly pay for travel social workers can range from $1,200 to over $2,900, depending on location, experience, and agency.
Travel social work is a flexible career option that allows licensed social workers to take temporary, short-term assignments in different locations across the country. This attractive employment opportunity can offer higher pay than traditional social work, but is this the right career path for you?
Our guide to travel social work features insight and advice from Kelly Pennington, LCSW-C, an experienced travel social worker. We answer your questions about job duties, compensation, housing, and travel.
What are the Prerequisites for Travel Social Work?
While recently licensed social workers may be attracted to travel social work jobs, opportunities are generally limited for entry-level professionals. “During COVID-19, there were a few opportunities for licensed bachelor social workers (LBSWs),” Pennington said, “but those opportunities seemed to have drastically declined.”
Travel social work contracts often prefer or require that candidates hold a master of social work (MSW), an advanced social work license, and several years of experience. Pennington encourages social work students and entry-level professionals to gain at least two years of experience before pursuing travel social work.
While opportunities exist for licensed master social workers (LMSWs), Pennington waited to start her own travel social work career until after she obtained a clinical social work license. Being licensed to provide independent social work services helps travelers “minimize the need for supervision hours and paperwork related to collecting supervision,” Pennington said.
What Does a Travel Social Worker Do?
Travel social workers accept short-term assignments to help fill staffing gaps at locations across the country. Workplaces, responsibilities, and client needs vary from one contract to another.
Workplaces
Travel social workers may find opportunities anywhere additional staffing is needed. According to Pennington, hospitals are the primary workplace setting for travel social workers, but “correctional facilities, schools, substance use facilities, and nursing homes are a few of the other contracts people may see posted.”
Job Duties
Travel social workers often provide case management services. In a hospital or other healthcare setting, this may include patient discharge planning, obtaining referrals for facility transfers, or coordinating appointments and care. Other travel social work jobs may ask clinical social workers to provide therapy, crisis intervention, or client assessments.
Assignment Length
Contracts for travel social work jobs range from several weeks to several months in length. The most common assignment duration is 13 weeks (about three months) with extension possible depending on workplace needs. Generally, travel social workers can spend a maximum of one year on assignment in a particular location.
Scheduling
Travel social work jobs offer a variety of scheduling options, according to Pennington. “The contracts I’ve worked on have all been Monday-Friday, eight-hour days. There are definitely contracts with non-traditional hours like weekends or overnights, but I try to steer clear of them. This is something I make sure is outlined in my contract before signing.”
Orientation and Training
Travel social work jobs can provide different levels of on-site orientation and training. During her travel contracts at hospitals, Pennington has had orientations that lasted from one day to one week in length. “The expectation is that you know what you’re doing and will be able to get right to work,” she said.
How Do Travel Social Workers Find Jobs?
Staffing agencies are the primary avenue for finding and securing travel social work contracts. These specialized agencies have established workplace relationships and experienced recruiters who can help match you with the right opportunities.
Some popular travel social work agencies include AMN Healthcare, Aya Healthcare, and GHR Healthcare.
Travel social workers may decide to work with one or multiple agencies at a time. When Pennington began her travel social work career, she worked with one agency, but felt that was limiting her job opportunities. “Now, I work with a handful of recruiters from different agencies,” she said.
Applying for a travel social work job is similar to applying to any other social work position. Candidates who meet qualifications submit the requested information and a resume for consideration.
“Once an agency has all your information and resume, it’s a pretty streamlined process,” Pennington said of the application process. “If you come off a contract with one agency and decide to pick up with a different agency, you’ll need to update your resume and likely do a skills check, but otherwise it’s really just getting your information sent out to open positions.”
If desired, travel social workers can often extend assignments — up to a maximum duration of one year — rather than find a new one. “Typically, positions will offer you extensions while on assignment, and if you’re agreeable, there’s nothing extra to do except sign a new contract.”
How Much Do Travel Social Workers Make?
Travel-based professions like travel nursing and social work are known to offer competitive pay that often outpaces traditional, permanent or in-place positions.
As a travel social worker, your annual income largely depends on scheduling preferences. Do you want to consistently move from one contract to another to maximize earnings, or do you want to take time off between contracts? The number of weeks you work per year impacts your total compensation.
Travel Social Work vs. In-Place Social Work
Travel social work pay varies by contract and candidate qualifications. As of August 2025, available positions from staffing agency AMN Healthcare cite weekly pay rates between $1,340-$2,520. August 2025 listings from staffing agency Aya Healthcare cite weekly pay rates between $1,180-$2,930.
Employment data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) can help you better understand the different pay potential of travel social work jobs and in-place social work jobs.
According to the BLS, social workers across all disciplines — a majority of whom work in-place jobs — earned an annual median income of $61,330 in May 2024. Although pay structure varies by employer, this roughly translates to $1,180 per week, based on a 52-week year. Ten percent of U.S. social workers who make up the lowest-paid cohort earned up to $41,580 annually, roughly $800 per week.
- 1Are travel social workers employed by agencies or by the workplaces they’re assigned to?
I’m 100% employed by my agency. My agency is who sends my check, offers benefits, etc. I’m a W-2 employee.
- 2What types of employee benefits are commonly offered to travel social workers?
This varies greatly from agency to agency. Most agencies offer at least health insurance and some type of 401k investing opportunity. Most agencies don’t offer PTO/sick time. Because I work with different agencies, I buy my health insurance from my state’s healthcare exchange to ensure I have full-time coverage.
- 3What types of compensation are commonly offered to travel social workers?
When I’m traveling outside of my tax home, I get a daily untaxed housing and meal and incidental stipend in addition to my hourly taxed income.
The government sets the maximum amount that you can get paid for untaxed meals and housing, and it varies from city to city. You can check it out at gsa.gov for a rough idea. I check that website after being told what my pay breakdown is to help determine how fair offers are.
- 4What transportation options are available for travel social workers as they move from one placement to another?
For one of my most recent assignments, where I traveled from the East Coast to the West Coast for my assignment, my flights as well as car shipping was covered by my agency. My agency booked my initial flight to the West Coast and said I had X amount of money for shipping my car there and back, and it was up to me to find a carrier. I paid the car carrier and got reimbursed by my agency.
For my flight home, I was reimbursed up to $500 for my plane ticket, so I bought a business class seat and covered the remaining cost out of pocket.
Again, it varies from agency to agency on how much you’ll be allocated, but agencies are helping you get to and from your assignment.
- 5What options do travel social workers have for navigating housing needs as they move and relocate?
I’ve found all of my housing through Furnished Finder or Airbnb when I’m on assignment. Agencies can help with finding housing, but that removes the untaxed housing stipend from your pay package. There are also some jobs in locations that are more remote (like Alaska) or expensive that include housing in their offer.
- 6Given that social work licenses are state-specific, how do you handle obtaining and renewing credentials as you move from one placement to another?
The new social work licensing compact is going to eventually make this a lot easier. I personally don’t carry multiple licenses and will apply as needed to the states I’m traveling to. There are a lot of other travelers I know who carry multiple state licenses; I just haven’t found that personally beneficial.
- 7Have you found travel social work a fulfilling professional pathway? What are some pros and cons of this field in your experience?
Travel social work has given me the incredible ability to see the country while also building my resume. I’ve learned so much not just about the field of social work, but about myself through travel social work. The pay is also a pretty nice perk.
One of my first assignments was in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and I had initially accepted the offer because I had no reason to ever go to South Dakota, so why not get paid to go?
This was my first time truly being alone, a thousand miles from everyone I knew, and boy, those first two or three days were rough. I remember sitting on the side of the bathtub in my apartment and just sobbing on the phone to my best friend because it was just so different and new. I ended up there for almost a year because I was learning so much and enjoying the work I was doing.
The biggest pro and con is being alone. Travel social work has forced me to eat alone at restaurants, go to shows alone, and find new hobbies. In fact, now I even vacation by myself because I’ve learned to value my independence so much.
Is Travel Social Work Right for You?
Getting paid more to travel for work may sound like a no-brainer, but prospective travel social workers should examine the opportunity from all angles before deciding to dive in. Pennington believes new social workers looking to break into travel assignments can easily overlook how stressful the reality is.
“Most assignments want you to start within a month of accepting,” she said, “which means figuring out housing, onboarding, traveling, and everything else that goes into potentially moving across the country for three months. Even as an experienced traveler, there is definitely some stress related to the period of ending an assignment and picking up a new one.”
Pennington reminds prospective travel social workers that this career requires them to be ready to hit the ground running and adapt as needed. “Often, outgoing and self-motivated social workers tend to do well as travelers,” she said.
If you’re set on a travel social work career, Pennington offers the following advice: “Some recruiters talk a good game, but remember you’re the one who is actually making the agency money, so be your biggest advocate. Don’t settle for low-paying assignments just because you’re desperate to break in. It just makes hospitals think they can pay us less.”
Kelly Pennington, LCSW-C, is a licensed clinical social worker with a strong foundation in hospital-based care and crisis support. She began her career in the pediatric ICU/cardiac ICU in 2018, where she provided direct support to patients and families navigating high-stress, high-acuity medical situations. While gaining clinical experience, she earned her LCSW-C, deepening her ability to advocate for patients and collaborate with multidisciplinary teams.
In early 2022, Kelly transitioned into travel social work, combining her clinical skills with a desire for flexibility and growth. She has since completed five travel assignments in a variety of fast-paced environments, bringing her expertise, empathy, and professionalism to each role. Kelly thrives in dynamic settings and is passionate about helping individuals and families cope, heal, and move forward. She is currently preparing for her sixth assignment and remains committed to making a meaningful impact wherever her work takes her.
