Social Work Licensure and Regulation in the United States: Current Trends and Recommendations for the Future

Abstract

This article provides a review of current trends in social work licensure and regulation in the United States. Topics include practice regulation, the purpose of licensure, the gap between social work education and regulation, and practice mobility. Recommendations for advancing licensure and regulation practices for the future are also provided. Discussion includes narrowing the gap between Council on Social Work Education standards and Association of Social Work Boards exam content, improving licensure preparation in educational settings, resolving macro practice concerns about social work licensure, developing consistency across license titles, providing transparency in exam pass rate demographics, achieving practice mobility, and advancing empirical research on testing and practice competence.