Doctoral · Minneapolis, Minnesota

Is Social Work at Walden University worth it?

Medium confidence Medium confidence: 40–99 graduates behind the earnings figures.

The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans

Pays back in time: graduates typically recover the cost in about 6.9 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $88,781; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $107,340; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $138,500; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Typical borrowing (no graduate net price is published): $147k (likely $147k – $147k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $41k a year vs bachelor's graduates 4 years out in MN; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 6.9 years (likely 5.3–9.0); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: −$199k (likely −$342k – −$63k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $322k (likely $29k – $623k); Today's dollars

Scorecard reports no net price for graduate programs; cost is based on what graduates typically borrowed.