Social Work Jobs in Raleigh, NC

Government wage data puts the Raleigh-Cary community-and-social-service family at a $58,390 median, $46,040 at the 25th percentile, $69,760 at the 75th percentile, and $81,110 at the 90th percentile for 2025, with a mean of $58,850. A broader BLS metro grouping shows $28.29 per hour, while the Callings.ai job database shows local posted pay centered on about $50k to $65k, with a broader 25th-75th band of about $48k to $109k.

Full September 2026 market report

Advertised pay

Across the 206 openings that disclose pay, the advertised range midpoint runs $60,500 at the 25th percentile, $83,200 at the median and $98,475 at the 75th. These are advertised ranges, not earned pay.

Active openings as of November 10, 2026

Senior roles | Entry level | Remote | Posted this week

Live from the Callings.ai index of over 13 million postings, refreshed hourly and re-checked here nightly. Roles that close are dropped at the next refresh.

Showing 30 of 250+ openings.

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What our analysts see this month

Balanced market | next 3-6 months

Raleigh-Cary is a workable but selective market for this category over the next 3-6 months. Metro unemployment was 3.1% in August 2026, total nonfarm employment was up 2.2338% year over year, and Education and Health Services employment was up 3.5547% year over year, which supports demand around hospital, care-coordination, and community-facing roles. But community and social service occupations made up only 1.3% of Raleigh-Cary employment in May 2025, below the 1.7% national share, and North Carolina active postings in this occupation family were down 4.0% year over year in September 2026.

Best positioned: Candidates with recent case management, crisis intervention, care coordination, or discharge planning experience—and flexibility for mostly on-site, mid-career roles—have the best odds right now.

Main caution: The biggest mistake is assuming Raleigh's strong overall economy automatically means lots of easy entry-level openings in this field; only about 20% of the recent local posting mix was entry level, while about 75% skewed mid-career.

From the September 2026 market report

Who is hiring here

Counted across all 354 openings in this market. 10 of the employers below are hiring for more than one role right now.

1. Duke PA: 32 open roles
2. Duke Health: 23 open roles
3. Legacy Healthcare Services, Inc.: 13 open roles
4. Athletico: 8 open roles
5. MySpectrum LLC: 8 open roles
6. Spectrum, LLC: 8 open roles
7. Wakemed: 7 open roles
8. Action Behavior Centers: 6 open roles
9. Ivy Rehab: 6 open roles
10. Optum: 6 open roles

Where the openings are

• Raleigh: 110
• Durham: 91
• Cary: 36
• Apex: 19
• Wake Forest: 12
• Garner: 11
• Smithfield: 7
• Fuquay-Varina: 7

Work arrangement

on-site 271 (78%), hybrid 39 (11%), remote 37 (11%)

Where the demand is

Real opportunity is concentrated much more in healthcare-linked organizations than in pure nonprofit community agencies. In the local posting mix, healthcare accounts for about 35% of postings and hospitals and health care another about 25%, versus about 10% each in individual and family services and government administration. Duke PA was the most consistently active named employer in the recent sample, with more than 20 postings, but hiring overall remained fragmented rather than dominated by a single institution. That concentration matches the broader metro backdrop. Raleigh-Cary Education and Health Services employment reached 110.7 thousand in August 2026 and was up 3.5547% year over year, while the occupation itself represented only 1.3% of total metro employment in the latest local wage release. In practice, that means the most reliable openings are often social-work, counseling, or care-coordination jobs embedded inside health systems, outpatient behavioral programs, or publicly funded service networks—not a huge stand-alone nonprofit hiring boom. A smaller but meaningful pocket sits in housing, outreach, and wraparound services. Wake at Home reported that 33 people moved into housing and support after eight weeks of local outreach, and phase one carries an approximately $22 million commitment through December 2027. That is not the same as confirmed job counts, but it is a concrete local signal for people with outreach, housing-navigation, and benefits-linkage experience.

• Hospital and health-system social work / care coordination (high): Largest local concentration by posting mix, with strong alignment to case management, discharge planning, documentation, and interdisciplinary collaboration.
• Behavioral health and substance use programs (moderate): Supported by state policy changes around SUD coverage and more than $17 million in new North Carolina mental health and crisis funding announced in October 2026.
• Housing, outreach, and community-based nonprofit work (moderate): Smaller share of the visible market, but local housing and wraparound initiatives create a real lane for outreach, navigation, and stabilization skills.

Where to focus: Target hospital-linked case management and behavioral-health roles first, then use housing and outreach programs as your second lane if you already have field-engagement experience.

Roles worth searching next

• Patient care coordinator or utilization support assistant: It uses the same documentation, referral, discharge, and interdisciplinary communication muscles.
• Nonprofit program coordinator or grants-backed operations coordinator: It keeps you in mission-driven work while shifting from direct service into program delivery, reporting, and partner management.
• Benefits or eligibility specialist: It fits people strong in advocacy, documentation, public-policy rules, and client follow-through.
• Population health outreach coordinator or patient engagement specialist: It blends outreach and client engagement with healthcare workflow and data tracking.

What postings ask for

• Case management (table_stakes | immediate): It was the clearest local baseline skill, appearing in about 55% of recent postings. Who: Everyone in this category, especially entry-level and career-switching candidates.
• Documentation and case-note quality (table_stakes | immediate): Documentation showed up in about 40% of local postings, and 2026 workflow trends emphasize EHR use, report generation, and clean digital records. Who: All applicants, especially anyone coming from education, customer service, or nonprofit work.
• Crisis intervention (differentiator | immediate): Crisis intervention appeared in about 30% of local postings and remains one of the most in-demand competencies in this field. Who: Mid-career candidates and anyone aiming at behavioral health, hospital, or outreach roles.
• Care coordination and discharge planning (differentiator | immediate): Both skills appear often in local postings and are especially tied to the healthcare-heavy employer mix in Raleigh-Cary. Who: Social workers, case managers, and career switchers targeting hospital-adjacent roles.
• Case management certification (ACM, CCM, or ANCC) (differentiator | near-term): These were among the most commonly cited credentials in local postings, signaling value for structured care-coordination work. Who: Mid-career candidates or switchers who already have relevant experience and want a credibility boost.
• LCSW, LCMHC, or LMFT licensure (premium | near-term): These licenses show up in the local credential mix and help you access the tighter, better-paid end of counseling and advanced social-work roles. Who: Experienced practitioners who plan to stay in direct service or behavioral health.

Questions about this market

What do Social Services, Counseling & Community roles pay in Raleigh-Cary, NC?

Government wage data puts the Raleigh-Cary community-and-social-service family at a $58,390 median, $46,040 at the 25th percentile, $69,760 at the 75th percentile, and $81,110 at the 90th percentile for 2025, with a mean of $58,850. A broader BLS metro grouping shows $28.29 per hour, while the Callings.ai job database shows local posted pay centered on about $50k to $65k, with a broader 25th-75th band of about $48k to $109k. This is moderate pay for Raleigh-Cary rather than premium pay. The category's broad BLS hourly pay sits below the metro's all-occupation mean of $34.01, so many roles offer mission-driven stability more than outsized cash compensation.

Where is demand for Social Services, Counseling & Community roles in Raleigh-Cary, NC concentrated?

Real opportunity is concentrated much more in healthcare-linked organizations than in pure nonprofit community agencies. In the local posting mix, healthcare accounts for about 35% of postings and hospitals and health care another about 25%, versus about 10% each in individual and family services and government administration. Duke PA was the most consistently active named employer in the recent sample, with more than 20 postings, but hiring overall remained fragmented rather than dominated by a single institution. That concentration matches the broader metro backdrop. Raleigh-Cary Education and Health Services employment reached 110.7 thousand in August 2026 and was up 3.5547% year over year, while the occupation itself represented only 1.3% of total metro employment in the latest local wage release. In practice, that means the most reliable openings are often social-work, counseling, or care-coordination jobs embedded inside health systems, outpatient behavioral programs, or publicly funded service networks—not a huge stand-alone nonprofit hiring boom. A smaller but meaningful pocket sits in housing, outreach, and wraparound services. Wake at Home reported that 33 people moved into housing and support after eight weeks of local outreach, and phase one carries an approximately $22 million commitment through December 2027. That is not the same as confirmed job counts, but it is a concrete local signal for people with outreach, housing-navigation, and benefits-linkage experience.

Which employers are hiring the most Social Services, Counseling & Community talent in Raleigh-Cary, NC?

Recent postings show the most activity from Duke PA (20 postings). See the full market report for the complete employer landscape.

Can Social Services, Counseling & Community roles in Raleigh-Cary, NC be done remotely?

Of recent postings, 10% are remote and 25% hybrid, with 65% on-site. Use the Remote filter above to see only remote openings.

How current are these listings?

Openings come from the Callings.ai live index of over 13 million jobs, refreshed hourly. This page searches postings from the last 30 days; run the search yourself to filter by anything else in plain language.

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