Maryland Licensed Certified Social Worker (LCSW)

Maryland Licensed Certified Social Worker (LCSW) Licensure Process

With this license, you can practice independently in a non-clinical social work setting. Getting this license requires the following

Educational Requirements

Just like in Licensed Master Social Work (LMSW), you will also need a Master of Social Work degree (MSW) to obtain a Licensed Certified Social Worker(LCSW) license. This degree must be obtained from a Council of Social Work Education (CSWE) accredited program.

Examination Requirements

The Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB)’s advanced generalist exam is required for this license. Unlike the bachelor’s and master’s exams, this exam costs $260. Payment is made either by Visa, Mastercard, or Discover.

Send an application to the board and get a go-ahead before registering for the ASWB exam. Registration can be done either online, via mail, or by fax.

• Online: Go to the ASWB website and click on “Register for the Exam” on the opening page. Complete the registration form and pay the exam fee of $230 using Visa, Mastercard, or Discover.
• Mail: Print the application form here, fill it out, and send it along with the application fee via mail to ASWB Candidate Services, 17126 Mountain Run Vista Ct., Culpeper, VA 22701.
• Fax: Complete this form available here and fax it to ASWB at 540.829.0142. Fill out the credit card payment information completely. When registering by fax, only credit card payments (Visa, Mastercard, and Discover) will be allowed.

Experience Requirements

The board can be sure of your ability to practice independently after you must have gotten some supervised experience. To obtain the LCSW license, you must have obtained your LMSW license with which you must have gathered 3000 hours of supervised experience in no less than two years and a minimum of 100 hours of periodic face-to-face supervision. A supervision contract must be signed by both you and your supervisor before you begin your supervised experience. The supervisor can be a Licensed  Certified Social Worker- Clinical or an LCSW, either with at least 18 months of holding a license.

Reference Requirements

The board-approved supervisor will have to fill out a supervision verification form. If your supervisor is not board-approved, then the form is invalid.

Applying for Licensure as  a Certified Social Worker

• Get the application form on the board’s website and fill it out correctly.
• Pay a sum of $130 for the application and criminal history check fee.
• Have your official transcript forwarded to the board from your CSWE-accredited program.
• Mail all necessary documents to the board including the supervision contract, supervision verification, and summary sheet forms.
• Register for the ASWB advanced generalist exam for a fee of $260
• Schedule your exam date with Pearson Vue.

Results will be sent to the board. Qualified persons will then be issued the LCSW license after paying the licensure fee of $75.