Shigoto Zukan
日本語

How to become 福祉ソーシャルワーカーeducation, training, experience, licenses and the steps to enter

Japan Social Services Confidence ★★★★★

Average annual pay
¥4.42M
≈ $28,086
Top pay (est.)
¥7.30M
Top 10% ¥6.34M
Pay in 5 years
¥5.22Mest.
2031
Pay in 10 years
¥6.17Mest.
¥5.30M–¥7.16M
Outlook score
71/100
★★★★☆ Good
AI replacement risk
23%
Low
Labor demand
Very high
Openings-to-applicants 2.65x

How to become 福祉ソーシャルワーカー

The typical path in Japan is shown by the education, training and experience of current workers above and in the Japanese guidance below. A detailed English guide for this occupation is being prepared.

Guidance from job tag (Japanese)
ソーシャルワーカーになるには、国家資格である「社会福祉士」か「精神保健福祉士」の資格を取得することが一般的である。公務員として都道府県や市町村の福祉事務所で働くためには、任用資格である「社会福祉主事資格」を取得しなければならない。
　それぞれの職場に入職後はOJTで経験を積みながら仕事をしていくことになる。研鑽を求められる職業であり、社会福祉士の場合、日本社会福祉会の生涯研修センターでの「生涯研修制度」を利用している人も多い。社会福祉士のスキルアップを支援し、キャリアアップにつなげる仕組みとして、認定社会福祉士認証・認定機構では、実務経験5年以上の「社会福祉士の実践力」を認証する「認定社会福祉士」制度がある。
　ソーシャルワーカーの仕事は相談業務が中心となるだけに、人とのコミュニケーション能力が高いことが求められる。利用者やその家族はもとより、医療機関や行政などとの折衝・連携も欠かせない職業であるので、コーディネート能力も重要である。支援を必要としている利用者と向きあう仕事なので、使命感や正義感、思いやりも大切である。

Skills, education and requirements for 福祉ソーシャルワーカー

Key skills

Active Listening
5.5
Service Orientation
4.8
Social Perceptiveness
4.8
Coordination
4.5
Persuasion
4.4
Complex Problem Solving
4.3
Instructing
4.2
Negotiation
4.2

Skill levels from the MHLW job tag worker survey.

Key knowledge areas

Psychology
3.3
Therapy and Counseling
3.2
Medicine and Dentistry
2.9
Sociology and Anthropology
2.9
Customer and Personal Service
2.8
Administrative
2.6
Education and Training
2.2
Communications and Media
2.2

What the work involves

Assisting and Caring for OthersEstablishing and Maintaining Interpersonal RelationshipsCommunicating with People Outside the OrganizationCommunicating with Supervisors, Peers, or SubordinatesDeveloping and Building TeamsGetting InformationEvaluating Information to Determine Compliance with StandardsMonitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings

Important abilities

Oral ExpressionProblem SensitivityWritten ComprehensionOral ComprehensionWritten ExpressionDeductive Reasoning

Licenses and certifications (Japan)

Related qualifications listed on job tag (names in Japanese). Some are mandatory, others recommended.

Education of workers

Training before entry

Related work experience

Difficulty of entry: ★★★☆☆ Moderate (from education, training, experience, licenses)

Career path and how to earn more as 福祉ソーシャルワーカー

Career-path guidance is being prepared. Pay by experience is shown in the Pay section.

Pay and employment figures are national statistics. Projected pay, outlook scores and AI replacement risk are estimates from the Shigoto Zukan model, not guarantees. To request a correction, use the contact form. How to read the data
Sources: Basic Survey on Wage Structure (2025), Population Census and Hello Work employment statistics as published on the MHLW job tag site (retrieved Nov 1, 2026); Occupational Information Database (JILPT). Pay ranges, projections and scores are Shigoto Zukan estimates.