Best Online Bachelor’s of Human Services Degree Programs Ranked for 2023

BEST ONLINE BACHELOR'S IN HUMAN SERVICES

Published: Jul 2, 2021
Updated: Sep 9, 2023

Find top-ranked online bachelor’s in human services degree programs for students wanting to go into fields like counseling, social work, community outreach, elder care, addictions counseling, child protective services, and mental health services.

Key Takeaways

Human services workers are dedicated to meeting essential human needs, such as shelter, good health, and financial sustenance.
A human services online bachelor’s program features courses that ultimately study the human condition and provide the means and strategies to improve human lives.
To move into a human services leadership position, professionals must possess a strong academic background while being compassionate and action-oriented.

Top 10 Online Bachelor's in Human Services Degrees

University of Arizona
University of South Carolina
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Mercer University
Nova Southeastern University
University of South Alabama
Washburn University
East Tennessee State University
Troy University
Murray State University

Troy University 95%
Nova Southeastern University 93%
University of Alabama at Birmingham 89%
Gordon State College 88%
University of Arizona 87%
East Tennessee State University 87%
Murray State University 85%
University of South Carolina Beaufort 84%
Iowa Wesleyan University 82%
Shorter University 81%

Purdue Global 28 to 1
St. Petersburg College 23 to 1
Florida State College at Jacksonville 23 to 1
Columbia College 23 to 1
Gordon State College 22 to 1
University of Alabama at Birmingham 20 to 1
California Baptist University 19 to 1
Excelsior University 19 to 1
Troy University 18 to 1
University of South Carolina 18 to 1

Mercer University $38,746
California Baptist University $37,018
Nova Southeastern University $34,570
Iowa Wesleyan University $33,650
Upper Iowa University $33,609
Quincy University $31,160
Belhaven University $27,825
Lindsey Wilson College $25,718
Columbia College $23,840
Shorter University $22,810

Nova Southeastern University $21,153
Upper Iowa University $19,685
Mercer University $15,244
University of South Carolina $13,734
University of South Carolina Beaufort $13,734
California Baptist University $13,590
Shorter University $12,600
University of Arizona $12,106
Quincy University $12,000
Belhaven University $10,530

Excelsior University
Gordon State College
Lindsey Wilson College
University of South Carolina Beaufort
Shorter University
Lander University
Columbia College
Iowa Wesleyan University
Belhaven University
Quincy University

Quincy University 60%
University of South Carolina 62%
Belhaven University 64%
California Baptist University 64%
Upper Iowa University 65%
Lander University 69%
University of South Alabama 71%
Mercer University 75%
Shorter University 81%
Iowa Wesleyan University 82%

Belhaven University 8 to 1
Upper Iowa University 11 to 1
Iowa Wesleyan University 12 to 1
Mercer University 14 to 1
Washburn University 15 to 1
Shorter University 15 to 1
University of South Carolina Beaufort 15 to 1
University of Arizona 15 to 1
Quincy University 15 to 1
East Tennessee State University 16 to 1

St. Petersburg College $1,943
Florida State College at Jacksonville $2,095
Gordon State College $2,563
East Tennessee State University $7,486
Murray State University $8,040
University of South Alabama $8,256
University of Alabama at Birmingham $8,568
Washburn University $8,762
Troy University $9,312
Purdue Global $10,080

Iowa Wesleyan University $6,300
University of Alabama at Birmingham $8,100
University of South Alabama $8,226
Columbia College $8,442
Troy University $8,550
Purdue Global $8,730
East Tennessee State University $8,784
Murray State University $8,982
Washburn University $9,526
Lindsey Wilson College $9,548

Table of Contents

Featured Programs

The Diverse Field of Human Services

Under the human services degree program are specialized studies. Human services majors focus on or study the following:

Psychology

Psychology, one of the oldest human services professions, provides individual and group treatment, policy, and support to corporations and the government. Licensed psychologists hold one of the most rigorously trained professions, and a bachelor’s in human services takes you a step closer to this job.

Substance Abuse

The addiction counseling track is ideal for human services students with strong interpersonal skills to provide professional support, advice, and guidance to patients suffering from substance abuse disorder. Some substance abuse jobs require a master’s or PhD in Human Services.

Counseling

It is not uncommon for counselors, therapists, social workers, and psychologists to work together to provide practical solutions to patients’ problems. Professional counselors use a systematic approach to address issues as the counseling track is largely divided into affliction-specific specializations.

Emergency Management

Emergency management is highly specialized, much like the correctional work field. Human services are needed most during emergencies and situations when conventional human services systems cannot address such issues. The OHSEPR-Office of Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response is a dedicated office where many human services graduates work.

Human Services Careers for Graduates

Behaviorist Therapist

Behavioral therapists treat patients with mental health disorders to manage or overcome them. Depending on their specialization, they may treat specific types of patients or conditions. To address their patient’s needs, behavioral therapists meet them regularly to discuss their concerns.

Case Manager

A case manager connects clients to health care and other resources that benefit the individual or community’s overall well-being. They can work with various clients, including people with disabilities, abuse victims, or homeless people. After assessing the client’s needs, a personalized care plan is developed, and treatment options are discussed with the case manager.

Community Outreach Specialist

Community outreach workers must contribute to local community health, education, and safety. Clients and communities benefit greatly from their services in any setting where improving their lives is the goal. Often, community outreach workers are in close contact with clients, offering prevention programs, collecting relevant data, and advocating for their target issue to local legislators.

Child Welfare Worker

Children are protected from mistreatment and unsafe conditions by child welfare specialists. They commonly work for government agencies, though some are employed by or partner with non-profit human services organizations or private adoption and foster care agencies.

Child welfare specialists often visit homes or residential facilities to determine whether the environment is safe and suitable for children. Often, they provide testimony for court proceedings or attend hearings regarding allegations of abuse against children.

Substance Abuse Counselor

A substance abuse counselor typically works in a health clinic, rehab facility, or non-profit organization. The professionals in this human services field help people suffering from substance. To achieve or maintain sobriety, they assist them in overcoming this debilitating disease.

Family Court Administrator

In crisis intervention programs or social services departments, family court advocates assist families in court. Foster children, children recovering from domestic violence, or children recovering from sexual assault will need assistance from a family court administrator. Any legal case they handle should be focused on the best interests of the children and family.

Frequently Asked Questions About Human Services Degrees

If you like to help people and take part in improving the quality of life for others, a bachelor’s degree in human services could be right for you. This undergraduate degree focuses on prevention as well as remediation, and students will be able to select a specialization, such as advocacy, corrections, child and family, mental health, and gerontology.

Most 120-credit programs take about four to five years to complete and can be pursued online or on campus.

Students will study topics like crisis intervention, social welfare policies, advocacy and social justice.

After graduation, students can seek employment in a variety of fields, including counseling, social work, community outreach, elder care, addictions counseling, child protective services, and mental health services. Many students also choose to continue into advanced degree programs, where they can qualify for leadership roles and opportunities to provide clinical therapy.

Learn more about how to major in social work.

Best Online Bachelor's in Human Services Degree Programs

How do we determine the best online human services bachelor's degree programs?

Methodology

Pursuing your degree online doesn’t mean you need to settle for an inferior school. Today, most universities and colleges offer online degrees, and many respected schools are seeing significant growth in their numbers of online students.

The people affiliated with a school are ultimately what make it great. This is why influence — i.e., the academic impact of faculty and alumni associated with a school — gets at the heart of what is truly best in education. The combined influence score of a college or university’s top academic influencers is the best indicator of academic excellence. For our online degree rankings, we focus on the academic influence of faculty and alumni in the specific disciplines we’re ranking.

If you are serious about finding the best online colleges, you should be asking where the most influential professors are teaching, and whether their graduates themselves are advancing the school’s reputation for academic excellence. Most ranking sites rely on an opaque combination of reputation surveys and arbitrary performance metrics. Influence, as measured by our InfluenceRanking engine, provides a ranking that is free from bias, insulated from manipulation, and reflective of real-world educational outcomes.

Median Salaries of Similar Careers in the U.S.

The following graph depicts the average salaries of similar occupations to Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors in the U.S.

Source: U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS

Annual Salary

44740Rehabilitation Counselors

49730Counselors, All Other

53490Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors

54880Child, Family, and School Social Workers

62310Healthcare Social Workers

Best Online Bachelor’s in Human Services Degree Programs

Online Human Services Programs Looking for You

Online Degree Frequently Asked Questions

If this is your first time taking an online course, the experience may require a time of adjustment. Although you’ll typically learn the same material and take the same exams as your on-campus peers, going online will require greater independence and responsibility than going in person. You’ll be accountable for your own time management, for harnessing the online educational technology that you’ll need to use, and for completing the course requirements, such as listening to lectures, learning lessons, reading texts, and handing in assignments. This means you’ll need to create a suitable workspace for yourself, maintain a realistic schedule, and take the initiative in building relationships with your instructors and classmates. With online college, your goal is to find a balance between independence and engagement.

No. The only part of online education that’s easier than campus-based education is ease of access: all you need is a computer and an internet connection for online education. But even this seeming advantage of online education can be misleading: what’s easier, studying online with your computer and internet connection from your home where you need to cook, clean, pay rent, and maintain a job? Or studying on campus in a dorm where all your living needs are handled by the school, and college staff are there to help you every step of the way?

If you take the commute to campus out of the equation, campus-based education is easier. All the support structures available on campus for students, especially with real people to help you in person, are not there online. The demands on you as an online student will largely be the same as for your campus-based counterpart, but without the same helps.

In general, your online courses will present the same material and test you in the same way as traditional in-person courses. In many cases, you’ll even have the same instructors as your on-campus counterparts. In fact, if you are adjusting to the experience of independent learning with remote educational technology for the first time, online college may be considerably more challenging than campus-based college. For a few insights on how to manage this new online experience, check out our 10 Tips for Adjusting to School Online.

Accreditation is especially important when it comes to online college. This is because the online education landscape is a mix of highly-reputable non-profit institutions on the one end and less-than-reputable for-profit institutions on the other end. Accreditation gives you the power to identify the more reputable actors in online education. Accreditation is a stamp of approval from an independent accrediting agency indicating that a college or university is meeting standards of quality and credibility. School-wide accreditation falls into two major categories: regional and national accreditation. Regional accreditors generally hold jurisdiction only over schools in the states comprising their region, whereas national accreditors hold jurisdiction over schools in all states. Regional accreditation is widely regarded as a more rigorous standard of quality and credibility than national accreditation.

Attending a college or university that is not regionally accredited could limit your opportunities. For students seeking an online education, we strongly recommend that they opt for regionally accredited schools. Regional accreditation ensures eligibility for federal loans and grants, ensures your college credits can be transferred between schools, and ensures that your degree credits can be accepted if you wish to earn an advanced degree. For more on this important topic, check out our What is Accreditation and Why Does It Matter? College & University Accreditation Guide.

As long as your online college degree is regionally accredited (see the previous point), you should have little difficulty transferring most of your credits or credentials to another regionally accredited undergraduate school. Every school carries its own standards and procedures for granting a transfer of credits. In many cases, you will encounter some bureaucratic haggling in which some of your credits will be transferred and others may be refused. However, provided that you have attended an online school with recognized regional accreditation, you should be in good shape in transferring your credits earned online.

In most cases, as long you graduate from a well-regarded, regionally-accredited online college, prospective employers won’t look sideways at your degree. In fact, unless you attend an exclusively online college or university, there will likely be no specific indicator on your degree, transcript, or resumé differentiating your school from its brick-and-mortar counterpart. This means that your employer will likely only differentiate between an online and in-person degree if you mention this distinction.

Some employers may express the concern that because you did your degree online, you may need to transition from an online education experience to in-person workplace experience. But in an age of Covid, that concern seems much diminished. The fact is that much employment these days is remote. And collaboration increasingly happens online over Zoom. Many employers will therefore view your online degree as evidence of valuable 21st century professional skills such as independence, self-motivation, time management, and tech savvy.

If you are a student who thrives on the dynamic energy of in-person discussion, who requires the physical surroundings of a classroom to feel engaged, or who considers the social aspects of education to be of equal importance to the actual content of your courses, online education will be less than ideal for you (though depending on your circumstances, it may also be the only viable option).

While there is much in traditional campus-based education that can be substituted or simulated through the online medium, some students may find that there is nothing that can replace the conversation, collaboration, and motivation that occur in an actual in-person classroom setting. As you transition to online education, one of the biggest challenges you will likely face in getting the most out of your online classes is overcoming this difference between “real reality” and “virtual reality.” Fortunately, we’ve got some great Tips for Online Education Beginners.

The advantages of online classes are many. Above all, online courses give you the freedom and flexibility to attend class from anywhere that works for you, whether you’re at home, in a coffee shop, or in a quiet conference room at work. In many cases, you’ll also enjoy the convenience of asynchronous learning opportunities-educational experiences that you can complete at your own pace and on your own schedule. This may include pre-taped lectures, ongoing chat-board discussions, and 24/7 access to digital materials. And of course, just as there are some learners who prefer the energy of a live classroom, there are those who learn best when working in their own personal space, free from distractions. If this sounds like you, you might find the solitude of online learning to be a major advantage.

Whether you’re just getting started on your college search, you’re looking for survival tips on your way to a bachelor’s degree, or you’re preparing for the transition into grad school, we’ve got guides, how to’s and tons of other valuable resources to keep you moving forward in your educational journey.

Best Online Bachelor’s of Human Services Degree Programs Ranked for 2023

Key Takeaways

Top 10 Online Bachelor's in Human Services Degrees

Featured Programs

The Diverse Field of Human Services

Psychology

Substance Abuse

Counseling

Emergency Management

Human Services Careers for Graduates

Behaviorist Therapist

Case Manager

Community Outreach Specialist

Child Welfare Worker

Substance Abuse Counselor

Family Court Administrator

Frequently Asked Questions About Human Services Degrees

Why get a bachelor’s in human services?

How long does it take to get a bachelor’s in human services?

What topics are covered when getting a bachelor’s in human services?

What can you do with a bachelor’s in human services?

Median Salaries of Similar Careers in the U.S.

Best Online Bachelor’s in Human Services Degree Programs

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Online Human Services Programs Looking for You

Online Degree Frequently Asked Questions

What can I expect from an online college course?+

Is online college easier than campus-based college?+

Why does accreditation matter in online college?+

Will I be able to transfer my online college degree?+

Will employers respect my online degree?+

What are the disadvantages of online classes?+

What are the advantages of online classes?+

Resources for Online College-Bound Students