Online Human Service Degrees

While caring for people may seem like a career choice that requires no education, most human service careers require at least a bachelor's degree in human service. As the average age of the population increases, the demand for human service workers is rising quickly. Now, interested individuals can earn a bachelor degree in human service online, in the comfort of their own homes.

Before a person can get started completing online work for human service courses, most online programs have a few requirements. Depending upon the program, the minimum age of a student is anywhere from 17 years old to 22 years old. Certain online human service degree programs call for previous work experience or access to a work environment. Prospective students must have a high school diploma or GED. Most programs will transfer college credits as long as a student’s GPA is a 2.0 or higher.

 

Once students get accepted into the program, they will need to earn 120 to 128 credit hours in order to obtain their online human service degrees. Online schools cost about $300 per credit hour, putting the total cost of an online degree in human service around $36,000.

 

Some courses offer six-week online courses, while others let students complete the courses at their own discretion according to their schedules. Students earning a bachelor degree online in human service can expect to take courses in:

Once someone obtains a bachelor degree online in human service, the person is qualified to work within nursing homes, mental health centers and youth service organizations. Some popular career paths for people with online degrees in human service are:

Workers in the human service field give aid to those with disabilities or special needs, as well as teach people critical life skills in order for them to live independently. One entry-level position in this field is a direct care counselor. A direct care counselor does not actually satisfy the needs of patients, but rather, evaluates the patients’ needs and coordinates a health care worker to provide for the patients. Direct care counselors earn about $25,000 to $30,000.

 

In the middle of the ladder, case managers earn $40,000 to $70,000, depending on the location, their experience and job responsibilities. One of the highest positions in the human service field is community service leader. A community service leader can earn anywhere from $50,000 to $100,000, depending upon their level of education and experience, the location and the amount of responsibility allotted to that position.

Because of the nurturing nature of the field, people with strong abilities to develop relationships will do well as human service workers. Human service workers need to commit to their patients and have a genuine interest in their patients’ welfares. Also necessary in this field are strong interpersonal and communication skills, in addition to great organizational and problem-solving abilities.