South-dakota SW Requirements & Hours Tracker

Licensing as a Social Worker (SW) in South Dakota is structured more around education and examination than around a set number of post‑degree practice hours. Unlike some states that require, for example, 3,000 hours of supervised practice with a specific breakdown of direct vs. indirect hours, South Dakota’s Board of Social Work Examiners does not set a numeric hours requirement for the SW (bachelor‑level) license.

Below is a concise, step‑by‑step explanation, highlighting exactly where “hours” do and do not appear in South Dakota law and Board rules.

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1. License category in question: “SW – Social Worker”

South Dakota recognizes four social work licenses:

• Social Work Associate (SWA)
• Social Worker (SW) – bachelor‑level
• Certified Social Worker (CSW) – master/doctoral level
• Certified Social Worker in Private or Independent Practice (CSW‑PIP) – independent/clinical level (dss.sd.gov)

Your question is specifically about the SW (Social Worker) license.

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2. Core legal/Board requirements for the SW license

On the South Dakota Department of Social Services site, the Board of Social Work Examiners lists the requirements for each license. For Social Workers, the Board’s own licensing information states that an applicant must have:

“Baccalaureate degree in a social work or social welfare program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education; and
Passed an examination prepared by the Board for this purpose.” (dss.sd.gov)

From that and related Board/education guidance, the concrete requirements to become licensed as an SW are:

1. Education – BSW from a CSWE‑accredited program

   • You must hold a baccalaureate degree in social work or social welfare from a program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). (dss.sd.gov)
   • CSWE‑accredited BSW programs in South Dakota include a field education (practicum) of at least 400 hours as part of the degree. (publichealthonline.org)
   • These 400+ field hours are educational/practicum hours, not a separate, board‑mandated, post‑degree experience requirement.

2. Examination – ASWB Bachelor’s

   • You must pass the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Bachelor’s exam, which the Board refers to as “an examination prepared by the Board for this purpose.” (dss.sd.gov)
   • The Board first reviews your application, then authorizes you to sit for the ASWB exam. (dss.sd.gov)

3. Application & Board approval While the statute and Board summary focus on degree and exam, Board and school guidance clarify typical application components:

   • Notarized application for SW licensure
   • Official transcripts sent directly to the Board
   • Three professional references that can attest to your competency as a social worker
   • Application fee (commonly cited as $130 for SW) (dss.sd.gov)

4. Background and character checks

   • Applicants must undergo a criminal background check and disclose convictions; checks generally include state and FBI fingerprints and specified registries (e.g., child abuse and sex offender registries). (socialworkerlicense.com)

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3. Are there required “practice hours” for the SW license?

3.1. No numeric post‑degree hours requirement for SW

The South Dakota Board of Social Work Examiners’ own licensing page lists only:

• A CSWE‑accredited baccalaureate degree in social work or social welfare, and
• Passing the Board examination (ASWB Bachelor’s exam)

as the requirements for the Social Worker license. (dss.sd.gov)

There is no language in:

• SD Codified Law chapter 36‑26 on social workers, or
• The Board’s official “Licensing Information” description for the SW license

that sets out a requirement such as “1,500 hours of direct experience and 1,500 hours of supervised experience” (or any other specific post‑degree hour total) for the SW license. (dss.sd.gov)

The structure for SW is therefore:

• Educational hours: your BSW program must include at least 400 field/practicum hours under CSWE accreditation standards. (publichealthonline.org)
• Board licensing requirement: degree + exam; no additional quantified practice hours are mandated by the Board to obtain the SW license.

If you are pursuing only the SW license, South Dakota does not require a separate, board‑defined 1,500/1,500‑style breakdown of direct vs. supervised hours.

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4. Where “experience under supervision” does appear in South Dakota law

To avoid confusion with higher‑level licenses, it helps to contrast the SW requirements with those for CSW‑PIP (independent/clinical practice), because that is where South Dakota law explicitly uses “experience under appropriate supervision.”

4.1. CSW‑PIP statutory requirement

South Dakota Codified Law § 36‑26‑17, titled “Independent practice requirements,” provides that no person may engage in private, independent practice of social work unless he or she:

1. “Is licensed under this chapter as a certified social worker;
2. Has had two years of experience under appropriate supervision in the field of specialization in which the applicant will practice (e.g., psychotherapy, community organization, or planning); and
3. Has passed an examination prepared by the board for this purpose.” (law.justia.com)

The Board’s licensing page restates this for the Certified Social Worker in Private or Independent Practice license as:

• Licensed as a certified social worker for a minimum of two years,
• “2 years of experience under appropriate supervision in the field of specialization in which the applicant will practice,” and
• Passing the required examination. (dss.sd.gov)

Notice that even here South Dakota law and the Board phrase the requirement in terms of two years of supervised experience, not a specific total of “X hours direct / Y hours supervised.” Any hours language is embedded in supervision rules (e.g., monthly minimums), not as a single statutory hour total.

4.2. Supervision rules and monthly supervision hours (for CSW‑PIP candidates)

Administrative rules (ARSD 20:59:05) govern supervision for CSW‑PIP candidates. After the Board approves a supervision agreement, the rules require:

• The CSW‑PIP candidate to work at least 30 hours per week full‑time
• A minimum of four hours of individual supervision per month for full‑time work
• For part‑time work (18–29 hours/week): two years vs. four years of supervision and 2 or 4 hours of monthly supervision depending on hours worked, per the table in ARSD 20:59:05:07 (regulations.justia.com)

This is where the Board gets specific about supervision frequency and employment status for CSW‑PIP candidates—but again, this framework is not applied to the SW license.

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5. Definitions of “supervision” in South Dakota rules

You asked for the Board’s own verbiage. The general definitions in Administrative Rules (ARSD 20:59:01:01) include:

• “Supervision” – defined as “overseeing or directing the activities of a social work associate, or a person applying for a license as a CSW‑PIP” (regulations.justia.com)

Note that by definition this supervision applies to:

• Social Work Associates (SWA), and
• CSW‑PIP candidates

It does not describe an ongoing supervision requirement for practicing Social Workers (SW) as a licensing condition.

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6. Renewal‑related hours (continuing education), not pre‑licensure hours

South Dakota also requires continuing education hours to maintain all social work licenses (SWA, SW, CSW, CSW‑PIP):

• 30 hours of continuing education every two years, with at least 6 hours in ethics, to renew. (netce.com)

These are post‑licensure CE hours, distinct from any pre‑licensure practice hours.

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7. Summary focused on SW (Social Worker) in South Dakota

Putting this together, the Board’s and state’s requirements to become licensed as an SW – Social Worker in South Dakota are:

1. Degree requirement

   • A baccalaureate degree in social work or social welfare from a CSWE‑accredited program. (dss.sd.gov)
   • This degree inherently includes at least 400 hours of field education via CSWE accreditation standards. (publichealthonline.org)

2. Examination requirement

   • Pass the ASWB Bachelor’s exam, which the Board treats as the examination it requires “for this purpose.” (dss.sd.gov)

3. Application and character requirements

   • Complete and notarize the Board’s SW application.
   • Arrange for official transcripts to be sent directly to the Board.
   • Provide three professional references.
   • Pay the application fee (commonly cited as $130). (dss.sd.gov)
   • Complete required criminal background and registry checks. (socialworkerlicense.com)

4. Hours requirements (what does and does not exist)

   • Required hours that do exist for an SW applicant:
     • The 400+ field/practicum hours built into your CSWE‑accredited BSW program. (publichealthonline.org)
   • Required practice hours that do not exist at the SW level:
     • No South Dakota statute or Board rule sets a requirement like “1,500 hours of direct experience and 1,500 hours of supervised experience” to obtain the SW license.
     • There is no quantified post‑degree supervised hours requirement for SW in SD; those kinds of supervised experience requirements are only specified, in South Dakota law, for CSW‑PIP (two years of experience under appropriate supervision in the field of specialization). (dss.sd.gov)

In other words, for the SW Social Worker license in South Dakota:

• Your BSW program provides the structured, supervised field hours.
• The Board then requires your degree plus a passing exam score, and supporting application materials.
• South Dakota does not layer on an additional numeric practice‑hours requirement (such as “1,500 direct + 1,500 supervised”) for this particular license level.