15 Popular Travel Social Work Agencies & How to Get Started

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In this post, I will share a list of the best and most popular travel social work companies I have come across and some tips on how to become a travel social worker.

What is travel social work?

Travel social work involves social workers taking on temporary assignments in various locations, often to fill staffing shortages or address specific community needs. These assignments typically last for a minimum of 13 weeks and can extend past that if there is still a need for extra help. The most common travel assignment is at a hospital, but you may be able to find some assignments at schools or behavioral health centers.

Travel assignments often come with competitive compensation packages, including higher pay rates, housing stipends, and travel allowances, which can provide financial stability and flexibility!

15 Popular Travel Social Work Agencies

These are in no particular order! I curated this list by exploring various travel social work resources, groups, forums, and websites.

1. GHR Healthcare (merged with Meelo)

2. Aya Healthcare

3. Brundage Group

4. Medovent Solutions

5. AMN Healthcare

6. Magellan Health

7. Soliant

Has school social work positions

8. Nextgen

You have to download their app and apply through the app

9. GreenKey Resources

10. Leidos

Has US and International positions working on military bases

11. Maxim Staffing

12. Cynet Health

13. Seco

Has International assignments

14. Marshall Healthcare

15. LRS Healthcare

16. ADN Healthcare

17. TotalMed

18. Genie Healthcare

How to Become a Travel Social Worker

While I try to give you some helpful info below on how to get started, it is not comprehensive. There is so much to travel social work and I am just scratching the surface with the info in this post.

I highly recommend this book that goes into everything you need to know about travel social work from what documents to prepare for traveling to showing you example contracts.

Money to Prepare to Travel

Having at least 3-6 months in savings before starting your travel contract is strongly recommended. Many agencies will require you to pay upfront for things like airfare and lodging, and you won’t get reimbursed until your first paycheck.

You’ll also need money to afford other things like food and miscellaneous items until you get your first check!

You might also be counting on a certain assignment that ends up getting canceled — in this case, your emergency savings will support you while you work on landing your next assignment.

Assignments and Experience

There are travel assignments all over the country. The MOST popular travel assignment type is discharge case management in a hospital. Those who have traveled recommend getting 1-2 years of experience doing in-patient case management before traveling.  

This experience before traveling is highly recommended because travelers often get limited training and are thrown into the work quickly. You will need to have a good base of knowledge and confidence in yourself to handle this work.

You may also be able to find assignments for schools and behavioral health hospitals, but these are more rare.

When you find an assignment you think would be a good fit, apply! You will then be matched with a recruiter to help you through the process. Sometimes people get recommendations for awesome recruiters, so if this happens to you, you can just reach out to them directly.

Clinical or Non-clinical License?

There are contracts where you may need a license and somewhere you may not. Of course, you have more negotiating power when you are licensed, but it is not always necessary. Some agencies will help you with the process of getting the licensure needed for a state or reimburse you if you already started the process.

The assignments where you don’t need a clinical license tend to go quickly, so you have to jump on those opportunities if you’re not interested and/or don’t have the ability to get licensed.

Contract Agreements and Benefits

It is important to understand the terms and conditions of the contracts, including assignment duration, cancellation policies, renewal options, and most importantly, your pay and benefits! Absolutely ask questions and don’t sign anything you’re not comfortable with!

Things that will likely be included in your contract (and most you can negotiate):

• Sign-on bonus
• Hourly rate
• Housing/meal stipend
• Completion bonus (e.g. if you stay 13 weeks you will be given $2,000)
• Time off
• Weekly gas reimbursement
• Licensure reimbursement
• Increase your rate if you extend a contract

Other benefits agencies may offer:

• Retirement benefits
• PTO/sick days
• Free CEUs

Compensation

On top of your hourly rate, you will receive a stipend for housing and meals/incidentals. To find the stipend/per diem rates for the city and state you want to travel in, check out the General Service Administration site.

The stipend you receive is typically where people are able to maximize their income by finding lodging that is cheaper than the amount you receive for your stipend. This stipend is not taxed.

Insurance

Some travel agencies provide insurance but this can be tricky if you don’t stay with that company for multiple contracts. When your assignment ends, your insurance ends.

If you don’t want to worry about the headache of getting insurance through the company providing your contract, you can get your own insurance.

A few options include:

• Marketplace plan
• Cobra
• Getting on a spouse’s insurance
• Private insurance plan

Housing

Agencies will sometimes pay for your hotel/lodging, but then you won’t get money for a housing stipend. Sometimes this can be helpful if you are overwhelmed with finding housing.

Some other places to consider for housing:

• Hotels — many people like hotels because you don’t need a security deposit and they can be more convenient all around than working with a landlord. If you plan on being there for an extended period of time, inquire if you can receive a discounted rate.
• Extended stay hotels
• Furnished Finder — Like it sounds, these housing options are furnished. This platform was first developed for travel nurses and is now widely used by many healthcare professionals, non-healthcare professionals, and students.
• Airbnb
• Blueground

There are a lot of scammers out there, so be careful! Some travelers like to stay in a hotel for the first few days they get there so they can see these longer term rental places in person.

Personal Considerations

Pursuing a career in travel social work offers the opportunity to experience other work settings and travel to states you may not have otherwise seen.

This process can be very overwhelming, but just remember you will gain a lot of first-hand knowledge with every contract you take. You may not know everything now, but you will get more comfortable knowing what to look/ask for as you grow to become a seasoned traveler.

You may also find that this venture is not for you — that’s okay, too! Good luck out there!

General Resources for Aspiring Travel Social Workers

• Book: SO YOU WANT TO BE A TRAVEL SOCIAL WORKER? SAY LESS!: 20 Plus Tips To Become A Successful Travel Social Worker
• Facebook group: If you want specific feedback about a particular company, your current offer, or anything else, I HIGHLY recommend joining the group TRAVELING CASE MANAGERS AND TRAVELING SOCIAL WORKERS on Facebook. This group has thousands of posts to search through to help you on your journey and if not, you can post for specific support!
• Taxes: Travel Tax
• Certifications: Commission for Case Management and Accredited Case Manager
• Curious about making more money with a side hustle first? Check out this list of 29 side hustles for social workers.