Behavioral Health Social Worker LCSW

Social WorkerIncludes weekendsFull-Time

Listed compensation

$28.52-$46.52/hr

The week · per this posting · Monday – Friday

Weekend work is also flagged as required; confirm which days and how often.

Ask the employer about the work setting, call expectations, nights and shift pattern and time off.

Posted 1h ago · Verified live

Job Description

  • Shift: Monday – Friday, 8am to 4:30pm, very occasional weekends; and one holiday.
  • Work Arrangement: On-Site
  • Department: MUPC Case Management
  • Facility: Missouri Psychiatric Center - 3 Hospital Drive, Columbia, MO

Compensation

  • Base Pay Range: $28.52 - $46.52 per hour, based on experience
  • Shift Differential: $1.75 per hour for weekends; $2 per hour for all hours worked

About the Job

MU Health Care is looking for a compassionate and driven social worker to join our dynamic team in an inpatient psychiatric setting. The ideal candidate will be a proactive, empathetic professional with a passion for helping patients achieve stability and long-term success.

You will work collaboratively with an interdisciplinary team, using your expertise to provide therapeutic interventions and create personalized care and aftercare plans.

We seek someone who thrives in a fast-paced environment, is committed to providing excellent patient care, and values building strong relationships with patients, families, and community partners.

If you are dedicated to making a real difference in the lives of those struggling with mental health challenges, we want to hear from you!

About MU Health Care

MU Health Care is proud to be named one of Forbes’ Best-in-State Employers seven years in a row, and that’s largely a result of the incredible culture and team we’ve built. At MU Health Care, we have an inspired, hard-working and collaborative environment driven by our mission to save and improve lives.

Here, we believe anything is possible and rally around solutions. We celebrate innovation and offer opportunities to be a part of something bigger — to have a voice and role in the work that is serving our community and changing the field of medicine.

Our academic health system — the only in mid-Missouri — is home to seven hospitals, including the region’s only Level 1 Trauma Center and region’s only Children’s Hospital, as well as over 90 specialty clinics. Here you can define your career among our many clinical and nonclinical positions — with growth, opportunity and support every step of the way.

  • Learn more about MU Health Care.
  • Learn more about living in mid-Missouri.

Employee Benefits

  • Health, vision and dental insurance coverage starting day one
  • Generous paid leave and paid time off, including ten holidays
  • Multiple retirement options, including 100% matching up to 8% and full vesting in three years
  • Tuition assistance for employees (75%) and immediate family members (50%)
  • Discounts on cell phone plans, rental cars, gyms, hotels and more
  • See a comprehensive list of benefits here.

Detailed Job Description

  • Complete social service assessments of patients requiring inpatient psychiatric evaluations and care. Contact family members and community providers; collect collateral information to contribute to a comprehensive assessment and development of care plan.
  • Apply advanced clinical knowledge and skills to provide therapeutic interventions (individual, family, and group therapies) in order to support patients in the stabilization of acute psychiatric symptoms and modulation of maladaptive behaviors that will allow them to meet their treatment goals/objectives and move quickly to the next step on continuum of care.
  • Work collaboratively with interdisciplinary team (physicians, nursing, and occupational therapy, recreation therapy) to develop and implement patient treatment plans. Review of the treatment plan is daily during the treatment team meetings. Work with other departments to coordinate services. Serve as a resource to ensure appropriate utilization of services.
  • Develop individualized aftercare plans for patients, which connect each patient with mental health and other community resources as needed. Maintain documentation that meets all hospital and regulatory standards for care. Maintain regular contact with patient’s families, community supports, and outpatient providers with the consent of the patient.
  • Gather data, compile information, and prepare reports. Communicate effectively, both orally and in writing. Maintain knowledge and expertise in electronic software tools, Cerner, All Scripts/ECIN, etc. Participate in appropriate hospital committee activities.
  • May complete unit/department specific duties as outlined in department documents.

Required Qualifications

  • Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) licensure by the Missouri State Committee for Social Workers board.

Preferred Qualifications

  • Strong preference will be given to candidates who received licensed supervision in a behavioral health environment. Additional license/certification requirements as determined by the hiring department.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met with or without reasonable accommodation. The performance of these physical demands is an essential function of the job. This position is very active and requires ambulating, reaching, and moving objects weighing up to and over 20 lbs.

Equal Employment Opportunity

The University of Missouri is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Key Responsibilities

The social worker will conduct psychiatric assessments and develop individualized care and aftercare plans for patients. They will also provide therapeutic interventions and collaborate with an interdisciplinary team to support patient stabilization.

Requirements

Candidates must hold a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) license from the Missouri State Committee for Social Workers. Experience in a behavioral health environment is strongly preferred.

Qualifications

Education
Professional certificate or licensure
Experience
2+ years of experience

Key Skills

Social workPsychiatric assessmentCare planningInterdisciplinary collaborationCrisis interventionPatient advocacyMental health supportClinical assessment

Work-Life Balance Analysis

WeekdayDoc's proprietary algorithm rates Behavioral Health Social Worker LCSW at University of Missouri Health Care a 6.0 out of 10 for work-life balance — classified as good. This places the position in the top 35% of all Social Work social worker listings evaluated on our platform.

Social Worker Career Context

The cost-of-living index for Missouri is 90.8 (US average = 100; BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)), so the posted ~$78k midpoint carries the purchasing power of roughly $86k in an average-cost state. 60.1% of Missouri clinicians report burnout symptoms in WeekdayDoc's Burnout Index (2026-01 data).

Top Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) Jobs

18 matches · ranked by pay

Salary Distribution16 jobs · 12 employers

6
<$105k
1
$120k
7
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2
$145k-165k

Annual compensation range

Benefits & Perks10 jobs

401k / retirement match
100%
Sign-on bonus
60%
CME allowance
30%

Share of similar jobs offering each benefit

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Work-life snapshot

median 6.1this job 6.0
Better work-life than 50% of Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) listings

Listing-based score, 0–10, across 2,010 comparable listings. Shaded area = the share scoring below this one.

  • On-site
  • Includes weekends

Living in Columbia

Typical 3-bedroom home value
$290k
Typical market rent
$1,444/mo
Residents’ average commute
16 min
Metro price indexU.S. average = 100
89.4
State income tax
Up to 5.3%
Sources & methodology

Sources: Zillow home values (Aug 2026), Zillow market rents (Aug 2026), U.S. Census ACS 2024 five-year.

BEA 2024 · Columbia, MO metro prices. Housing figures are city-level.

City-level figures. Not a cost-of-living guarantee.

University of Missouri Health Care logo

About University of Missouri Health Care

Hospitals and Health Care
Columbia, Missouri
1,001-5,000 employees

Benefits & Perks

Health, vision and dental insurance coverage starting day one
Generous paid leave and paid time off, including ten holidays
Multiple retirement options, including 100% matching up to 8% and full vesting in three years
Tuition assistance for employees (75%) and immediate family members (50%)
Discounts on cell phone plans, rental cars, gyms, hotels and more