Do you have to pass the ASWB exam before you can be licensed in Delaware?

Yes. An ASWB exam is required before the license; the primary sources do not confirm the level. In Delaware the first credential after an MSW is the LMSW, and an ASWB exam is a gate you pass before it is issued. Not confirmed: the sources read it differently, confirm with the board. Ask the board: Which ASWB exam does an LMSW applicant take: Masters or Clinical?

What is the first social work license you can get in Delaware after an MSW?

The LMSW (Licensed Master Social Worker). It is issued by the Delaware Board of Social Work Examiners.

How much does the first social work license cost in Delaware?

The fixed fees the board publishes for it come to $205: Application fee $205. Plus the ASWB exam fee, which depends on level: $230 Masters, $260 Clinical. Other charges the board does not publish are not included.

How many supervised hours does Delaware require?

3,200 hours, 100 supervision, for the LCSW. Read from the Delaware board's own rules on September 27, 2026.

Getting licensed as a social worker in Delaware

Compact member

Checked against the Delaware Board of Social Work Examiners on September 27, 2026.

Get your Delaware licensing checklist

Your board, the portal you apply in, the fees, the supervised hours, and the order to do them in.

Your first license

Licensed Master Social Worker

LMSW

Exam required before the license

An ASWB exam is required before the license; the primary sources do not confirm the level.

Known fees

Fees the Delaware Board of Social Work Examiners publishes for the LMSW
Application fee	$205
ASWB examination (the sources conflict on the level)	exam fee depends on level: $230 Masters, $260 Clinical
Known total	$205

What else it takes

Supervised hours: 3,200 hours, 100 supervision, for the LCSW
ASWB exam level: Not confirmed; What each source says
An ASWB exam is required; its level is not confirmed. 24 Del. Admin. Code 3900-2.2.1 names the Clinical exam for all applicants, bachelor's applicants included (2.2.2), so it reads as stale for the LMSW; the board and statute name no level.
24 Del. Admin. Code 3900-2.2.2: “A master's or baccalaureate social work student may take the examination up to 45 days prior to graduation.”
Delaware Board of Social Work Examiners, Examination: “Applying to Sit for the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Exams”
Ask the board: Which ASWB exam does an LMSW applicant take: Masters or Clinical?
Licensure compact: Member jurisdictionMultistate licenses are not yet being issued. Last checked October 18, 2026 against the compact's own site.
Last checked: September 27, 2026

Next step

Hold a master's degree in social work, documented by an official transcript from the accredited institution (24 Del. Admin. Code 3900-2.1). Pass the ASWB examination the Board designates (24 Del. C. 3907(c)). The administrative code and the Board's Examination page disagree on which one, so no level is given here; ask the Board before you register. A masters or baccalaureate social work student may sit up to 45 days prior to graduation (3900-2.2.2).

The ladder

Delaware has 3 rungs. 3 need an ASWB exam.

bachelors
LBSW
ASWB Bachelors
Licensed Bachelor Social Worker.
masters
LMSW
ASWB exam, level not confirmed
Licensed Master Social Worker.
clinical
LCSW
ASWB Clinical
Licensed Clinical Social Worker.

Requirements change

Nothing on our law calendar changes Delaware's exam requirement today. The change that does touch you is national: ASWB launched the 2026 exams on August 3, 2026 with three content areas and 122 items, and held fees at $230 Masters and $260 Clinical. ASWB's announcement.

Law calendar read September 6, 2026. If Delaware moves, this page moves with it.

Already passed? Track your supervised hours toward your clinical license.

Delaware asks for 3,200 hours of supervised experience and 100 hours of supervision.

Checked against the published rule. Last checked September 27, 2026.

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Programs in Delaware

How first-timers from each accredited program here did on the ASWB exam. A rate built on fewer than 10 first-time exams is one or two people, so those programs show how close they are to that floor instead of a percent. Source: ASWB, 2025 report.

Delaware State University
Delaware
Clinical first-time
53.3% of 45national 75.7%
Masters first-time
54.3% of 46national 73.9%
53.3% of Clinical first-timers from here passed in 2025. National rate 75.7%.

See all 1 programs in Delaware

Sources

We read the board's own pages. Nothing here is a guess.

SWTPA is not affiliated with any state board or with ASWB. Requirements change; the board's page is the source of record. This record is also available as JSON.

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