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

Yes. The ASWB Masters exam is required before the license. In North Dakota the first credential after an MSW is the LMSW, and the ASWB Masters exam is a gate you pass before it is issued.

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

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

How much does the first social work license cost in North Dakota?

The fees the board publishes for it add up to $330: Non-refundable application fee $25, Initial license fee $75, ASWB Masters examination $230. Other charges the board does not publish are not included.

How many supervised hours does North Dakota require?

3,000 hours, 150 supervision, for the LCSW. Read from the North Dakota board's own rules on September 27, 2026.

Getting licensed as a social worker in North Dakota

Compact member

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

Get your North Dakota 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

The ASWB Masters exam is required before the license.

Known fees

Fees the North Dakota Board of Social Work Examiners publishes for the LMSW
Non-refundable application fee	$25
Initial license fee	$75
ASWB Masters examination	$230
Known total	$330

What else it takes

Supervised hours: 3,000 hours, 150 supervision, for the LCSW
ASWB exam level: Masters
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 from a CSWE-accredited college or university, or a Canadian college or university accredited by the Canadian Association for Social Work Education (ndbswe.com LMSW requirements). Pass the ASWB Master's level exam within one year of the date the application for licensure is filed (ndbswe.com LMSW requirements).

The ladder

North Dakota has 3 rungs. 3 need an ASWB exam.

bachelors
LBSW
ASWB Bachelors
Licensed Baccalaureate Social Worker.
masters
LMSW
ASWB Masters
Licensed Master Social Worker.
clinical
LCSW
ASWB Clinical
Licensed Clinical Social Worker.

Requirements change

Nothing on our law calendar changes North Dakota'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 North Dakota moves, this page moves with it.

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

North Dakota asks for 3,000 hours of supervised experience and 150 hours of supervision.

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

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Programs in North Dakota

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.

See all 4 programs in North Dakota

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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