Social work licensure in Kansas

Requirements last verified August 16, 2026 against the Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board.

License levels

• LBSWBaccalaureate Social Worker

  The board lists this level but does not state its ASWB exam on the pages we checked — confirm with them directly.

  The statute requires “an examination approved by the board for this purpose”.

• LMSWMaster Social Worker

  The board lists this level but does not state its ASWB exam on the pages we checked — confirm with them directly.

  Again “an examination approved by the board for this purpose”.

• LSCSWSpecialist Clinical Social Worker

  The board lists this level but does not state its ASWB exam on the pages we checked — confirm with them directly.

  Not less than two years of postgraduate supervised professional experience under a clinical supervision plan approved by the board — at least 3,000 hours, of which at least 1,500 must be direct client contact, with at least 100 hours of face-to-face supervision, 50 of them individual.

Worth knowing about Kansas

Kansas has a license most states do not: a community-based social work license, for people employed by community mental health centers, federally qualified health centers, psychiatric residential treatment facilities or private treatment facilities. It lets you practice under an independent-level licensee’s supervision while your standard application is pending, and it is deliberately a one-way door — it expires when the board issues or denies the standard license, or after 24 months, whichever comes first, and cannot be renewed or reissued at the same level. Treat it as a runway with a fixed end, not a second route to licensure.

Common questions about Kansas

Which ASWB exam do I need for Kansas?

Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board lists its license levels without naming which ASWB exam each requires, on the pages we were able to read. Confirm the exam category with the board directly before registering.

What social work licenses does Kansas issue?

LBSW (Baccalaureate Social Worker); LMSW (Master Social Worker); LSCSW (Specialist Clinical Social Worker).

How many supervised hours does Kansas require?

LSCSW: 3,000 hours. The board sets the conditions on those hours — who may supervise, over what period — so read its own rules before you begin accruing them.

Is this information current?

These requirements were last checked against Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board on 2026-08-16. Licensure rules change without much notice, so treat the board as the authority and this page as a starting point.