The USTR Fellowship boasts a first-time social work licensure exam pass rate of 66.7% among its fellows, a figure roughly 20 percentage points higher than the national average. This outstanding outcome illustrates how the USTR Fellowship is changing the game for aspiring social workers, particularly those from communities of color.
For many aspiring social workers, the journey from graduate school to becoming a licensed professional can be a rocky road. The social work licensure exam is a well-known hurdle one that Fathers’ UpLift’s founders know all too well. Both Dr. Charles Daniels and Samantha Fils-Daniels had to take their licensing exams multiple times before passing, an experience that opened their eyes to the systemic barriers faced by students of color. National data show a stark disparity: Black test-takers have around a 40% chance of passing on the first try, compared to about 80% for their white peers. This gap has real consequences – it delays careers, discourages talented professionals, and perpetuates the shortage of therapists from underrepresented backgrounds.
The United States Therapist Recruitment (USTR) Fellowship was created as a direct response to this challenge. Launched in late 2022 with support from a Massachusetts workforce development grant, this non-traditional fellowship program set out to equip aspiring therapists with the tools to rewrite the narrative. The early results speak volumes: two-thirds of USTR Fellows passed their licensure exam on the first attempt, far exceeding typical pass rates. In fact, this 66.7% first-try success rate stands well above the roughly 47% national average for social work graduates. Such an achievement isn’t just a statistic – it’s a beacon of hope, signaling that with the right support, the next generation of social workers can beat the odds and enter the field confident and credentialed.
All 12 Fellows in the inaugural cohort completed the intensive program, and most earned their licenses immediately upon graduation. By passing their exams on the first try, these new professionals can jump straight into doing what they love, healing and uplifting their communities, without the setback of exam retakes. This level of success so early in the program’s history is unprecedented, and it highlights something important: the USTR Fellowship isn’t just helping students pass a test; it’s preparing them for real success in their careers.
How does a fellowship achieve what traditional pathways often struggle to do? The USTR Fellowship’s structure and support system are the keys to its impact. From day one, Fellows receive a robust package of resources designed to ensure they thrive academically, professionally, and personally:
Licensure Exam Preparation: Each Fellow gets free enrollment in a reputable licensure preparation course after graduation. This structured exam prep – essentially a full additional semester of coaching – arms them with test-taking strategies and content review tailored to the social work licensing exam. Fathers’ UpLift leadership recognized that comprehensive prep could bridge the troubling gap in pass rates, so they made it a cornerstone of the fellowship. “We empower our students to succeed through tailored support and comprehensive coaching before graduation,” the team explains. The result is Fellows walking into the exam room confident and well-prepared.
Hands-On Training and Clinical Supervision: During the fellowship year, participants engage in rigorous practical training. They complete their required social work field placements with extensive oversight – including over 150 hours of clinical supervision from licensed clinicians. This means that as they work with clients (often fathers and families served by Fathers’ UpLift), they have seasoned professionals guiding them through challenges, answering questions, and helping connect classroom theory to real-world practice. By the time they graduate, Fellows aren’t just book-smart – they have practical experience that bolsters their competence and confidence.
Dedicated Mentorship: Each Fellow is paired with mentors who are experienced, licensed therapists (11 mentors across eight states in the first year). These mentors volunteer 2–5 hours a month to provide one-on-one guidance, encouragement, and wisdom to their mentees. Such mentorship is invaluable: it bridges the gap between academic learning and professional life. Fellows can turn to their mentors for anything from clinical advice to moral support on tough days. “A mentor’s guidance can profoundly affect a Fellow’s career trajectory, promoting personal growth, self-confidence, and professional development,” notes Fathers’ UpLift. This strategic support network ensures no Fellow ever feels alone on their journey.
Cultural Enrichment and Peer Community: The fellowship creates a nurturing community that inspires and uplifts. Weekly seminars and guest lectures bring in experts – often practitioners of color – to discuss culturally responsive practices and share wisdom from the field. Fellows learn about therapeutic approaches rooted in diverse communities’ experiences, helping them build a toolkit of culturally competent skills. Moreover, the cohort of Fellows grows into a tight-knit support group. They attend events together (in early 2024, Fellows traveled to Montgomery, Alabama for an immersive retreat in African American history, collaborate on projects, and cheer each other on. This sense of brotherhood and sisterhood counteracts the isolation that BIPOC students often feel in predominantly white academic programs. As one Fellow, Tamanda Chitalo from Indiana, shared about her USTR experience: “For me, it’s been life-changing… I kind of felt like I was doing it on my own in Indiana, but when I met this cohort and [the directors], I felt like I had a family.” The power of belonging to a “family” of peers and mentors cannot be overstated – it keeps Fellows motivated through the hard work and creates lifelong bonds in the profession.
Financial Relief: Unlike typical internships or field placements, the USTR Fellowship provides a $15,000 stipend to each Fellow. This financial support means that students can afford to reduce work hours or cover tuition gaps while finishing their degrees. In practical terms, the stipend buys them time – time to study, attend trainings, and fully engage in all fellowship opportunities without the distraction of additional jobs. By alleviating financial stress, Fathers’ UpLift ensures that Fellows can focus on learning and growth, which ultimately contributes to better exam performance and professional readiness.
In short, the USTR Fellowship has built a comprehensive ecosystem around its students. It’s not one single thing – it’s the combination of high-quality exam prep, real-world training, personal mentorship, cultural empowerment, and financial support that makes the difference. This strategic support structure is what drives the remarkable licensure outcomes. Fellows are not navigating the transition from student to professional alone or unprepared; they have a safety net and a springboard propelling them to success. The fellowship’s founders put it best when describing their vision: through our established network, we aim to empower each Fellow, ensuring they receive the necessary guidance and support to pass licensing exams, obtain licensure, and eventually open their own practices. The 66.7% first-try pass rate is proof that this formula works.
Why is this first-time licensure success so significant? It’s not just about bragging rights or test scores – it’s about what happens next. When a USTR Fellow passes the exam and becomes a licensed social worker, communities gain a new healer. Fathers’ UpLift designed the fellowship with a larger mission in mind: to transform the field of mental health by infusing it with talented, compassionate professionals who better reflect the communities they serve.
The lack of diversity in mental health professionals has been a longstanding issue. A striking report found that as of 2019, 70% of social workers (and 88% of counselors) in the U.S. were white. This imbalance contributes to cultural disconnects in therapy. BIPOC communities are often less likely to seek or continue mental health services, in part because of a shortage of providers who look like them or understand their lived experiences. By fast-tracking the licensure of our Fellows – the majority of whom are Black, Latino, or other people of color – the USTR Fellowship is actively changing the face of the workforce. Each new licensed clinician of color helps chip away at the barriers that have historically kept many people from accessing care.
Increasing the number of BIPOC therapists isn’t just a matter of representation; it directly improves care quality and outcomes. Research and lived experience show that when clients can work with therapists who share their cultural background or have strong cultural competence, trust and communication deepen. Clients feel seen and understood, stigma decreases, and engagement in treatment improves. Fathers’ UpLift sees this every day in our work with dads: having practitioners who can relate to a father’s cultural identity and challenges makes a world of difference in that father’s healing process. With more licensed clinicians coming out of the USTR Fellowship, families of color will have greater access to therapists who “get it” – professionals equipped to provide culturally responsive, empathetic care that meets clients where they are.
Moreover, the ripple effects of the Fellowship extend beyond individual client-therapist relationships. Our Fellows are stepping into roles across the country, from community mental health centers to hospitals to private practices. They carry with them not only their formal training but also the values instilled by Fathers’ UpLift: resilience, empathy, and a commitment to uplift others. Many have expressed a desire to pay it forward – to mentor others, to advocate for underserved families, and to be agents of change in the social work field. In time, today’s USTR Fellows could become supervisors, policymakers, professors, or non-profit leaders, amplifying the ethos of this program throughout the profession.
Finally, the success of the USTR Fellowship sends an important message to the wider field of social work: it is possible to close the licensure gap. The narrative that BIPOC graduates struggle to pass the exam at the same rate as their peers is not a story of capability, but of preparation and support. By demonstrating that a combination of targeted mentorship, exam preparation, and structural support can yield dramatically better outcomes, Fathers’ UpLift is influencing how social work programs and agencies think about workforce development. We’re showing that investing in trainees before they enter the workforce pays off in the form of qualified, confident professionals after graduation. This is how we begin to transform systems – by pioneering models that work and inspiring others to follow suit.
The USTR Fellowship’s early success is inspiring a movement. It proves that with thoughtful intervention, we can raise a new generation of clinicians who will heal families and strengthen communities. And we’re just getting started. Fathers’ UpLift is committed to expanding this fellowship, refining our approach, and supporting many more cohorts of Fellows in the coming years. As we do so, we invite you to be part of this journey.
Potential supporters and partners: The outcomes achieved by our Fellows are made possible by the generosity of those who believe in our mission. Your support – whether through funding, partnerships, or volunteering – directly translates into training and opportunities for these aspiring therapists. Together, we can continue to close the gap and ensure that every talented social work student of color has the chance to succeed.
Prospective fellows and mentors: If you are a graduate student passionate about mental health or a seasoned professional eager to guide the next generation, we want to hear from you. Each year, we welcome new Fellows into our program and new mentors into our network. It’s challenging work, but as our current Fellows will tell you, “it’s been life-changing.” The USTR Fellowship is not just a training program – it’s a community and a family, and we welcome you with open arms.
Please visit our Get Involved page to learn more about how you can get involved as a supporter or donor. Explore our programs, read about our approach to building the field, and discover the many ways you can contribute to this transformative initiative. Join us in preparing fellows for real success and changing the future of mental health one therapist at a time. Together, we are uplifting fathers, families, and the field of social work – and the best is yet to come.