Social and Human Service Assistant

Assist other social and human service providers in providing client services in a wide variety of fields, such as psychology, rehabilitation, or social work, including support for families. May assist clients in identifying and obtaining available benefits and social and community services. May assist social workers with developing, organizing, and conducting programs to prevent and resolve problems relevant to substance abuse, human relationships, rehabilitation, or dependent care.

On the job, you would:

Assess clients' cognitive abilities and physical and emotional needs to determine appropriate interventions.
Develop and implement behavioral management and care plans for clients.
Keep records or prepare reports for owner or management concerning visits with clients.

Important Qualities

Communication skills. Social and human service assistants talk with clients about the challenges in their lives and assist them in getting help. These workers must be able to listen to their clients and to communicate the clients’ needs to organizations that can help them.

Compassion. Social and human service assistants often work with people who are in stressful and difficult situations. To develop strong relationships, they must have compassion and empathy for their clients.

Interpersonal skills. Social and human service assistants must make their clients feel comfortable discussing sensitive issues. Assistants also build relationships with other service providers to become familiar with all of the resources that are available in their communities.

Organizational skills. Social and human service assistants must often complete lots of paperwork and work with many different clients. They must be organized in order to ensure that the paperwork is filed properly and that clients are getting the help they need.

Problem-solving skills. Social and human service assistants help clients find solutions to their problems. They must be able to listen carefully to their clients’ needs and offer practical solutions.

Time-management skills. Social and human service assistants often work with many clients. They must manage their time effectively to ensure that their clients are getting the attention they need.

Personality

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Characteristics of this Career
		94%	Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical.
		91%	Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
		88%	Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
		88%	Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
		87%	Stress Tolerance - Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations.
		84%	Adaptability/Flexibility - Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
		83%	Social Orientation - Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job.
		82%	Self-Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
		81%	Attention to Detail - Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
		77%	Independence - Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
		75%	Initiative - Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
		73%	Persistence - Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
		70%	Analytical Thinking - Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
		65%	Achievement/Effort - Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
		65%	Leadership - Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
		65%	Innovation - Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Strengths
		89%	Conventional - Work involves following procedures and regulations to organize information or data, typically in a business setting. Conventional occupations are often associated with office work, accounting, mathematics/statistics, information technology, finance, or human resources.
		83%	Social - Work involves helping, teaching, advising, assisting, or providing service to others. Social occupations are often associated with social, health care, personal service, teaching/education, or religious activities.
		56%	Enterprising - Work involves managing, negotiating, marketing, or selling, typically in a business setting, or leading or advising people in political and legal situations. Enterprising occupations are often associated with business initiatives, sales, marketing/advertising, finance, management/administration, professional advising, public speaking, politics, or law.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Values of the Work Environment
		83%	Relationships - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service.
		67%	Support - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.

Aptitude

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Abilities \| Cognitive, Physical, Personality
		75%	Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
		72%	Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
		72%	Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
		72%	Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
		72%	Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
		72%	Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
		72%	Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
		66%	Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
		56%	Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
		56%	Fluency of Ideas - The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
		56%	Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Skills \| Cognitive, Physical, Personality
		59%	Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
		59%	Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
		57%	Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
		57%	Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
		57%	Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
		57%	Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
		55%	Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
		54%	Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Job Details

Responsibilities

Conduct diagnostic tests to determine patient health.

Examine patients to assess general physical condition.

Develop treatment plans for patients or clients.

Present social services program information to the public.

Refer clients to community or social service programs.

Write reports or evaluations.

Maintain social services program records.

Visit individuals in their homes to provide support or information.

Teach life skills or strategies to clients or their families.

Write reports or evaluations.

Interview clients to gather information about their backgrounds, needs, or progress.

Teach life skills or strategies to clients or their families.

Transport clients to appointments.

Explain regulations, policies, or procedures.

Monitor nutrition related activities of individuals or groups.

Advise clients or community groups on health issues.

Demonstrate activity techniques or equipment use.

Collaborate with other professionals to assess client needs or plan treatments.

Monitor nutrition related activities of individuals or groups.

Advise clients or community groups on health issues.

Provide basic information to guests, visitors, or clients.

Help clients get needed services or resources.

Assist clients in handling details of daily life.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent
		99%	Face-to-Face Discussions - How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?
		97%	Contact With Others - How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?
		95%	Electronic Mail - How often do you use electronic mail in this job?
		94%	Telephone - How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?
		90%	Work With Work Group or Team - How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job?
		88%	Deal With External Customers - How important is it to work with external customers or the public in this job?
		85%	Letters and Memos - How often does the job require written letters and memos?
		83%	Coordinate or Lead Others - How important is it to coordinate or lead others in accomplishing work activities in this job?
		81%	Indoors, Environmentally Controlled - How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions?
		78%	Time Pressure - How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines?
		77%	Importance of Being Exact or Accurate - How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job?
		77%	Structured versus Unstructured Work - To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals?
		74%	Freedom to Make Decisions - How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer?
		71%	Responsible for Others' Health and Safety - How much responsibility is there for the health and safety of others in this job?
		70%	Frequency of Conflict Situations - How often are there conflict situations the employee has to face in this job?
		69%	Frequency of Decision Making - How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization?
		68%	Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results - What results do your decisions usually have on other people or the image or reputation or financial resources of your employer?
		64%	Deal With Unpleasant or Angry People - How frequently does the worker have to deal with unpleasant, angry, or discourteous individuals as part of the job requirements?
		61%	Physical Proximity - To what extent does this job require the worker to perform job tasks in close physical proximity to other people?
		61%	Sounds, Noise Levels Are Distracting or Uncomfortable - How often does this job require working exposed to sounds and noise levels that are distracting or uncomfortable?
		60%	Importance of Repeating Same Tasks - How important is repeating the same physical activities (e.g., key entry) or mental activities (e.g., checking entries in a ledger) over and over, without stopping, to performing this job?
		60%	Spend Time Sitting - How much does this job require sitting?
		56%	Public Speaking - How often do you have to perform public speaking in this job?
		54%	Responsibility for Outcomes and Results - How responsible is the worker for work outcomes and results of other workers?
		53%	Exposed to Disease or Infections - How often does this job require exposure to disease/infections?

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Tasks & Values
		94%	Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates - Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
		88%	Documenting/Recording Information - Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
		82%	Getting Information - Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
		77%	Performing for or Working Directly with the Public - Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests.
		76%	Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships - Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
		75%	Assisting and Caring for Others - Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
		75%	Working with Computers - Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
		71%	Communicating with People Outside the Organization - Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
		68%	Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge - Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
		68%	Making Decisions and Solving Problems - Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
		67%	Thinking Creatively - Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
		67%	Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events - Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
		66%	Performing Administrative Activities - Performing day-to-day administrative tasks such as maintaining information files and processing paperwork.
		66%	Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others - Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others.
		65%	Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work - Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
		65%	Training and Teaching Others - Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
		64%	Developing Objectives and Strategies - Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them.
		64%	Coaching and Developing Others - Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills.
		64%	Developing and Building Teams - Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.
		62%	Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People - Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
		62%	Providing Consultation and Advice to Others - Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups on technical, systems-, or process-related topics.
		61%	Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings - Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
		61%	Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards - Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
		59%	Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others - Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
		59%	Scheduling Work and Activities - Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
		58%	Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others - Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used.
		56%	Processing Information - Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.

What Social and Human Service Assistants Do

Social and human service assistants help the elderly stay in their own homes and live under their own care whenever possible.

Social and human service assistants provide client services, including support for families, in a wide variety of fields, such as psychology, rehabilitation, and social work. They assist other workers, such as social workers, and they help clients find benefits or community services.

Duties

Social and human service assistants typically do the following:

Help determine what type of aid their clients need
Work with clients and other professionals, such as social workers, to develop a treatment plan
Help clients find assistance with daily activities, such as eating and bathing
Research services, such as food stamps and Medicaid, that are available to clients
Coordinate services provided to clients
Help clients complete paperwork to apply for assistance programs
Check in with clients to ensure that services are provided appropriately

Social and human service assistants have many job titles, including case work aide, clinical social work aide, family service assistant, social work assistant, addictions counselor assistant, and human service worker.

Social and human service assistants help clients identify and obtain benefits and services. In addition to initially connecting clients with benefits or services, social and human service assistants may follow up with clients to ensure that they are receiving the intended services and that the services are meeting their needs. They work under the direction of social workers, psychologists, or other community and social service workers.

With children and families, social and human service assistants ensure that the children live in safe homes. They help parents get needed resources for their children, such as food stamps or childcare.

With the elderly, these workers help clients stay in their own homes and live under their own care whenever possible. Social and human service assistants may coordinate meal deliveries or find personal care aides to help with the clients’ day-to-day needs, such as running errands and bathing. In some cases, human service assistants help look for residential care facilities, such as nursing homes.

For people with disabilities, social and human service assistants help find rehabilitation services that aid their clients. They may work with employers to make a job more accessible to people with disabilities. Some workers find personal care services to help clients with daily living activities, such as bathing and making meals.

For people with addictions, human service assistants find rehabilitation centers that meet their clients’ needs. They also may find support groups for people who are dependent on alcohol, drugs, gambling, or other substances or behaviors.

With veterans, assistants help people who have been discharged from the military adjust to civilian life. They help with practical needs, such as locating housing and finding ways to apply skills gained in the military to civilian jobs. They may also help their clients navigate the services available to veterans.

For people with mental illnesses, social and human service assistants help clients find the appropriate resources to help them cope with their illness. They find self-help and support groups to provide their clients with an assistance network. In addition, they may find personal care services or group housing to help those with more severe mental illnesses care for themselves.

With immigrants, workers help clients adjust to living in a new country. They help the clients locate jobs and housing. They may also help them find programs that teach English, or they may find legal assistance to help immigrants get administrative paperwork in order.

With former prison inmates, human service assistants find job training or placement programs to help clients reenter society. Human service assistants help former inmates find housing and connect with programs that help them start a new life for themselves.

With homeless people, assistants help clients meet their basic needs. They find temporary or permanent housing for their clients and locate places, such as soup kitchens, that provide meals. Human service assistants also help homeless people find resources to address other problems they may have, such as joblessness.

Work Environment

Social and human service assistants held about 415,100 jobs in 2022. The largest employers of social and human service assistants were as follows:

Individual and family services	29%
Local government, excluding education and hospitals	13
Nursing and residential care facilities	11
Community and vocational rehabilitation services	10
State government, excluding education and hospitals	8

Social and human service assistants work in offices, clinics, hospitals, group homes, and shelters. Some travel around their communities to see clients.

Work Schedules

Most social and human service assistants work full time. Some work nights and weekends.

Getting Started

Education:

39%

Bachelor's Degree

18%

Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree)

How to Become a Social and Human Service Assistant

The duties of social and human service assistants are often determined by their level of education.

Requirements for social and human service assistants vary, although they typically have at least a high school diploma and must complete a brief period of on-the-job training.

Some employers require a criminal background check. Social and human service assistants also may need a valid driver’s license.

Education

Although a high school diploma is typically required, some employers prefer to hire workers who have relevant work experience or education beyond high school. A certificate or an associate’s degree in a subject such as human services, gerontology (working with older adults), or social or behavioral science is becoming more common for workers entering this occupation. Although not required, a bachelor's degree in fields such as social science, psychology, or public policy and social services may provide useful background knowledge.

Human service degree programs train students to observe and interview patients, carry out treatment plans, and handle people who are undergoing a crisis. Many programs include fieldwork to give students hands-on experience.

The level of education that social and human service assistants have completed often determines the responsibilities they are given. Those with a high school diploma are likely to do lower level work, such as helping clients fill out paperwork. Assistants with some college education may coordinate program activities or manage a group home.

Training

Many social and human service assistants, particularly those without any postsecondary education, undergo a short period of on-the-job training. Because such workers often are dealing with multiple clients from a wide variety of backgrounds, on-the-job training in case management helps prepare them to respond appropriately to the different needs and situations of their clients.

Advancement

For social and human service assistants, additional education is almost always necessary for advancement. In general, advancement to case management or social work jobs requires a bachelor’s or master’s degree in human services, counseling, rehabilitation, social work, or a related field.

Job Outlook

Employment of social and human service assistants is projected to grow 9 percent from 2022 to 2032, much faster than the average for all occupations.

About 47,400 openings for social and human service assistants are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.

Employment

A growing population of older people and rising demand for social services are expected to drive demand for these workers.

An increase in the number of older adults is expected to result in growing demand for the social services they use, including home-delivered meals and community center activities. Because social and human service assistants often arrange and provide these services, more of these workers will be needed to meet the increased demand.

In addition, employment growth is expected as more people with substance use disorders enroll in treatment programs rather than being sent to jail. As a result, demand should increase for social and human service assistants who work in treatment programs or who work with people with addictions.

Contacts for More Information

For more information about social and human service assistants, visit

National Organization for Human Services

Similar Occupations

This table shows a list of occupations with job duties that are similar to those of social and human service assistants.

Occupation	Job Duties	Entry-Level Education	Median Annual Pay, May 2022
Childcare Workers	Childcare workers attend to children's needs while helping to foster early development.	High school diploma or equivalent	$28,520
Health Education Specialists	Health education specialists develop programs to teach people about conditions affecting well-being.	Bachelor's degree	$59,990
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	Home health and personal care aides monitor the condition of people with disabilities or chronic illnesses and help them with daily living activities.	High school diploma or equivalent	$30,180
Marriage and Family Therapists	Marriage and family therapists help people manage and overcome problems with family and other relationships.	Master's degree	$56,570
Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists	Probation officers and correctional treatment specialists assist in rehabilitating law offenders in custody or on probation or parole.	Bachelor's degree	$59,860
Rehabilitation Counselors	Rehabilitation counselors help people with physical, mental, developmental, or emotional disabilities live independently.	Master's degree	$39,990
Social and Community Service Managers	Social and community service managers coordinate and supervise programs and organizations that support public well-being.	Bachelor's degree	$74,240
Social Workers	Social workers help people prevent and cope with problems in their everyday lives.	See How to Become One	$55,350
Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors	Substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors advise people on a range of issues, such as those relating to alcoholism, addictions, or depression.	Bachelor's degree	$49,710