Social and Human Service Assistants
Career Cluster
Human Services
Focuses on families and human needs. This field has careers in counseling, mental health, and community services. It can include personal care and consumer services.
Learn more about this clusterAt a glance
Expected pay range
Expected pay range
This represents the median earnings for this career in the selected county or state. In the range shown, 25% of workers earned less than the bottom salary and 25% earned more than the top salary. Data is provided by the Texas Workforce Commission.
Monthly cost of living
These numbers give you an idea of how much you can spend each month on common expenses with this salary. Percentages are the average a person with no children spends according to data collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. (external link opens new tab) These numbers are a starting point and will differ person to person.
Your actual expenses may differ from those listed. You’ll need to account for the amount taken out in taxes each month. Learn more about income tax expenses. (external link opens new tab) Your student loan payments may also differ. To calculate your student loan payments, use the federal student loan repayment estimator. (external link opens new tab)
About social and human service assistants
What they do
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.
Other titles
Addictions Counselor Assistant, Advocate, Clinical Assistant, Residential Care Assistant, Social Services Aide, Social Services Assistant, Social Work Assistant, Social Work Associate, Social Worker Assistant
Skills they need
- 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.
- Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
- Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Persuasion - Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
Licenses and Certifications they may hold
How to decide which one is right? That depends on an individual’s career path, specialty, and resources.
GUARDIANSHIP PROGRAMS, REGISTERED
Texas Judicial Branch Certification Commission
- License Type
- Register with licensing agency
- Status
- Active
- Education
- No educational requirements
- Continuing education
- No continuing education requirement to maintain license
Certifications
Certifications may be available for this career and can help build knowledge and skills in specific job roles. Explore available certifications (external link opens new tab)
Similar careers
View careers in the same field as social and human service assistants.
Community Health Workers
Better pay
Median salary for this career is higher than the median salary of all careers in the county selected. Salary data is provided by the Texas Workforce Commission.
Promote health within a community by assisting individuals to adopt healthy behaviors. Serve as an advocate for the health needs of individuals by assisting community residents in effectively communicating with healthcare providers or social service agencies. Act as liaison or advocate and implement programs that promote, maintain, and improve individual and overall community health. May deliver health-related preventive services such as blood pressure, glaucoma, and hearing screenings. May collect data to help identify community health needs.
Rehabilitation Counselors
Better pay
Median salary for this career is higher than the median salary of all careers in the county selected. Salary data is provided by the Texas Workforce Commission.
Counsel individuals to maximize the independence and employability of persons coping with personal, social, and vocational difficulties that result from birth defects, illness, disease, accidents, aging, or the stress of daily life. Coordinate activities for residents of care and treatment facilities. Assess client needs and design and implement rehabilitation programs that may include personal and vocational counseling, training, and job placement.
Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors
Advise and assist students and provide educational and vocational guidance services.
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers
Assess and treat individuals with mental, emotional, or substance abuse problems, including abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and/or other drugs. Activities may include individual and group therapy, crisis intervention, case management, client advocacy, prevention, and education.
- American Counseling Association (external link opens new tab)
- American Psychological Association (external link opens new tab)
- Employee Assistance Professionals Association (external link opens new tab)
- National Association of Social Workers (external link opens new tab)
- National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (external link opens new tab)
- National Organization for Human Services (external link opens new tab)
- Occupational Outlook Handbook: Social and human service assistants (external link opens new tab)