How To Become An Assessment Specialist: What It Is and Career Path

What is an assessment specialist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Dr. Tommy Casarez Ph.D.

If you would like to help students reach their potential by ensuring that their needs are met, then you may want to look into becoming an assessment specialist. An assessment specialist typically plans, develops, and implements testing and assessment programs for students. Many specialists work for educational institutions and companies which develop educational or employment assessment materials. Some specialists work directly with students to determine their needs and help them locate appropriate academic resources.

Some tasks that assessment specialists can expect to undertake include designing, implementing, and evaluating assessments and testing operations, overseeing and administering assessments to students, assuring student compliance with policies and procedures, and coordinating assessment and testing services with various academic services. These specialists also interpret assessment findings, analyze and compile comprehensive statistical and narrative data, and summarize their findings. They may also be asked to record, store, and manage sensitive assessment data, as appropriate.

Assessment specialists should have the ability to investigate and analyze information. They should also have advanced research, critical thinking, and report writing skills. A Bachelor's degree is normally required for these positions, typically in fields related to education or educational assessments.

What general advice would you give to an assessment specialist?

Dr. Tommy Casarez Ph.D.

Dr., Assistant Professor of Historical and Systematic Theology, Vanguard University

Opportunities come in many different shapes and sizes, but they are still out there. Whether you are seeking to land a job in education or the non-profit sector, you will need to familiarize yourself and get used to all things digital, for the sake of communicating effectively. The younger your student or service partner's mindset, the more digitally savvy you will need to be, especially in the classroom and in the non-profit world.

ScoreAssessment SpecialistUS Average

Salary

5.0

Avg. Salary $64,402

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

9.3

Growth rate 9%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

4.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.62%

Asian 3.12%

Black or African American 7.90%

Hispanic or Latino 7.90%

Unknown 6.24%

White 74.22%

Gender

female 68.36%

male 31.64%

Age - 42

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 42

Stress level

9.3

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

10.0

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.5

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an assessment specialist

Explore assessment specialist education requirements

Most common assessment specialist degrees

Bachelor's

58.8 %

Master's

25.8 %

Associate

8.4 %

Start to develop specific assessment specialist skills

Skills	Percentages
Social Work	20.84%
Patients	17.59%
Edition	6.65%
Professional Development	3.06%
Mental Health Assessments	2.99%

Complete relevant assessment specialist training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New assessment specialists learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an assessment specialist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real assessment specialist resumes.

Research assessment specialist duties and responsibilities

Screen, identify, diagnose using DSM nomenclature, treat and manage mental health and/or substance abuse problems.
Collaborate with clinical staff regarding patient care during testing and any accommodations or adjustments require for patients being test.
Work with school assessment coordinators; train and evaluate staff.
Examine EMR documentation to determine resident's needs as required by CMS' MDS regulations.

Prepare your assessment specialist resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your assessment specialist resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an assessment specialist resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable assessment specialist resume templates

Build a professional assessment specialist resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your assessment specialist resume.