What does a behavioral specialist do?
A behavioral specialist is a psychological expert providing guidance and counseling to people who have behavioral issues affecting their abilities to learn and socialize with other people. Behavioral specialists assess the level of patients' behavior and make treatment plans to help them cope. They monitor the patient's progress and keep treatment reports, improving or adjusting treatment plans as needed. They also communicate with the patients' family and friends for treatment support, as well as coordinate with other health professionals for additional assistance.
Behavioral specialist responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real behavioral specialist resumes:
- Observe patients and strategically prepare and manage clinical analysis of individuals and their progress in conjunction with formulate behavior goals.
- Implement a CPR training program for 20 staff serving 50 clients with mental illness.
- Guide student achievement according to district's math content standards, utilizing identify needs information.
- Assist children with autism or other developmental disabilities with activities and therapeutic socialization to improve social skills and academic performance.
- Attend ETR meetings and provide input on students.
- Sanitize toys and play equipment each day to maintain safety and cleanliness.
- Train in behavior modification, professional assault response, first aid and CPR.
- Conduct one-on-one therapy ranging from social, language, motor, and independent skills.
- Assist client in all areas of ADL's and in speech and occupational programs.
- Develop and teach academic goals using DTT and natural environment teaching in small group settings.
- Integrate RTI writing groups to bolster lower students while providing support and growth for students writing fluently for their grade level.
- Collaborate with parents and/or caregivers on developing and implementing functional and generative goals and objectives applicable to their child's IFSP.
- Interpret results of evaluations and assessments in conjunction with other members of the IFSP team and documents results on the IFSP.
- Train and supervise RTI paraprofessionals.
- Conduct evaluations of developmental and adaptive functioning.
Behavioral specialist skills and personality traits
We calculated that 10% of Behavioral Specialists are proficient in Mental Health, Autism, and Applied Behavior Analysis. They’re also known for soft skills such as Time-management skills, Communication skills, and Organizational skills.
We break down the percentage of Behavioral Specialists that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Mental Health, 10%
Interfaced with existing county mental health/developmental service systems, assessing and evaluating behavioral, social, and emotional support plan processes.
- Autism, 10%
Supervised implementation of treatment plans for consumers ages 3-18 with various diagnoses, primarily consumers identified with autism spectrum disorders.
- Applied Behavior Analysis, 7%
Provided methods in applied behavior analysis in a forensics facility for sexually violent predators.
- Crisis Intervention, 7%
Provided crisis intervention and assisted families in understanding the implication and complexities of medical situation and its impact on one lifestyle.
- Rehabilitation, 6%
Advised and supervised members of a behavioral health rehabilitation team regarding the appropriate clinical approach for various children.
- Social Work, 6%
Provide detailed documentation of issues that arise during bunk life Coordinate social worker activities and establish parent contact as necessary.
"mental health," "autism," and "applied behavior analysis" are among the most common skills that behavioral specialists use at work. You can find even more behavioral specialist responsibilities below, including:
Time-management skills. One of the key soft skills for a behavioral specialist to have is time-management skills. You can see how this relates to what behavioral specialists do because "social and human service assistants often work with many clients." Additionally, a behavioral specialist resume shows how behavioral specialists use time-management skills: "collaborate with contractors to provide technical assistance and establish deadlines to meet state medicaid and cms requirements [e.g. "
Communication skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling behavioral specialist duties is communication skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "social and human service assistants talk with clients about the challenges in their lives and assist them in getting help." According to a behavioral specialist resume, here's how behavioral specialists can utilize communication skills in their job responsibilities: "love and logic training cpi pca trained in addition domestic and sexuall violence training olweus training skills used communication and diversity"
Organizational skills. behavioral specialists are also known for organizational skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to behavioral specialist responsibilities, because "social and human service assistants must often complete lots of paperwork and work with many different clients." A behavioral specialist resume example shows how organizational skills is used in the workplace: "attend scheduled meetings and organizational forums for staff development trainings. "
Problem-solving skills. For certain behavioral specialist responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "problem-solving skills." The day-to-day duties of a behavioral specialist rely on this skill, as "social and human service assistants help clients find solutions to their problems." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what behavioral specialists do: "provided conflict resolution through group therapy and one to one counseling. "
Interpersonal skills. Lastly, "interpersonal skills" is an important element of what a behavioral specialist does. Behavioral specialist responsibilities require this skill because "social and human service assistants must make their clients feel comfortable discussing sensitive issues." This resume example highlights how behavioral specialist duties rely on this skill: "utilize excellent interpersonal skills to manage student crisis situations. "
The three companies that hire the most behavioral specialists are:
- Easter Seals Southern California82 behavioral specialists jobs
- Rogers Behavioral Health24 behavioral specialists jobs
- Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch11 behavioral specialists jobs
Choose from 10+ customizable behavioral specialist resume templates
Build a professional behavioral specialist resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your behavioral specialist resume.
Compare different behavioral specialists
Behavioral specialist vs. Youth advocate
Youth advocates are individuals who responsible for maintaining the human rights of youth while assisting them in developing their skills in all areas of life, such as education, health, employment, and relationships. These advocates are required to discuss youth development and involvement with various leaders in the community. They must provide crisis interventions by performing one-on-one and group meetings with young adults. Youth advocates must also work with mental health professionals within the community so that they can guide teenagers with drug or alcohol problems and mental health issues.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, behavioral specialist responsibilities require skills like "autism," "applied behavior analysis," "rehabilitation," and "aba." Meanwhile a typical youth advocate has skills in areas such as "youth development," "social services," "life training," and "community outreach." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Youth advocates earn the highest salaries when working in the automotive industry, with an average yearly salary of $31,171. On the other hand, behavioral specialists are paid more in the professional industry with an average salary of $45,864.The education levels that youth advocates earn slightly differ from behavioral specialists. In particular, youth advocates are 13.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a behavioral specialist. Additionally, they're 0.9% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Behavioral specialist vs. Program counselor
A Program Counselor is an essential part of a school's faculty. It's the counselor's responsibility to ensure that students are benefiting from the school's educational curriculum. This person is also tasked to help students resolve issues and problems that may hinder any educational progress. They are also part of the disciplinary team intended to instill good morals, ethics, and decency in students. The Program Counselor is one of the teacher or professor who has expertise or has a high educational degree in a particular subject or field.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, behavioral specialist responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "mental health," "autism," "applied behavior analysis," and "rehabilitation." Meanwhile, a program counselor has duties that require skills in areas such as "community integration," "medication administration," "behavioral interventions," and "behavioral issues." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
On average, program counselors earn a higher salary than behavioral specialists. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, program counselors earn the most pay in the health care industry with an average salary of $41,845. Whereas behavioral specialists have higher pay in the professional industry, with an average salary of $45,864.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Program counselors tend to reach lower levels of education than behavioral specialists. In fact, they're 9.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.9% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for behavioral specialists in the next 3-5 years?
Lesley Casarez Ph.D.
Director, Quality Enhancement Plan Program Coordinator, M.S. Professional School Counseling Associate Professor, Curriculum and Instruction, Angelo State University
Behavioral specialist vs. Youth counselor
A Youth Counselor's role is to provide guidance and interact with children or teenagers in need of care and counseling. The duty of a Youth Counselor is diverse, and it highly depends on the organization or employer. However, the responsibilities mostly revolve around establishing rapport with the youngster while trying to work on their issues, ensuring their welfare by monitoring their emotional and physical state, coordinating with families or other facilities, suggesting treatments, and performing crisis intervention if necessary.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from behavioral specialist resumes include skills like "autism," "applied behavior analysis," "rehabilitation," and "aba," whereas a youth counselor is more likely to list skills in "direct care," "necessary paperwork," "behavioral issues," and "emergency first aid. "
Youth counselors make a very good living in the professional industry with an average annual salary of $38,048. On the other hand, behavioral specialists are paid the highest salary in the professional industry, with average annual pay of $45,864.Most youth counselors achieve a lower degree level compared to behavioral specialists. For example, they're 16.9% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.9% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Behavioral specialist vs. Youth worker
Youth workers specialize in handling and providing support to young individuals with behavioral difficulties. They are primarily responsible for devising recreational projects, handling the budget, producing progress reports, managing intervention programs, and counseling troubled youth while keeping their information confidential. There may be instances where one must also search for opportunities and apply for funding or sponsorship. Furthermore, as a youth worker, it is vital to assess an individual's condition to determine their needs and ensure that they will receive the proper treatment.
Types of behavioral specialist
Updated January 8, 2025
