How to hire a certified athletic trainer

How to hire a certified athletic trainer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step certified athletic trainer hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a certified athletic trainer job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new certified athletic trainer
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a certified athletic trainer do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a certified athletic trainer, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A certified athletic trainer's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, certified athletic trainers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list shows salaries for various types of certified athletic trainers.

   Type of Certified Athletic Trainer	Description	Hourly rate
   Certified Athletic Trainer	Athletic trainers specialize in preventing, diagnosing, and treating muscle and bone injuries and illnesses.	$17-29
   Exercise Physiologist	An exercise physiologist is a health professional who analyzes the fitness of patients to help them improve their health or maintain good health. Exercise physiologists are required to help patients with heart diseases and other chronic conditions such as diabetes or pulmonary disease to regain their health... Show more	$13-39
   Physical Therapist	Physical therapists are health care professionals who diagnose and treat patients with health conditions and limited ability to move and perform daily activities. They help in restoring physical function and mobility and teach how to properly use therapeutic exercise techniques... Show more	$26-45

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Rehabilitation
   • CPR
   • Patient Care
   • Patients
   • Injury Prevention
   • Athletic Events
   • OSHA
   • Athletic Training Room
   • Acute Care
   • Student Athletes
   • Game Coverage
   • Athletic Injuries
   • Emergency Care
   • NCAA

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Provide clinical rehabilitation and evaluation for orthopedic patients
   • Implement OSHA blood borne pathogen controls.
   • Follow OSHA guidelines to maintain a clean and safe environment for all.
   • Contract out for club soccer, rugby, volleyball and baseball events.
   • Sport coverage include: lacrosse, football, soccer, ice-hockey, and wrestling.
   • Facilitate all durable medical equipment orders on behalf of patients in addition to leading daily office operations as needed

   More certified athletic trainer duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your certified athletic trainer job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A certified athletic trainer can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, certified athletic trainers' average salary in alabama is 43% less than in connecticut.
   • Seniority. Entry-level certified athletic trainers 41% less than senior-level certified athletic trainers.
   • Certifications. A certified athletic trainer with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a certified athletic trainer's salary.

   Average certified athletic trainer salary

   $47,184yearly

   $22.68 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level certified athletic trainer salary

   $36,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 28, 2026

   Average certified athletic trainer salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Connecticut	$57,647	$28
   2	Hawaii	$56,612	$27
   3	California	$54,835	$26
   4	Oregon	$50,489	$24
   5	New York	$49,635	$24
   6	Nevada	$47,891	$23
   7	Delaware	$47,746	$23
   8	Colorado	$46,034	$22
   9	Minnesota	$45,899	$22
   10	Washington	$45,523	$22
   11	Georgia	$44,700	$21
   12	Ohio	$44,476	$21
   13	Pennsylvania	$44,317	$21
   14	Florida	$44,295	$21
   15	Michigan	$44,219	$21
   16	Illinois	$43,961	$21
   17	South Carolina	$43,665	$21
   18	Maryland	$41,586	$20
   19	West Virginia	$41,115	$20
   20	Indiana	$40,509	$19

   Average certified athletic trainer salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	The American Musical and Dramatic Academy	$75,044	$36.08	1
   2	Hawaii Pacific Health	$70,945	$34.11	7
   3	Dignity Health	$62,920	$30.25	128
   4	University of Hawaii Foundation	$62,876	$30.23	1
   5	Tenet Healthcare	$60,548	$29.11	156
   6	Select Medical	$59,912	$28.80	2,614
   7	Shriners Hospitals for Children	$59,761	$28.73	6
   8	Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan	$58,773	$28.26
   9	Mount Nittany Medical Center	$58,722	$28.23
   10	Southern Ohio Medical Center	$57,232	$27.52	2
   11	Valley View Hospital	$57,150	$27.48	19
   12	St. Mary's Health Inc.	$56,738	$27.28	4
   13	Washington State University	$56,445	$27.14
   14	Pacific Medical Centers	$56,328	$27.08
   15	LCMC Health	$55,669	$26.76	3
   16	Mercy Children's Hospital	$55,586	$26.72	3
   17	Santa Rosa City Schools	$55,439	$26.65
   18	Occu-Health	$55,279	$26.58
   19	Methodist Health System	$54,791	$26.34	17
   20	Northwestern Medical Center	$54,765	$26.33

4. Writing a certified athletic trainer job description

   A certified athletic trainer job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a certified athletic trainer job description:

   Certified athletic trainer job description example

   The role will function as a physician extender and a leader of the orthopedic care team. Role will supervise the practice based Athletic Training program, provide practice leadership oversight of Athletic Trainer team, develop partnerships and strategic initiatives related to the Northside Hospital Sports Medicine Network, and assist in a clinical capacity for practice operations. Practice will focus on general orthopedics and adult and pediatric sports medicine. Required interpersonal skills, excellent communication and organizational skills.
   
   Manage clinic based performance health platform. Leverage resource to provide better patient outcomes, improved patient care, patient satisfaction and patient/athlete health management.
   
   Develop system-wide Policies and Procedures that support the Athletic Training programs in our current and future relationships with high schools, teams, and sports programs.
   
   Develop and maintain liaisons with the athletic community by making public appearances, speeches, and attending meetings and functions to promote the Northside Hospital Sports Medicine Network. Prepare written materials to be used in publications and marketing of various Sports Medicine topics and programs.
   
   Independently manage patient, surgery, coach/athlete, other physician office calls, requires high level reasoning related to patient care and treatment.
   
   Perform patient teaching and education with strong emphasis on independent evaluation and diagnostic ability to provide correct rehabilitation and therapeutic exercise plans for patients and athletes.
   
   Correct placement/fitting of splints and fabricating and correctly putting on casts, bracing/durable medical equipment.
   Function as point of contact for patients. Position Requirements
   Required Qualifications: Certified by the Board of Certification (BOC) for Athletic Trainers (BOC-ATC) AND Licensed by the Georgia Board of Athletic Trainers (Licensed Athletic Trainer-LAT) Preferred Qualifications: Orthopaedic Technologist-Certified (OTC) thru the National Board for Certification of Orthopaedic Technologist (NBCOT) and/or OPA-C/OA-C thru the National Board for Certification of Orthopaedic Physician's Assistants/National Board for Certification of Orthopaedic Assistants (NBCOPA/NBCOA) 2+ years of ATC experience
   
   License/Certification Requirements: Yes
   
   Work Hours: 8a-5p
   
   Weekend Requirements: No
   
   On-Call Requirements: No

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right certified athletic trainer for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with certified athletic trainers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit certified athletic trainers who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your certified athletic trainer job on Zippia to find and recruit certified athletic trainer candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit certified athletic trainers, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new certified athletic trainer

   Once you've decided on a perfect certified athletic trainer candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a certified athletic trainer?