How long does it take to become a Child Care Worker?

It takes 2 years of professional experience to become a child care worker. That is the time it takes to learn specific child care worker skills, but does not account for time spent in formal education. If you include the normal education requirements to complete a college degree, then it takes 5 to 7 years years to become a child care worker.

Why do you want to work in childcare?

"I want to work in childcare because I want to have a positive impact on the lives of children, build relationships with children and fellow caretakers, and have the opportunity to learn and grow" is a good answer to this interview question. You might also want to highlight your interests and how they line up with this specific childcare location.

How To Become A Child Care Worker: What It Is and Career Path

What is a child care worker and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Laura Schroeder

A child care worker is an individual who bears the responsibility of providing care and overseeing children during the period the parents or guardians are out. As a child care worker, your roles may include changing napkins and readying milk for the newborn. You also need to come up with methods or playful events where children can acquire knowledge and preparing a period to satisfy their necessities like siestas.

Also, you have to arrange nourishing meals and refreshments. Apart from this, you have to ensure the safety of the children. You will do this by observing any sign of sensitive challenges and bring it to the parent or guardians' awareness without delay.

To be suited for this role, child care workers usually study psychology, criminal justice, or business. And you must hold at least a bachelor's degree or a high school diploma. You must also demonstrate great communication, decision-making, interpersonal, and instructional skills. Along with this, you should be patient and must be able to endure. A child care worker earns up to $24,141 per year or $11.61 per hour.

What general advice would you give to a child care worker?

Laura Schroeder

President, International Nanny Association

Young graduates will need to have some knowledge or experience in early childhood education, as help with the school day has become an important part of a nanny's job since the pandemic. They also must be able to work independently and be self motivated as their bosses will likely not be on site. There are jobs for nannies all over the U.S., but the best paying jobs tend to be in wealthier areas and larger cities, for example L.A., San Francisco, Seattle and Boston.

ScoreChild Care WorkerUS Average

Salary

2.4

Avg. Salary $31,284

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.7

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.7

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.00%

Asian 6.76%

Black or African American 8.76%

Hispanic or Latino 19.41%

Unknown 6.14%

White 57.92%

Gender

female 78.94%

male 21.06%

Age - 35

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 - 35

Stress level

6.7

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

3.7

Complexity level is basic

7 - challenging

Work life balance

10.0

Work life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a child care worker

Explore child care worker education requirements

Most common child care worker degrees

Bachelor's

44.0 %

High School Diploma

23.5 %

Associate

18.5 %

Start to develop specific child care worker skills

Skills	Percentages
Child Care	38.66%
Crisis Intervention	9.20%
Behavioral Issues	7.77%
CPR	5.11%
Direct Supervision	4.59%

Complete relevant child care worker training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New child care workers 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 a child care worker based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real child care worker resumes.

Gain additional child care worker certifications

Child care worker certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific child care worker certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for child care workers include First Aid, CPR and AED Instructor and Child Development Associate (CDA).

More About Certifications

Research child care worker duties and responsibilities

Obtain certification in CPR to ensure minors would be properly resuscitate in an emergency.
Require to maintain continuing education in courses including passive restraint, standard first aid and CPR.
Complete accurate and timely documentation on kids' behavior as outlined by policy.
Create math, reading, bible, and art lessons.

Prepare your child care worker resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your child care worker 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 a child care worker resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable child care worker resume templates

Build a professional child care worker 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 child care worker resume.

Apply for child care worker jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a child care worker job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do child care workers rate their job?

-/5

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Child care worker reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Jan 2024

Cons

can be easy to get burnt out, pay is ok

A zippia user wrote a review on Apr 2019

Pros

Working to help to reach there full potentual