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

What is a child daycare worker and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Laura Schroeder

The average child daycare worker salary is $26,693. The most common degree is a high school diploma degree with an psychology major. It usually takes 1-2 years of experience to become a child daycare worker. Child daycare workers with a First Aid, CPR and AED Instructor certification earn more money. Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 6% and produce 61,600 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a child daycare 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 Daycare WorkerUS Average

Salary

2.1

Avg. Salary $26,693

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.7

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.91%

Asian 6.29%

Black or African American 9.81%

Hispanic or Latino 15.41%

Unknown 5.89%

White 61.68%

Gender

female 88.69%

male 11.31%

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 daycare worker

Explore child daycare worker education requirements

Most common child daycare worker degrees

High School Diploma

41.7 %

Bachelor's

27.5 %

Associate

17.2 %

Start to develop specific child daycare worker skills

Skills	Percentages
Kids	37.69%
Diaper Changes	21.53%
Child Care	12.27%
CPR	9.71%
Infant Room	2.94%

Complete relevant child daycare worker training and internships

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

Research child daycare worker duties and responsibilities

Certify in CPR and a.
Help learn ABC's, colors, and counting.
Play with the children, teach songs, ABC's, numbers, and such.
Supervise more than 25 students age 6-14 and are CPR certify during employment.

Prepare your child daycare worker resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your child daycare 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 daycare 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 daycare worker resume templates

Build a professional child daycare 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 daycare worker resume.

Apply for child daycare worker jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a child daycare 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 daycare workers rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Child daycare worker reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Sep 2022

Pros

I love working with kids

Cons

Working with kids means sometimes it can get overwhelming

A zippia user wrote a review on Jun 2022

Cons

I honestly can’t complain because there was nothing I ever didn’t enjoy being a babysitter infact I want to work at w children’s hospital when I graduate and make the kids smile and happy

A zippia user wrote a review on Mar 2020

Cons

Wild non trained. Once a lifetime into groomers..biters. wiggly , jumpers., Barker's non stop clients who can't understand why you take so long or understand why we do some of things we have to do.

What is a child daycare worker and how to become one

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

Child daycare worker career paths

Key steps to become a child daycare worker

Explore child daycare worker education requirements

Most common child daycare worker degrees

Start to develop specific child daycare worker skills

Complete relevant child daycare worker training and internships

Research child daycare worker duties and responsibilities

Prepare your child daycare worker resume

Choose from 10+ customizable child daycare worker resume templates

Apply for child daycare worker jobs

How did you land your first child daycare worker job

Average child daycare worker salary

How do child daycare workers rate their job?

Child daycare worker reviews