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Child support investigator vs probation officer

The differences between child support investigators and probation officers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a child support investigator and a probation officer. Additionally, a child support investigator has an average salary of $47,732, which is higher than the $47,252 average annual salary of a probation officer.

The top three skills for a child support investigator include law enforcement agencies, protective services and child support orders. The most important skills for a probation officer are criminal justice, mental health, and rehabilitation.

Child support investigator vs probation officer overview

Child Support InvestigatorProbation Officer
Yearly salary$47,732$47,252
Hourly rate$22.95$22.72
Growth rate9%-
Number of jobs75,49355,952
Job satisfaction55
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 71%Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Average age4244
Years of experience44

Child support investigator vs probation officer salary

Child support investigators and probation officers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Child Support InvestigatorProbation Officer
Average salary$47,732$47,252
Salary rangeBetween $37,000 And $60,000Between $31,000 And $69,000
Highest paying City-San Jose, CA
Highest paying state-Nevada
Best paying company-Hamilton
Best paying industry-Government

Differences between child support investigator and probation officer education

There are a few differences between a child support investigator and a probation officer in terms of educational background:

Child Support InvestigatorProbation Officer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 71%Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Most common majorCriminal JusticeCriminal Justice
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaCalifornia State University - Long Beach

Child support investigator vs probation officer demographics

Here are the differences between child support investigators' and probation officers' demographics:

Child Support InvestigatorProbation Officer
Average age4244
Gender ratioMale, 32.7% Female, 67.3%Male, 45.4% Female, 54.6%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 13.4% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 2.7% White, 63.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%Black or African American, 14.3% Unknown, 2.6% Hispanic or Latino, 16.7% Asian, 2.2% White, 63.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage10%10%

Differences between child support investigator and probation officer duties and responsibilities

Child support investigator example responsibilities.

  • Help children/youth in state custody achieve permanency whether through reintegration, adoption or custodianship.
  • Provide information and support to transitioning foster youth during assessment, case planning or other permanency and transition-relate activities.
  • Perform related adoptions and supervisory visits for state adoptions.

Probation officer example responsibilities.

  • Manage significant DUI caseload to court-ordered and conditional probation completion.
  • Create comprehensive case plans that identify needs of offenders in order to facilitate public safety and rehabilitation of the offender.
  • Promote positive changes in offender behavior that have been release from TDCJ to pursue their sentence.
  • Assist in the screening and selection of GPS offenders that are release from custody as a condition of bond.
  • Clerk probate, guardianship, commitment and juvenile, prepare minutes, schedule hearings and draft legal documents and correspondence.
  • Complete pre-sentence interviews and investigations.
  • Show more

Child support investigator vs probation officer skills

Common child support investigator skills
  • Law Enforcement Agencies, 11%
  • Protective Services, 7%
  • Child Support Orders, 7%
  • Child Care, 7%
  • Minimum Standards, 6%
  • Community Resources, 5%
Common probation officer skills
  • Criminal Justice, 12%
  • Mental Health, 10%
  • Rehabilitation, 6%
  • Juvenile Offenders, 6%
  • Community Resources, 5%
  • Court Orders, 5%

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