How to hire a children's counselor

Children's counselor hiring summary. Here are some key points about hiring children's counselors in the United States:

HR departments typically spend 15% of their expenses on recruitment.
It usually takes about 12 weeks for a new employee to reach full productivity levels.
It typically takes 36-42 days to fill a job opening.
The median cost to hire a children's counselor is $1,633.
Small businesses spend an average of $1,105 per children's counselor on training each year, while large companies spend $658.
There are currently 40,916 children's counselors in the US and 39,726 job openings.
Rockford, IL, has the highest demand for children's counselors, with 4 job openings.
New York, NY has the highest concentration of children's counselors.

How to hire a children's counselor, step by step

To hire a children's counselor, you should create an ideal candidate profile, determine a budget, and post and promote your job. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to hire a children's counselor:

Here's a step-by-step children's counselor hiring guide:

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

Post a children's counselor job for free, promote it for a fee

Identify your hiring needs

First, determine the employments status of the children's counselor you need to hire. Certain children's counselor roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

Determine employee vs contractor status

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

Hiring the perfect children's counselor also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

The following list breaks down different types of children's counselors and their corresponding salaries.

Type of Children's Counselor	Description	Hourly rate
Children's Counselor	Social workers help people solve and cope with problems in their everyday lives. One group of social workers—clinical social workers—also diagnose and treat mental, behavioral, and emotional issues.	$10-31
Counselor Internship	When it comes to Counselor Internship, among the primary responsibilities is to assist in dealing with various activities such as preparing and verifying necessary documentation, observing consultations and outreach programs, guide clients and help develop multiple helpful strategies, and provide assessments. Furthermore, one can conduct counseling and consultation only under supervision... Show more	$14-31
Community Health Counselor	A community health counselor typically provides health and welfare support to the disadvantaged members of a community. Their responsibilities revolve around devising strategies to reach out to community members, coordinating with schools and other institutions, and building positive relationships with the communities that they serve... Show more	$13-30

Create an ideal candidate profile
Common skills:
- Child Care
- Social Work
- Mental Health
- Crisis Intervention
- Group Therapy
- Family Therapy
- Community Resources
- Substance Abuse
- Child Abuse
- CPR
- Safety Planning
- Child Development
- Community Agencies
- at-Risk Children
Check all skills
Responsibilities:
- Work towards empowering juveniles and their families to support a positive lifestyle by providing strength base intensive intervention and rehabilitation services.
- Develop and attend treatment plan and IEP meetings for adolescents with mental diagnosis.
- Maintain IEP goals and classroom management.
- Provide behavior modification and social skills training to children and adolescents with ADHD and other behavioral and emotional disorders.
More children's counselor duties

Make a budget

Including a salary range in your children's counselor job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A children's counselor salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

For example, the average salary for a children's counselor in Arkansas may be lower than in New Jersey, and an entry-level children's counselor usually earns less than a senior-level children's counselor. Additionally, a children's counselor with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

Average children's counselor salary

$38,024yearly

$18.28 hourly rate

Entry-level children's counselor salary

$21,000 yearly salary

Updated January 23, 2026

Average children's counselor salary by state

Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
1	California	$51,280	$25
2	New York	$49,225	$24
3	Texas	$46,506	$22
4	Florida	$39,777	$19
5	Ohio	$38,783	$19
6	Massachusetts	$37,593	$18
7	Illinois	$37,219	$18
8	Tennessee	$34,434	$17
9	Iowa	$32,404	$16
10	Alabama	$31,130	$15
11	Colorado	$29,613	$14
12	Montana	$28,597	$14
13	Oklahoma	$25,784	$12

Average children's counselor salary by company

Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
1	Lake County	$54,158	$26.04	15
2	Children's Home & Aid	$44,956	$21.61
3	COUNTY OF MERCED	$43,167	$20.75
4	Goldbelt Falcon	$40,867	$19.65
5	S.C. Department of Commerce	$40,192	$19.32
6	Eating Recovery Center	$38,795	$18.65
7	East Alabama Health	$37,267	$17.92
8	Cambridge Health Alliance	$35,889	$17.25	4
9	Maximus	$32,725	$15.73	11
10	Superior Court Of California	$32,306	$15.53
11	Westcare Health Corporation	$32,029	$15.40	29
12	Racker	$31,976	$15.37	1
13	St Joseph Medical Group	$31,439	$15.11	10
14	Key Autism Services	$31,415	$15.10
15	Trinity Health	$31,262	$15.03	47
16	The MetroHealth System	$31,160	$14.98
17	UnityPoint Health	$30,661	$14.74	27
18	Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation	$28,328	$13.62	5
19	Youth Homes	$27,064	$13.01
20	Directions for Living	$26,543	$12.76	2

Writing a children's counselor job description
A job description for a children's counselor role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a children's counselor job description:
Children's counselor job description example
Job Details

Job Location

Key Largo - 99198 Overseas - Key Largo, FL

Position Type

Full Time

Education Level

4 Year Degree

Salary Range

$19.63 Hourly

Job Category

Nonprofit - Social Services

Summary: perform screening, assessment, intervention and referral and linkage for individuals at risk of substance abuse disorders and/or mental health issues, with the goal of intervention and prevent worsening of symptoms

Duties and Responsibilities:

+ Carries caseload of approximately 25

+ Provides children substance abuse outreach, screening and intervention

+ Provides linkage for further assessment and treatment

+ Consults with school personnel regarding family needs and participates in case staffings with DCF, Wesley House and/or Our Kids

+ Demonstrates empathetic, professional behavior toward children, families, and school personnel

+ Maintains confidentiality of service recipients

+ Engages clients and completes 115 direct service hours per month

+ Enrolls clients in services through intakes and completing biopsychosocial assessments

+ Prepares written documentation for each service provided

Essential Qualifications:

Certifications/Licensures:

+ Should be CAP, CPRS, or CPMH eligible. If not certified, must have ability to obtain the credential within 2 years of employment Preference will be given to those candidates who are currently certified

Education:

+ Graduation from an accredited four-year college with a degree in Addiction Counseling, Criminal Justice, Social Work, Psychology or related field is required

Experience and Competencies:

+ Two years of related work experience in Mental Health, and / or Substance Abuse field preferred

+ Ability to meet requirements of Monroe County Sheriffs Office background check

+ CPR Certification, First Aid Certification and an annual Tuberculosis test.

+ Ability to provide an Affidavit of Good Moral Character

+ Clearance in Pre-Employment Drug Testing and Criminal Records Checks, as required.

During your tenure with WestCare there may be new requirements, including, but not limited to vaccinations that are issued by local, State, Federal, and/or Funders that WestCare may have to comply with. Should this occur Human Resources or appropriate personnel will inform you.

WestCare is an Equal Opportunity Drug Free Work Place Employer. Employment at WestCare is contingent upon successful completion of a pre-employment drug test, pre-employment physical and criminal background check.
Post your job
There are a few common ways to find children's counselors for your business:
- Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
- Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
- Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
- Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.
Post your job online:
- Post your children's counselor job on Zippia to find and recruit children's counselor candidates who meet your exact specifications.
- Use field-specific websites.
- Post a job on free websites.
Interview candidates
Recruiting children's counselors requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.
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.
Send a job offer and onboard your new children's counselor
Once you have selected a candidate for the children's counselor position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the 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.
Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new children's counselor. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.
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 children's counselor?

Before you start to hire children's counselors, it pays to consider both the one-off costs like recruitment, job promotion, and onboarding, as well as the ongoing costs of an employee's salary and benefits. While most companies that hire children's counselors pay close attention to the initial cost of hiring, ongoing costs are much more significant in the long run.

You can expect to pay around $38,024 per year for a children's counselor, as this is the median yearly salary nationally. This can vary depending on what state or city you're hiring in. If you're hiring for contract work or on a per-project basis, hourly rates for children's counselors in the US typically range between $10 and $31 an hour.

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Updated January 23, 2026

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How to hire a children's counselor