How to hire a clinical psychiatrist

How to hire a clinical psychiatrist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step clinical psychiatrist hiring guide:

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

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a clinical psychiatrist, 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

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a clinical psychiatrist to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a clinical psychiatrist that fits the bill.

   The following list breaks down different types of clinical psychiatrists and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Clinical Psychiatrist	Description	Hourly rate
   Clinical Psychiatrist	Physicians and surgeons diagnose and treat injuries or illnesses. Physicians examine patients; take medical histories; prescribe medications; and order, perform, and interpret diagnostic tests... Show more	$66-193
   Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist	Child and Adolescent Psychiatrists are mental health professionals who deal with children and adolescent individuals. Much like most psychiatrists, they are trained to handle individuals with mental health concerns... Show more	$76-195
   Outpatient Psychiatrist	Outpatient psychiatrists are medical professionals who are responsible for providing diagnosis, treatment, and prevention plans for outpatients with mental health problems as well as substance use disorders. These psychiatrists are required to supervise psychiatry residents with outpatient psychotherapy and medication management while working with patients at the psychiatry wards... Show more	$75-195

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Outpatient Clinic
   • Mental Illness
   • Practice Nurses

   Responsibilities:

   • Implement individualized care plans, using a variety of treatments to stabilize patients during their hospitalization.
   • Conduct full neurological evaluation, including lab, MRI & /or EEG.

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your clinical psychiatrist job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A clinical psychiatrist 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 clinical psychiatrist in Kansas may be lower than in North Dakota, and an entry-level clinical psychiatrist usually earns less than a senior-level clinical psychiatrist. Additionally, a clinical psychiatrist 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 clinical psychiatrist salary

   $236,940yearly

   $113.91 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level clinical psychiatrist salary

   $139,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

   Average clinical psychiatrist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Washington	$253,593	$122
   2	Missouri	$242,038	$116
   3	California	$231,610	$111
   4	Connecticut	$214,957	$103
   5	Maryland	$210,586	$101
   6	Georgia	$210,146	$101
   7	Texas	$201,671	$97
   8	New York	$198,230	$95
   9	Florida	$177,949	$86

   Average clinical psychiatrist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Carilion Clinic	$261,160	$125.56	2
   2	Legacy Community Health	$242,878	$116.77	34
   3	Tal Healthcare	$234,324	$112.66	4
   4	Clinical Management Consultants	$220,082	$105.81
   5	The University of Kansas Health System	$212,538	$102.18	40
   6	New York University	$201,205	$96.73	1
   7	New York State Restaurant Association	$190,836	$91.75
   8	Reno, NV	$142,389	$68.46	2

4. Writing a clinical psychiatrist job description

   A clinical psychiatrist 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. Below, you can find an example of a clinical psychiatrist job description:

   Clinical psychiatrist job description example

   Our roots began in 1981 as the Montrose Clinic, with specialization in HIV education, testing, and treatment. Since then, the agency has expanded to 17+ clinics in Houston, one in Baytown, two in Beaumont, and one in Deer Park with extensive services that include: Adult primary care, HIV/AIDS care, pediatrics, OB/GYN and maternity, dental, vision and behavioral health. We also service students within KIPP, Galena Park ISD and YES Prep schools. Legacy is committed to driving healthy change in our communities.

   30 Hour Work Week (Benefits Included) - Flexible Schedule Available/Alternate Hours Available

   General Description:

   Provides a full range of psychiatric services to Legacy Community Health FQHC clients with the aim of improving the mental health and quality of life of the patients served.

   Essential Functions:

   Perform assessments and provide treatment to clients of the Clinic.
   Keep regularly scheduled hours as agreed upon in the Service Agreement and actively see patients in the Clinic.
   Meet or exceed productivity requirements as set forth by the Chief Medical Officer and the Director of Behavioral Health.
   Develop and maintain clinical diagnostic and treatment protocols for psychiatric treatment.
   Be available by phone during regular Clinic hours should assistance be required and outside of regular Clinic hours as scheduled.
   Assist in review and development of patient educational material before release to patients.
   Supervision of health care students assigned to the Clinic for educational purposes.
   Develop and maintain a program for clinical quality assurance.
   Supervision of non-physician providers, including Licensed Therapists, Neuropsychologists (re testing), and our Behavioral Health Coordinators, with respect to psychiatric treatment.
   Attend meetings as necessary.
   Participates in the Performance Improvement Program
   Other Duties as assigned.

   EDUCATION & TRAINING REQUIREMENTS:

   Must be Medical Doctor, Board-certified in Psychiatry with current Texas License.

   WORK EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS:

   Possess an interest in working with adolescents

   Bilingual English/Spanish speaking preferred

   Uphold the Code of Ethics of their professional licensing entity.

   Must complete the minimum hours of continuing education to maintain professional license.

   Must maintain good standing with professional licensing board.

   Must demonstrate cultural competency and sensitivity to all populations served.

   Must be able to communicate effectively with staff, community, and the general public.

   ï‚· Must be able to perform duties with or without reasonable accommodation,

   ï‚· Ability to remain calm under stressful conditions.

   ï‚· Must be able to pass a criminal background check.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find clinical psychiatrists for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any clinical psychiatrists they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level clinical psychiatrists with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your clinical psychiatrist job on Zippia to find and attract quality clinical psychiatrist candidates.
   • Use niche 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 clinical psychiatrists, 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 clinical psychiatrist

   Once you have selected a candidate for the clinical psychiatrist 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 also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new clinical psychiatrist. 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.

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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