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How to hire a criminal justice social worker

Criminal justice social worker hiring summary. Here are some key points about hiring criminal justice social workers 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 criminal justice social worker is $1,633.
  • Small businesses spend an average of $1,105 per criminal justice social worker on training each year, while large companies spend $658.
  • There are currently 9,424 criminal justice social workers in the US and 85,917 job openings.
  • Phoenix, AZ, has the highest demand for criminal justice social workers, with 2 job openings.
  • Baltimore, MD has the highest concentration of criminal justice social workers.

How to hire a criminal justice social worker, step by step

To hire a criminal justice social worker, you need to identify the specific skills and experience you want in a candidate, allocate a budget for the position, and advertise the job opening to attract potential candidates. To hire a criminal justice social worker, you should follow these steps:

Here's a step-by-step criminal justice social worker hiring guide:

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

    Before you post your criminal justice social worker job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a criminal justice social worker for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

    Determine employee vs contractor status
    Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

    Hiring the perfect criminal justice social worker 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.

    This list presents criminal justice social worker salaries for various positions.

    Type of Criminal Justice Social WorkerDescriptionHourly rate
    Criminal Justice Social WorkerSocial 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.$19-32
    Social Insurance AnalystSocial Insurance Analyst reviews and evaluates insurance applications to help in accepting or rejecting insurance applications. Most of their day is spent gathering and analyzing requirements such as financial records, conducting research and analyses, verifying client documents, and developing conclusions and recommendations... Show more$27-55
    JusticeJustices are court officials in charge of making the final decision of cases on the Supreme Court and appeals courts. They can be appointed or elected by the higher court officials... Show more$15-40
  2. Create an ideal candidate profile

    Common skills:
    • Social Work
    • Criminal Justice
    • Social Justice
    Responsibilities:
    • Case manage in-district and out-of-district students with emotional disabilities, autism, other health impair and physical disabilities.
    • Provide overall assistance to undergraduate students in regards to core studies, scheduling, testing, projects, etc.
    • Coordinate admissions of active duty service members and veterans to the inpatient rehabilitation/medical unit after suffering a new spinal cord injury.
    • Integrate a therapeutic/clinical model base on of DBT that support student academic, behavioral and social success.
  3. Make a budget

    Including a salary range in your criminal justice social worker job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A criminal justice social worker can vary based on:

    • Location. For example, criminal justice social workers' average salary in vermont is 34% less than in alaska.
    • Seniority. Entry-level criminal justice social workers 40% less than senior-level criminal justice social workers.
    • Certifications. A criminal justice social worker with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
    • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a criminal justice social worker's salary.

    Average criminal justice social worker salary

    $51,984yearly

    $24.99 hourly rate

    Entry-level criminal justice social worker salary
    $40,000 yearly salary
    Updated December 11, 2025
  4. Writing a criminal justice social worker job description

    A good criminal justice social worker job description should include a few things:

    • Summary of the role
    • List of responsibilities
    • Required skills and experience

    Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a criminal justice social worker job description:

    Criminal justice social worker job description example

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    Adjunct - Social Work: Diversity, Advocacy, and Social Justice in Social Work - Traditional Campus - College of Humanities and Social Sciences

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    Apply Online

    Job Description

    Make a Difference at Grand Canyon University

    Shape the bright futures of Grand Canyon University students as an adjunct faculty member for the traditional ground campus in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, which provides a job focused education. The college features a variety of programs from counseling and psychology to justice studies, history and English literature.

    As an adjunct faculty member, you'll provide program instruction incorporating innovative teaching methodologies, cutting-edge technologies and other industry trends reflecting advancements in your discipline. If you are highly motivated and passionate about teaching exceptional quality instruction in modern facilities with smaller class sizes, we'd like to hear from you.

    Responsibilities:

    Responsibilities include equipping students with the required skill set, facilitating classroom discussions, assessing student performance, and preparing students to be successful leaders in their chosen profession. Other main responsibilities include the following:

    + Provide a positive example to students by supporting the University's Doctrinal Statement, Ethical Position Statement and Mission of Grand Canyon University.

    + Needs to be available either Wednesdays and Fridays 9am-10:45am or Wednesdays and Fridays 5pm-6:45pm.

    Qualifications:

    + Minimum: Masters in Social Work from a CSWE-accredited program AND three years post-master's social work practice experience.

    + Preferred: Doctorate in Social Work, Counseling, Psychology, Behavioral Health, Human Services, or Educational Psychology AND Masters in Social Work from a CSWE-accredited program AND two years post-master's social work practice experience.

    Before submitting your application please attach the following to review:

    + Your unofficial transcripts for any applicable conferred graduate degrees.

    + Any applicable licenses/certifications

    #SocialWork

    Application Instructions

    Please click on the link below to apply for this position. A new window will open and direct you to apply at our corporate careers page. We look forward to hearing from you!

    Apply Online

    Click Here to

    Apply Online

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    Phoenix, AZ

    Posted: 10/13/2022

    Job Status: Part Time

    Job Reference #: R000040019
  5. Post your job

    To find the right criminal justice social worker for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

    • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
    • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with criminal justice social workers they would recommend.
    • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit criminal justice social workers who meet your education requirements.
    • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.
    Post your job online:
    • Post your criminal justice social worker job on Zippia to find and recruit criminal justice social worker candidates who meet your exact specifications.
    • Use field-specific websites.
    • Post a job on free websites.
  6. Interview candidates

    Recruiting criminal justice social workers 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.

  7. Send a job offer and onboard your new criminal justice social worker

    Once you have selected a candidate for the criminal justice social worker 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.

    You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

    To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

  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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How much does it cost to hire a criminal justice social worker?

Hiring a criminal justice social worker comes with both the one-time cost per hire and ongoing costs. The cost of recruiting criminal justice social workers involves promoting the job and spending time conducting interviews. Ongoing costs include employee salary, training, benefits, insurance, and equipment. It is essential to consider the cost of criminal justice social worker recruiting as well the ongoing costs of maintaining the new employee.

You can expect to pay around $51,984 per year for a criminal justice social worker, 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 criminal justice social workers in the US typically range between $19 and $32 an hour.

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