How to hire an early interventionist

How to hire an early interventionist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step early interventionist hiring guide:

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

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The early interventionist hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   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 an early interventionist 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 an early interventionist that fits the bill.

   Here's a comparison of early interventionist salaries for various roles:

   Type of Early Interventionist	Description	Hourly rate
   Early Interventionist	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.	$13-26
   Youth Advocate	Youth advocates are individuals who responsible for maintaining the human rights of youth while assisting them in developing their skills in all areas of life, such as education, health, employment, and relationships. These advocates are required to discuss youth development and involvement with various leaders in the community... Show more	$12-19
   Youth Worker	Youth workers specialize in handling and providing support to young individuals with behavioral difficulties. They are primarily responsible for devising recreational projects, handling the budget, producing progress reports, managing intervention programs, and counseling troubled youth while keeping their information confidential... Show more	$12-19

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Child Care
   • Early Intervention
   • Occupational Therapy
   • Physical Therapy
   • Autism
   • Natural Environment
   • Assessment Tools
   • Developmental Delays
   • Developmental Disabilities
   • Child Development
   • Intervention Services
   • Children Birth
   • Behavior Management
   • Adaptive

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Track and maintain documentation on all IEP's.
   • Provide therapy to children diagnose with various forms of autism.
   • Plan and supervise socialization for children with autism to practice learned skills.
   • Attend IFSP and IEP meetings for periodic and annual reviews of children's services.
   • Provide autistic children and their families intensive apply behavioral analysis therapy to develop functional communication, social and self-help skills.
   • Assist in the implementation of PBIS implementation.

   More early interventionist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your early interventionist job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. An early interventionist salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, early interventionists' average salary in mississippi is 53% less than in new jersey.
   • Seniority. Entry-level early interventionists earn 48% less than senior-level early interventionists.
   • Certifications. An early interventionist with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in an early interventionist's salary.

   Average early interventionist salary

   $40,867yearly

   $19.65 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level early interventionist salary

   $29,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

   Average early interventionist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	North Dakota	$51,859	$25
   2	Maryland	$51,548	$25
   3	Maryland	$51,524	$25
   4	North Dakota	$51,313	$25
   5	North Dakota	$51,151	$25
   6	North Dakota	$50,745	$24
   7	California	$50,225	$24
   8	California	$50,075	$24
   9	California	$49,942	$24
   10	California	$49,927	$24
   11	California	$49,897	$24
   12	California	$49,892	$24
   13	California	$49,876	$24
   14	California	$49,830	$24
   15	California	$49,825	$24
   16	California	$49,817	$24
   17	California	$49,793	$24
   18	California	$49,768	$24
   19	California	$49,761	$24
   20	California	$49,757	$24

   Average early interventionist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Legacy Traditional Schools	$45,256	$21.76
   2	City of Muskegon	$44,875	$21.57
   3	MercyOne	$43,186	$20.76
   4	Distinctive Schools	$43,061	$20.70
   5	Public Prep Network	$40,406	$19.43
   6	Easterseals	$40,248	$19.35
   7	Americorps	$39,752	$19.11	2
   8	Community Care Alliance	$39,304	$18.90	2
   9	Great Hearts Texas	$38,258	$18.39	1
   10	Butterfly Effects	$38,181	$18.36	43
   11	DDRC Colorado	$37,690	$18.12
   12	Charter Schools USA	$37,147	$17.86
   13	KIPP Jacksonville Public Schools	$36,879	$17.73
   14	Sheridan School District	$36,709	$17.65
   15	Rocky Mountain Prep	$36,551	$17.57
   16	Harrisburg School District	$35,579	$17.11
   17	Maureen Joy Charter School	$35,578	$17.10
   18	Pueblo City-County Library District	$35,429	$17.03
   19	Harrison Central School District	$35,393	$17.02
   20	Harvest Preparatory Academy	$35,252	$16.95

4. Writing an early interventionist job description

   A good early interventionist 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 an early interventionist job description:

   Early interventionist job description example

   This is a part-time role requiring 10-20 hours per week. The most common times for sessions are after-school hours between 3pm-7pm, but schedules and hours will vary based on client needs.

   Requirements to Work as a Child Interventionist:

   • High School diploma
   • 1+ years of experience working with children OR 24+ credits completed in a relevant college degree
   • Driver's license & personal vehicle
   • 3+ weekdays w/ same availability
   • Positive attitude and strong people skills to work with children and families

   Compensation:

   We believe in fair and competitive compensation. As such, we provide benefits outside of your hourly rate to give you the support and energy you need to bring your best self to your role.

   • $20.00 - $24.00 per hour based on experience, education, and certifications
   • $2,500 Sign On Bonus for active RBTs

   Benefits:

   Our team members may be eligible for the following benefits:

   • Coursework and Competency Check to obtain the Registered Behavior Technician (RBT) certification
   • Drive-time pay between sessions
   • Tuition Assistance
   • Paid Time Off
   • Supervision towards BCBA credential available

   Growth and Development:

   Our Child Interventionist will complete training to become a Registered Behavior Technician (RBT). RBTs are 'helping professionals' that teach children affected by autism important life skills. RBTs work on goals such as functional communication, socializing with peers, and sharing with others. Butterfly Effects' RBTs receive training to make a meaningful change in the life of a child and their family.

   Physical Demands:

   Working with clients in their natural environments may require you to lift or move approximately 50 lbs. and be able to assume and maintain a variety of postures (kneeling, squatting, sitting, standing) for extended periods of time.

   Who are we?

   Butterfly Effects has served more than 10,000 families since our inception in 2005. We have a long history of improving the lives of children and families affected by autism spectrum disorder through our family-centric applied behavior analysis (ABA) approach. Our mission is to deliver ABA treatment in partnership with families affected by autism to foster a more joyous life.

   A national leader in autism treatment, Butterfly Effects employs more than 100 board-certified behavior analysts (BCBA) and 800 behavior technicians. The 12 states we serve are locally managed by a regional director and team of BCBAs. Our corporate office located in Deerfield Beach, Florida is home to our leadership team and administrative staff who assist with daily operations, including client services, human resources, talent acquisition, finance, revenue cycle management, quality assurance, compliance, professional development, and professional ethics.

   Our butterfly logo was chosen as a symbol of love, rebirth, and metamorphosis. Together, the name and logo represent our common purpose and deep commitment to helping families create lasting change through individualized ABA therapy.

   For more information, please visit www.butterflyeffects.com.

   #INDNORCALCV

   
   
   Job Posted by ApplicantPro
   

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5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right early interventionist for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your early interventionist job on Zippia to find and recruit early interventionist candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit early interventionists, 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.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   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 early interventionist

   Once you've found the early interventionist candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   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 early interventionist first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

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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