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What is a family intervention specialist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
3 min read
Quoted expert
Debra Minsky-Kelly

The Family Intervention Specialist is a social service professional who provides direct services as guided by program requirements and an individualized service plan developed for each child and family. Additionally, he/she provides intensive case management, resource management, crisis intervention, and behavior management to clients. He/She conducts family intake services and related assessments within the defined timeframes of the program and keeps accurate and up-to-date client records. Also, he/she helps clients improve their well-being through education and service delivery.

To become a family intervention specialist, you need a bachelor's degree in a social services field with at least one year of related experience. In some states, you'd be required to have a license. You must possess communication, computer, and teamwork skills. Also, you must exhibit reliability with time-sensitive deadlines and tasks. Family Intervention Specialists are paid $38,684 per annum. Their salary varies from $31,000 to $49,000.

What general advice would you give to a family intervention specialist?

Debra Minsky-KellyDebra Minsky-Kelly LinkedIn profile

Director of Field Education / Clinical Assistant Professor of Social Work, Carthage College

I think there are two critical skills for social workers, whether they are first entering the workforce or seasoned professionals. These skills are humility and an appreciation for ambiguity in our work. A humble approach to our work empowers clients to become experts on their circumstances. Social workers are then positioned in a collaborative role to help clients use existing skills and resources to improve their situations. An appreciation for ambiguity is closely related to the idea of humility. It helps us to remember that practice situations we face in this field are often far more complicated than they appear on the surface. Thus, all social workers need to make a strong commitment to lifelong learning and ongoing consultation with colleagues to ensure that multiple perspectives are included as we work to solve complex problems.
ScoreFamily Intervention SpecialistUS Average
Salary
3.3

Avg. Salary $42,045

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
10.0

Growth rate 9%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
9.3
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.51%

Asian 2.67%

Black or African American 13.37%

Hispanic or Latino 15.12%

Unknown 4.19%

White 63.14%

Gender

female 77.64%

male 22.36%

Age - 42
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 42
Stress level
10.0

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level
8.5

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance
6.2

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Family intervention specialist career paths

Key steps to become a family intervention specialist

  1. Explore family intervention specialist education requirements

    Most common family intervention specialist degrees

    Bachelor's

    61.9 %

    Master's

    30.5 %

    Associate

    4.9 %
  2. Start to develop specific family intervention specialist skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Social Work27.52%
    Family Therapy13.15%
    at-Risk Youth7.12%
    On-Call Availability5.41%
    Child Welfare5.23%
  3. Complete relevant family intervention specialist training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New family intervention specialists learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a family intervention specialist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real family intervention specialist resumes.
  4. Research family intervention specialist duties and 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.
    • case file review and Medicaid authorizations.
    • Attend school meetings, including disciplinary meetings, IEP meetings, and conferences for clients.
  5. Prepare your family intervention specialist resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your family intervention specialist resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a family intervention specialist resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable family intervention specialist resume templates

    Build a professional family intervention specialist resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your family intervention specialist resume.
    Family Intervention Specialist Resume
    Family Intervention Specialist Resume
    Family Intervention Specialist Resume
    Family Intervention Specialist Resume
    Family Intervention Specialist Resume
    Family Intervention Specialist Resume
    Family Intervention Specialist Resume
    Family Intervention Specialist Resume
    Family Intervention Specialist Resume
  6. Apply for family intervention specialist jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a family intervention specialist job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first family intervention specialist job

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Average family intervention specialist salary

The average family intervention specialist salary in the United States is $42,045 per year or $20 per hour. Family intervention specialist salaries range between $35,000 and $49,000 per year.

Average family intervention specialist salary
$42,045 Yearly
$20.21 hourly

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How do family intervention specialists rate their job?

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Family intervention specialist reviews

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A zippia user wrote a review on Jan 2024
Pros

The children are always worth it.

Cons

Stressful, dangerous neighborhoods, sometimes parents are dangerous as well. Work life balance isn't good. Documentation is very time consuming and you will bring that home to finish. If your agency requires that you do your app recorded time sheets then that will prove ardously time consuming constaint that cuts right into your work/home life balance...it's terrible. Wear and tear on your car, no shows from parents upsetting children and paid mileage is horrible. Get ready to barely have a life.


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A zippia user wrote a review on Jan 2022
Pros

Working collaboratively with clients to help them understand themselves and experience their authentic selves. Learning from my clients.


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A zippia user wrote a review on Dec 2019
Pros

Serving people, impacting change in communities, never boring


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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