How to hire a Family Support Specialist

How to hire a family support specialist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step family support specialist hiring guide:

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

What does a Family Support Specialist do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your family support specialist 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 family support specialist 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?

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   A family support specialist's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, family support specialists from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list shows salaries for various types of family support specialists.

   Type Of Family Support Specialist	Description	Hourly Rate
   Family Support Specialist	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.	$11-26
   Service Counselor	Service counselors provide guidance to couples, individuals, groups, and families who are going through issues that influence their well-being and mental health. They comprehensively approach their clients by utilizing a "wellness" model that focuses on and motivate the client's potentials... Show More	$11-24
   Case Worker	Caseworkers are social workers who watch over the welfare of underprivileged individuals and at-risk families by counseling and providing them with assistance. Usually employed under the government or a local non-profit organization, a caseworker must conduct a thorough interview and house visits to determine the needs of the family... Show More	$14-26

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common Skills:

   • Social Work
   • Child Abuse
   • Patients
   • Child Development
   • Crisis Intervention
   • Foster Care
   • Support Services
   • Family Services
   • CPR
   • Public Assistance Programs
   • Mental Health
   • Support Families
   • Substance Abuse
   • Child Care

   Check All Skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage RSP curriculum for wide spectrum of needs including LD and autism.
   • Help children/youth in state custody achieve permanency whether through reintegration, adoption or custodianship.
   • Provide first aid or CPR.
   • Provide intensive services to families that are DHS who are determine to be reunify with their families.
   • Attend and participate in weekly staff meetings, individual supervision, and other meetings require by DCF.
   • Provide activities supervision and individual counseling to DCFS wards of the state within a therapeutic milieu setting.

   More Family Support Specialist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your family support specialist job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A family support specialist salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, family support specialists' average salary in mississippi is 54% less than in new jersey.
   • Seniority. Entry-level family support specialists earn 56% less than senior-level family support specialists.
   • Certifications. A family support specialist 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 a family support specialist's salary.

   Average family support specialist salary

   $37,343yearly

   $17.95 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level family support specialist salary

   $24,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 25, 2025

   Average family support specialist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. Salary	Hourly Rate
   1	New Jersey	$52,994	$25
   2	New York	$49,297	$24
   3	Washington	$47,999	$23
   4	Illinois	$47,151	$23
   5	Minnesota	$46,998	$23
   6	Ohio	$45,899	$22
   7	Oregon	$43,259	$21
   8	Pennsylvania	$42,551	$20
   9	Massachusetts	$42,033	$20
   10	California	$41,580	$20
   11	Iowa	$41,032	$20
   12	Wisconsin	$40,102	$19
   13	Kansas	$39,831	$19
   14	Montana	$38,997	$19
   15	Texas	$37,880	$18
   16	Colorado	$37,383	$18
   17	Indiana	$37,179	$18
   18	Nevada	$36,368	$17
   19	Utah	$35,064	$17
   20	Nebraska	$33,252	$16

   Average family support specialist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average Salary	Hourly Rate	Job Openings
   1	Catholic Health East	$63,225	$30.40	12
   2	Dignity Health	$61,113	$29.38	40
   3	La Rabida Children's Hospital	$58,372	$28.06	15
   4	ProMedica Toledo Hospital	$57,776	$27.78	38
   5	Cambridge Health Alliance	$54,056	$25.99	22
   6	New River Community College	$50,494	$24.28
   7	University of California-Berkeley	$50,361	$24.21	1
   8	Palomar Health	$50,117	$24.09	5
   9	Marten Transport	$49,961	$24.02
   10	North County News Inc	$48,722	$23.42
   11	Bay and Bay Transportation	$47,025	$22.61	1
   12	UC Santa Barbara	$46,683	$22.44
   13	Deschutes County	$46,319	$22.27	10
   14	UMiami Health System	$45,945	$22.09	2
   15	Erie Neighborhood House	$45,760	$22.00	2
   16	SUNY Morrisville	$45,317	$21.79	1
   17	Care New England Health System	$45,142	$21.70	111
   18	Save the Children US	$45,025	$21.65	13
   19	One Brooklyn Health	$44,809	$21.54	1
   20	Telecare	$44,707	$21.49	130

4. Writing a Family Support Specialist Job Description

   A good family support specialist 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 family support specialist job description:

   Family Support Specialist job description example

   Job DescriptionAt Brigham Health, we place great value on being a diverse and inclusive community. Brigham Health and the Department of Social Work are dedicated to diversity, equity and inclusion as we aim to reflect the diversity of the patients in our local community. We have a dedicated focus on equity. Thus, we believe in equal access to quality care, employment and advancement opportunities encompassing the full spectrum or human diversity: race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, national origin and all the other forms of human presence and expression that make us better able to provide innovative and cutting-edge healthcare and research.
   
   To develop and implement informational, educational, and emotionally supportive programs to families of BWH NICU babies and to BWH NICU staff within the NICU setting. This is a part-time position (up to 20 hours); some evening or weekend work will be required.
   Program Management
   Develops new and supports existing BWH programs for our NICU Families. This includes organizing and facilitating parent coffee hours, arranging guest speakers, celebrating significant holidays and distributing various NICU materials Family Advocacy
   Serve as a family/patient advocate to develop programs, services, support and education to improve the experience of NICU families as they adjust to having a baby in the NICU, taking their baby home, and seeking community support and services as needed Facilitate effective communication between families and providers to enhance family-centered care and ensure common goals. Negotiate and mitigate family expectations to promote satisfaction, ensure quality and safety to minimize risk Conduct rounds with families to obtain feedback regarding the family's hospital experience Administrative Support
   Collaborate with BWH NICU Administration to support and facilitate the BWH NICU Parent Advisory Council by soliciting professionals and NICU graduate parents as new group members Assist with the development and implementation of service improvement initiatives within the NICU. Works to optimize usefulness of publications, web sites including Facebook, and educational materials for NICU Families Participate on departmental and organizational improvement teams Resource/Operations Strategy
   Proactively monitor trends in patient/family concerns to identify systematic, process, or cultural barriers to the delivery of patient/family-centered care Seek opportunities for appropriate family participation in the development of institutional improvement strategies Tracks parent and family satisfaction and designs strategies to increase satisfaction Identifies useful and appropriate resources/materials for NICU/preemie families and works collaboratively with others in the department to ensure they are successfully made available Represents the voice of the families on the various NICU initiatives and teams and reviews material or letters that would be sent to the families Education/Training
   Provide training/education in the NICU on establishing effective interpersonal connections with families Identify opportunities for staff education and facilitate learning of staff in improving our NICU family experience Work collaboratively with BWH NICU staff to educate them on the perspectives of NICU families Department Liaison
   Collaborate with BWH NICU staff, NICU Parent Advisory Group, BWH Volunteer Services, and volunteers to implement NICU Family Support programs Serve as liaison between families, staff management, Patient Relations Department and Administration. Cultivate and maintain relationships with BWH NICU administrators, physicians, nurses, social workers and other staff, as well as NICU parents and extended family members
   
   Qualifications
   Minimum Qualifications:
   Bachelor's degree in Psychology, Education, Public Health or related field required. Experience working with parents and families in NICU setting preferred. Experience as a NICU parent strongly preferred. Bilingual preferred, and able to speak English and another language, preferably Spanish, Portuguese or French/Creole. Competencies:
   Basic knowledge of the emotional and medical issues inherent in a NICU hospitalization Requires ability to advocate for families in a complex ICU environment Requires excellent leadership skills to bring about improvement in organizational culture Requires excellent interpersonal skills with families in crisis Requires skills in working with teams to achieve goals Requires excellent negotiation skills in a diverse and multicultural environment Requires high level of sensitivity to confidential information Requires excellent verbal, written and presentation skills and ability to effectively communicate with all levels of the organization Requires superior organizational skills, with ability to function independently and effectively in a fast-paced environment, develop and meet deadlines, prioritize multiple projects, and manage time effectively Must be willing/able to attend assigned training sessions, including off-site training as assigned.
   
   EEO Statement
   Brigham and Women's Hospital is an Affirmative Action Employer. By embracing diverse skills, perspectives and ideas, we choose to lead. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religious creed, national origin, sex, age, gender identity, disability, sexual orientation, military service, genetic information, and/or other status protected under law. We will ensure that all individuals with a disability are provided a reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Partner's Healthcare is acting as an Employment Agency in relation to this vacancy.

   Copy This Example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right family support specialist 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 family support specialists they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit family support specialists 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 family support specialist job on Zippia to find and recruit family support specialist candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit family support specialists, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to 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 family support specialist

   Once you've decided on a perfect family support specialist candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your 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 family support specialist 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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