How To Become A Group Home Worker: What It Is and Career Path

What is a group home worker and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Group Home Workers are responsible for supporting and caring for individuals that require assistance with daily living in a group home setting. Working with a team of professionals, they ensure that a residents' physical, emotional, and social needs are met. Responsibilities of a group home worker can include meal preparation, medication management, transportation, personal care, and recreational activities. They may also assist with maintaining records and communicating with families and healthcare providers.

ScoreGroup Home WorkerUS Average

Salary

3.1

Avg. Salary $40,224

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.7

Growth rate 36%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

2.7

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.11%

Asian 10.47%

Black or African American 23.99%

Hispanic or Latino 23.41%

Unknown 5.40%

White 35.62%

Gender

female 73.20%

male 26.80%

Age - 51

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 - 51

Stress level

7.7

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.1

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

9.6

Work life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

What are the pros and cons of being a group home worker?

Pros

Ability to work with a diverse range of people
Opportunities for personal and professional growth
Flexible scheduling options
Competitive pay and benefits
Opportunity to learn valuable skills in healthcare and social work

Cons

Challenging and sometimes violent behavior from residents
High risk of injury or illness from working with sick or disabled individuals
Limited resources or support from management
Potential for burnout due to the demanding nature of the work
Difficulty balancing work and personal life due to the unpredictable nature of the job

Key steps to become a group home worker

Explore group home worker education requirements

Most common group home worker degrees

Bachelor's

35.4 %

High School Diploma

23.0 %

Associate

20.7 %

Start to develop specific group home worker skills

Skills	Percentages
Social Work	30.60%
Crisis Intervention	20.12%
Data Entry	11.50%
Meal Prep	7.39%
CPR	5.16%

Complete relevant group home worker training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New group home workers 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 group home worker based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real group home worker resumes.

Obtain the necessary licensing

Becoming a licensed group home worker usually doesn't require a college degree. However, you need to pass an exam to become a licensed group home worker in most of states. 25 states require group home workers to have license for their work. You can see the list of states below.

State	Education	Exam	License url
Alaska	Degree required	Third-party exam required	Nurse Aide
Arkansas	Specific course required	Both state and third-party exams required	Nursing Assistant (Certified)
California	Specific course required	State exam required	Certified Nurse Assistant
Colorado	Specific course required	State exam required	Nurse Aide
Connecticut	Specific course required	State exam required	Nurses Aide

Gain additional group home worker certifications

Group home worker certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific group home worker certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for group home workers include Medical Assistant and Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA).

More About Certifications

Research group home worker duties and responsibilities

Provide companionship, socialization and emotional support.
Provide transportation to medical appointments and transfer patients in and out of wheelchairs
Experience working with the elderly, Alzheimer's or dementia patients.
Maintain the living areas by cleaning, doing laundry, and shopping for groceries.

Prepare your group home worker resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your group home worker 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 group home worker resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable group home worker resume templates

Build a professional group home worker 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 group home worker resume.