1. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-State Tuition
$6,798
Enrollment
31,503
Mental health used to be a taboo; a topic that was rarely touched upon. However, more and more institutions are currently emphasizing the importance of speaking about mental health. According to the World Health Organization, around 264 million people suffer from some form of mental disorder, whether it be anxiety, bipolar disorder, or depression. Around 80 percent of people in low-income countries do not receive treatment, as medical resources and trained personnel are lacking. It is unequivocally true to say that the area of mental health requires more human resource coordination.
The primary role of a mental health technician is in providing operational assistance to doctors and patients. This includes tasks such as initiating treatment plans, administering medications, and conducting vital signs measurement. Besides that, they manage patient transportation and conduct nursing duties, such as bathing, feeding, and dressing.
Employers require mental health technicians to have a minimum high school diploma or G.E.D equivalent. Having a bachelor's degree relating to sociology, psychology, or human services would be preferred. This role earns, on average, $14 per hour and suits individuals who are passionate about mental health.
There are certain skills that many mental health technicians have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed communication skills, emotional skills and organizational skills.
If you're interested in becoming a mental health technician, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 52.5% of mental health technicians have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 7.0% of mental health technicians have master's degrees. Even though most mental health technicians have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
As you move along in your career, you may start taking on more responsibilities or notice that you've taken on a leadership role. Using our career map, a mental health technician can determine their career goals through the career progression. For example, they could start out with a role such as certified nursing assistant, progress to a title such as licensed practical nurse and then eventually end up with the title registered nurse supervisor.
What Am I Worth?
The role of a mental health technician includes a wide range of responsibilities. These responsibilities can vary based on an individual's specific job, company, or industry.Here are some general mental health technician responsibilities:
There are several types of mental health technician, including:
Role:
Role:
Role:
Mouse over a state to see the number of active mental health technician jobs in each state. The darker areas on the map show where mental health technicians earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.
Rank | State | Number of Jobs | Average Salary |
---|---|---|---|
1 | California | 4,884 | $42,164 |
2 | Texas | 3,778 | $28,495 |
3 | Florida | 2,645 | $26,377 |
4 | Ohio | 2,305 | $29,559 |
5 | North Carolina | 2,212 | $27,074 |
6 | Massachusetts | 2,115 | $35,792 |
7 | Illinois | 2,070 | $34,149 |
8 | Michigan | 1,977 | $30,172 |
9 | Indiana | 1,888 | $26,872 |
10 | Pennsylvania | 1,795 | $27,168 |
11 | New York | 1,702 | $33,678 |
12 | Tennessee | 1,634 | $26,784 |
13 | Minnesota | 1,624 | $32,706 |
14 | Virginia | 1,621 | $31,824 |
15 | Georgia | 1,475 | $28,860 |
16 | Missouri | 1,405 | $28,223 |
17 | Arizona | 1,305 | $31,037 |
18 | Wisconsin | 1,299 | $32,908 |
19 | Maryland | 1,239 | $24,391 |
20 | New Jersey | 1,101 | $33,673 |
21 | Colorado | 1,046 | $34,217 |
22 | Alabama | 912 | $29,059 |
23 | Iowa | 822 | $30,052 |
24 | South Carolina | 776 | $28,538 |
25 | Kentucky | 740 | $26,806 |
26 | Washington | 729 | $38,471 |
27 | Louisiana | 706 | $27,464 |
28 | Arkansas | 653 | $32,269 |
29 | Oklahoma | 641 | $25,916 |
30 | Utah | 568 | $28,776 |
31 | Kansas | 539 | $33,456 |
32 | Connecticut | 482 | $34,351 |
33 | Oregon | 450 | $38,958 |
34 | Mississippi | 392 | $31,338 |
35 | Nebraska | 350 | $32,482 |
36 | Nevada | 348 | $31,487 |
37 | Idaho | 327 | $25,854 |
38 | New Mexico | 274 | $26,561 |
39 | New Hampshire | 262 | $36,550 |
40 | Maine | 246 | $33,062 |
41 | Delaware | 231 | $28,624 |
42 | Rhode Island | 219 | $29,057 |
43 | South Dakota | 199 | $28,867 |
44 | Alaska | 197 | $25,947 |
45 | Vermont | 182 | $45,112 |
46 | West Virginia | 176 | $32,750 |
47 | Hawaii | 168 | $31,889 |
48 | North Dakota | 154 | $35,168 |
49 | Montana | 140 | $41,513 |
50 | Wyoming | 96 | $31,096 |
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-State Tuition
$6,798
Enrollment
31,503
Chapel Hill, NC • Private
In-State Tuition
$8,987
Enrollment
18,946
San Jose, CA • Private
In-State Tuition
$7,796
Enrollment
27,125
Baltimore, MD • Private
In-State Tuition
$8,873
Enrollment
2,326
Baltimore, MD • Private
In-State Tuition
$53,740
Enrollment
5,567
University Park, PA • Private
In-State Tuition
$18,454
Enrollment
40,108
Carson, CA • Private
In-State Tuition
$6,942
Enrollment
13,871
Vestal, NY • Private
In-State Tuition
$9,808
Enrollment
13,990
Boston, MA • Private
In-State Tuition
$51,522
Enrollment
13,760
Salina, KS • Private
In-State Tuition
$29,500
Enrollment
650
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 25.7% of mental health technicians listed patients on their resume, but soft skills such as communication skills and emotional skills are important as well.
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Mental Health Technician templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Mental Health Technician resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
1. Positive Psychiatry and Mental Health
In today’s world, mental illness and distress are common and these account for a significant burden of disability within our community. At the same time, there is a growing interest in understanding and enhancing positive mental health and wellbeing; particularly from developments in the fields of positive psychology and mental health promotion. Positive Psychiatry is a new term (Jeste et al 2016) that describes a dual approach to mental health, where we build strengths, supports and healthy...
See More on Coursera2. The Social Context of Mental Health and Illness
Learn how social factors promote mental health, influence the onset and course of mental illness, and affect how mental illnesses are diagnosed and treated. This course explores how our understanding of mental health and illness has been influenced by social attitudes and social developments in North America and around the world. The course begins by situating our contemporary mental health practices in historical context, then looks at different aspects of mental health, mental illness and...
See More on Coursera3. Mental Health and Resilience for Healthcare Workers
This course will help institutions and individuals better manage the mental health challenges of being a healthcare worker. Healthcare providers such as the University Health Network (UHN) address the mental health needs of their staff through several initiatives intended to help build resilience and to provide respite from the demands of their work. This was critical during the pandemic but, of course, healthcare workers encounter high levels of stress even without a pandemic. The primary...
See More on CourseraSome places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a mental health technician. The best states for people in this position are Vermont, California, Montana, and Oregon. Mental health technicians make the most in Vermont with an average salary of $45,112. Whereas in California and Montana, they would average $42,164 and $41,513, respectively. While mental health technicians would only make an average of $38,958 in Oregon, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. Vermont
$45,112
Avg. Salary
2. Massachusetts
$35,792
Avg. Salary
3. Arkansas
$32,269
Avg. Salary
Rank | Company | Average Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Openings |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | USAF Police Alumni Association | $35,571 | $17.10 | 65 |
2 | Wellpath | $35,388 | $17.01 | 51 |
3 | Circles of Care | $34,240 | $16.46 | 118 |
4 | US Air Conditioning Distributors | $33,971 | $16.33 | 137 |
5 | UF Health Central Florida | $32,456 | $15.60 | 41 |
6 | Universal Health Services | $31,994 | $15.38 | 117 |
7 | River Hospital | $31,551 | $15.17 | 70 |
8 | Gracepoint Wellness | $30,997 | $14.90 | 67 |
9 | Friends Hospital | $30,981 | $14.89 | 102 |
10 | JBS Mental Health Authority | $30,763 | $14.79 | 82 |
Becoming a certified behavioral health technician involves educational training and a high school diploma. Levels of post-high school education range from a certificate program to a bachelor's degree.
Certification for a behavioral health technician consists of a series of courses totaling 30 hours. After passing course exams, candidates may seek out work experiences to prepare them for work as health technicians.
Mental health techs make approximately $17 an hour. A technician's wage can vary due to location of employment and education.
While larger cities typically pay more for mental health technicians, not all large markets are the same. A mental health tech in Chicago can expect to earn approximately $18 per hour, while techs working in San Francisco will earn close to $21per hour. This discrepancy in the hourly wage reflects the cost of living in both cities.
Yes, being a mental health technician can be a very good job. While rewarding, this job is also considered stressful by those working in the field.
Mental health technicians work with individuals that have issues regarding their mental health. These issues include addiction and compulsive behaviors.
The primary qualification needed to become a mental health worker is relevant education. Levels of acceptable education vary for mental health workers, but minimum standards are required to be considered for a position in this field.