How to hire a play therapist

How to hire a play therapist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step play therapist hiring guide:

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

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The play therapist 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 a play therapist 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 a play therapist that fits the bill.

   Here's a comparison of play therapist salaries for various roles:

   Type of Play Therapist	Description	Hourly rate
   Play Therapist	Mental health counselors and marriage and family therapists help people manage and overcome mental and emotional disorders and problems with family and other relationships. They listen to clients and ask questions to help the clients understand their problems and develop strategies to improve their lives.	$29-65
   Family Counselor	A Family Counselor treats married couples or family members in order to help them overcome mental or emotional problems. They provide effective treatment measures to help the family members resolve their issues.	$12-29
   Marriage And Family Therapist	Marriage and family therapists are health professionals who are licensed to diagnose and treat mental and emotional disorders of married couples and families. These therapists are required to treat patients with issues such as child and adolescent behavioral problems, depression and anxiety, and marital conflicts... Show more	$19-38

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Social Work
   • Children Birth
   • Cognitive Behavioral
   • Autism
   • Therapy Services
   • Language
   • Developmental Disorders
   • Crisis Intervention
   • Family Therapy Sessions
   • Therapy Techniques
   • ABA
   • Group Therapy Sessions
   • Early Intervention
   • Therapeutic Play

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage ventilator and BiPAP's and create or update care plans per patient needs.
   • Organize and perform behavioral therapies for a child with autism.
   • Work with identify pre-school handicap children in order to meet the goals and objectives of their IEP's.
   • Perform occasional psychosocial rehabilitation services.
   • Perform occasional psychosocial rehabilitation services.

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your play therapist job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A play therapist can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, play therapists' average salary in hawaii is 62% less than in pennsylvania.
   • Seniority. Entry-level play therapists 55% less than senior-level play therapists.
   • Certifications. A play therapist with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a play therapist's salary.

   Average play therapist salary

   $92,351yearly

   $44.40 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level play therapist salary

   $61,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 15, 2025

4. Writing a play therapist job description

   A play therapist job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a play therapist job description:

   Play therapist job description example

   ***For a limited time, we are offering a $2,000 SIGN ON BONUS!***

   Thriveworks is a clinician-founded national private practice group with locations in 48 states. Our mission is to help people live happy, successful lives, and we believe that client accessibility, integrity, and quality care are what is most important. We put a lot of emphasis on the thought that—in order for our clinical team to be accessible to clients—we must fully support our clinicians by allowing them to do what they are trained to do. We operate under the idea that we are most successful by focusing on one job and being great at that job.

   Qualifications :

   All eligible candidates must have one of the following independent licenses in Texas:

   • LCSW or LMFT or LPC
   • Licensed Clinical Psychologists (PhD or PsyD)

   All TherapyLand providers, in addition to clinical licensure, must hold an advanced certificate in child therapy, possess documented supervised clinical experience working with children, or be actively participating in clinical supervision while pursuing a child therapy credential.

   Compensation: Up to $127,300 depending on licensure

   What We Give:

   We are dedicated to taking great care of our employees and empowering them to succeed. This enables them to focus on providing excellent care to our clients. We offer the following benefits:

   • $2,000 Sign On Bonus
   • Guaranteed pay
   • Paid orientation
   • PTO
   • Annual pay increases
   • Additional bonus opportunities
   • Supplies needed to utilize play therapy, sandtray therapy, or other techniques needed to work with children including:
   • • Dollhouses
     • Bobo Dolls
     • Easels
     • Puppet theater
     • Costumes
     • Basketball hoops
     • Blocks
   • Full clinical caseload typically established within the first 90 days (after credentialing)
   • Flexibility with your schedule - we're open 7am-10pm (seven days a week)
   • No-Show ProtectionGroup health and dental, disability, life, and liability insurance options
   • A W2 employment model with access to a 401k program with a 3% employer match
   • Opportunities for paid clinical supervisory roles
   • Monthly in-house professional development
   • No required call
   • We credential you!
   • Support team for scheduling and client service with extended hours
   • Customized Marketing
   • Autonomy, but with access to case consultation groups
   • Amazing team culture and clinical support
   • Malpractice Coverage
   • Career advancement opportunities
   • Brand pride

   What We Need:

   • A true partnership
   • Licensed Therapists who specialize in working with Children and Adolescents (ages 14 and under).
   • Candidates that may be looking to grow into leadership roles/supervisors
   • Self guided determination to complete your notes inside of 24 hours
   • Strong character matters - integrity, honesty, adaptability and quality of care to name a few
   • Individuals who enjoy being a part of team and working together to professionally develop

   Who we are - about Thriveworks:

   • Thriveworks is a clinician-owned National outpatient mental health private practice group
   • We are currently operating in 48 states and are continuing to expand
   • Corporate headquartered in Fredericksburg, VA

   A career at Thriveworks isn't just about finding a job that pays the bills. It's about helping others, joining a community, and learning to thrive both personally and professionally. We believe that the success of our employees is just as important as the success of our organization — in fact, they go hand in hand.

   So, what do you say? Are you interested in joining our team? Apply today .

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find play therapists for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any play therapists they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level play therapists with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with play therapist candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   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 play therapist

   Once you've decided on a perfect play therapist 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.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

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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