How to hire a psychologist

How to hire a psychologist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step psychologist hiring guide:

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

What does a psychologist do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The psychologist 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 psychologist 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 psychologist that fits the bill.

   This list shows salaries for various types of psychologists.

   Type of Psychologist	Description	Hourly rate
   Psychologist	Psychologists study cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior by observing, interpreting, and recording how people relate to one another and their environments.	$32-66
   Psychotherapist	A Psychotherapist's responsibility is to help clients who suffer from symptoms like depression, anxiety, and other behavioral problems. They work with individuals, couples, and families.	$20-53
   Clinical Psychologist	A clinical psychologist is a healthcare professional who treats patients with various mental disorders through one-on-one or group settings. Clinical psychologists assist their patients in identifying their psychological, emotional, or behavioral issues so that a plan of action is created to help patients achieve personal and social development... Show more	$34-63

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Crisis Intervention
   • Rehabilitation
   • Mental Illness
   • Clinical Supervision
   • APA
   • Social Work
   • Psychological Services
   • Veterans
   • Substance Abuse
   • Mental Health
   • Program Development
   • Individual Therapy
   • Group Therapy

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Supervise mental health staff, including the overseeing of the provision of mental health services in a correctional facility.
   • Provide EMDR therapy for clients with trauma and anxiety.
   • Perform tests to diagnose autism in children or tests for the detection of autism at an early age.
   • Provide supervision and mentoring for APA Pre-Doctoral interns.
   • Supervise clinical activities of doctoral level psychology interns in APA accredit internship program.
   • Evaluate veterans for psychological disorders that may have resulted secondary to their military service for compensation purposes.

   More psychologist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your psychologist job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A psychologist salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a psychologist in South Carolina may be lower than in California, and an entry-level psychologist usually earns less than a senior-level psychologist. Additionally, a psychologist with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average psychologist salary

   $97,803yearly

   $47.02 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level psychologist salary

   $68,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 29, 2025

   Average psychologist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$131,657	$63
   2	District of Columbia	$108,863	$52
   3	Massachusetts	$108,858	$52
   4	Washington	$105,100	$51
   5	Maryland	$101,618	$49
   6	Tennessee	$95,789	$46
   7	New York	$94,213	$45
   8	Pennsylvania	$93,317	$45
   9	Ohio	$92,911	$45
   10	Virginia	$92,224	$44
   11	Colorado	$91,824	$44
   12	Oregon	$90,685	$44
   13	Arizona	$90,127	$43
   14	Illinois	$88,601	$43
   15	Texas	$87,052	$42
   16	Minnesota	$86,419	$42
   17	Alabama	$85,497	$41
   18	Georgia	$85,045	$41
   19	Wisconsin	$84,282	$41
   20	Michigan	$81,854	$39

   Average psychologist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Sierra Corporation	$130,675	$62.82
   2	Concentra	$118,362	$56.90	2
   3	Bear Lake Community Health Centers	$116,437	$55.98
   4	Mercy Corps	$116,044	$55.79
   5	Hope Network	$115,255	$55.41	2
   6	Kaiser Permanente	$115,177	$55.37	32
   7	Maine Health/maine Mental Health Partners	$114,972	$55.27	2
   8	Conemaugh Health System	$111,791	$53.75
   9	Salud Total	$108,403	$52.12
   10	All Medical Personnel	$107,377	$51.62
   11	Therapy Source	$107,000	$51.44	12
   12	Key Rehabilitation	$106,393	$51.15	8
   13	ProCare Therapy	$105,234	$50.59
   14	Mainline Health Systems	$104,424	$50.20	2
   15	Acadia Healthcare	$104,174	$50.08
   16	United Health Centers Of The San Joaquin Valley	$103,011	$49.52	2
   17	Commonwealth	$102,067	$49.07	3
   18	Sutter Health	$101,618	$48.85	14
   19	Delta Companies	$100,562	$48.35
   20	SIMED Health	$100,364	$48.25	4

4. Writing a psychologist job description

   A job description for a psychologist role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a psychologist job description:

   Psychologist job description example

   • Pre-employment Psychology evaluation would focus on the functional requirements for the position of a VA Police officer, as well as suitability and stability for the role. As well as standardized interview and standardized objective psychological testing with symptom validity scales. At least two psychological tests must be administered.
   • Periodic Evaluation would focus on functional requirements for maintaining the position of a VA Police Officer. A standardized interview must be conducted, and psychological testing should only be conducted when concerns are raised about the psychological fitness of the police officer during the psychological evaluation.
   • Directed or Special Examinations may be required when it appears that the incapacity is due to a mental or psychological disorder. This must be done in the context of an occupational health evaluation outlined in VA Handbook 5019 to ensure that medical conditions that may manifest with psychological, mental, or behavioral disturbance are identified.

   The Contractor shall provide results/reports to the Occupational Health Physician at the listed VA Facilities within five (5) business days of evaluation. All results/reports shall be discussed with the Occupational Health Physician and mailed to each respective facility.

   Why choose Sanford Federal?

   You can take pride in working for a company dedicated to serving our government by providing the best, most cost-effective solutions for the US Government. Our work helps the US Government secure our nation, support the efforts of our military and intelligence communities, and provide lifesaving medical services to our soldiers, vets, and their families.

   Please submit your most up-to-date resume. Please be sure to highlight your relevant experience.

   Sanford Federal, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer and encourages all qualified candidates to apply.

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5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right psychologist for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting psychologists requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   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 psychologist

   Once you have selected a candidate for the psychologist position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the 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 psychologist 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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How much does it cost to hire a psychologist?