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What is a residential life director and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
2 min read
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a residential life director. For example, did you know that they make an average of $30.27 an hour? That's $62,956 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 7% and produce 15,500 job opportunities across the U.S.
ScoreResidential Life DirectorUS Average
Salary
4.9

Avg. Salary $62,956

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
8.4

Growth rate 7%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
2.6
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.97%

Asian 7.40%

Black or African American 15.41%

Hispanic or Latino 14.64%

Unknown 5.90%

White 55.68%

Gender

female 41.70%

male 58.30%

Age - 21
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 - 21
Stress level
8.4

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level
6.4

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance
6.4

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Residential life director career paths

Key steps to become a residential life director

  1. Explore residential life director education requirements

    Most common residential life director degrees

    Bachelor's

    63.6 %

    Master's

    24.3 %

    Associate

    6.5 %
  2. Start to develop specific residential life director skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Crisis Intervention10.55%
    Student Learning7.99%
    Student Life7.92%
    Crisis Management7.11%
    Student Affairs7.08%
  3. Complete relevant residential life director training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New residential life directors 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 residential life director based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real residential life director resumes.
  4. Research residential life director duties and responsibilities

    • Manage a residential facility for adolescents with severe autism and psychiatric conditions.
    • Maintain statistical and directional oversight of the residence life disciplinary system.
    • Provide clinical oversight of family-centered services that include capacity building, needs assessment, program and policy development and evaluation.
    • Organize and implement bible studies for teen boys and teen girls.
  5. Get residential life director experience

  6. Prepare your residential life director resume

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

    Choose from 10+ customizable residential life director resume templates

    Build a professional residential life director 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 residential life director resume.
    Residential Life Director Resume
    Residential Life Director Resume
    Residential Life Director Resume
    Residential Life Director Resume
    Residential Life Director Resume
    Residential Life Director Resume
    Residential Life Director Resume
    Residential Life Director Resume
    Residential Life Director Resume
  7. Apply for residential life director jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a residential life director job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first residential life director job

Zippi

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Average residential life director salary

The average residential life director salary in the United States is $62,956 per year or $30 per hour. Residential life director salaries range between $41,000 and $95,000 per year.

Average residential life director salary
$62,956 Yearly
$30.27 hourly

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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