How To Become A Residential Program Worker: What It Is and Career Path

What is a residential program worker and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a residential program worker. For example, did you know that they make an average of $13.61 an hour? That's $28,309 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 12% and produce 52,400 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreResidential Program WorkerUS Average

Salary

2.2

Avg. Salary $28,309

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.9

Growth rate 12%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

10.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.82%

Asian 5.86%

Black or African American 9.35%

Hispanic or Latino 17.22%

Unknown 4.89%

White 60.86%

Gender

female 68.69%

male 31.31%

Age - 43

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 - 43

Stress level

8.9

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.1

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.2

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a residential program worker

Explore residential program worker education requirements

Most common residential program worker degrees

Bachelor's

42.1 %

High School Diploma

21.5 %

Associate

20.3 %

Start to develop specific residential program worker skills

Skills	Percentages
Developmental Disabilities	13.93%
Patients	12.01%
Motor Vehicle	11.76%
Mental Health	11.49%
Direct Care	9.94%

Complete relevant residential program worker training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New residential program 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 residential program worker based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real residential program worker resumes.

Research residential program worker duties and responsibilities

Serve as primary service provider/trainer for developmentally disable consumers as assigned to achieve functioning independence in self help and ADL 's
Provide assistance with ADL's, escort on medical appointments, goal training, community activity planning ,
Train in medication administration as well as CPR certification.
Supervise and train other rehabilitation workers to ensure quality implementation of QSAC's principles.

Prepare your residential program worker resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your residential program 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 residential program 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 residential program worker resume templates

Build a professional residential program 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 residential program worker resume.

Apply for residential program worker jobs

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

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

How do residential program workers rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Residential program worker reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Jul 2020

Pros

Observing clients master new skills and interacting with client on daily.Providing new challenges and goals specific to client abilities.

A zippia user wrote a review on Nov 2019

Cons

The scheduling can change at anytime. There are always shortage of workers to cover shifts especially overnight shifts. You can get stuck on a shift any given day. The people you work with has more issues than the people you are hired for to take care of. They can be lazy!!!