What does a residential specialist do?
The residential specialist job is to provide quality support services to consumers that enhance physical, emotional, intellectual, vocational, communication, and social skills according to the individual's needs, abilities, and choices. Their duties and responsibilities include following the guidelines given by their agencies and assisting clients as needed according to their daily plan and schedule.
Residential specialist responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real residential specialist resumes:
- Lead support groups with an emphasis on recovery and strength base techniques, DBT, CBT, self-care and coping skills.
- Dispense medication, maintain all certification in CPR, first aid, and other educational and licensing requirements.
- Promote continuity of care by accurately and completely communicating to other caregivers the status of patients for which care is provided.
- Assist residents with their activities of daily living (ADL).
- Provide a proactive therapeutic approach to prevent or deescalate any crisis situation per TCI regulations.
- Help Alzheimer's residents with activities of daily living such as, bathing, brushing teeth, feeding, and activities.
- Monitor seniors affect with Alzheimer's/Dementia.
- Document progress and communicate to MHMR case manager.
Residential specialist skills and personality traits
We calculated that 10% of Residential Specialists are proficient in Mental Health, Crisis Intervention, and CPR. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Compassion, and Organizational skills.
We break down the percentage of Residential Specialists that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Mental Health, 10%
Complete required clinical and administrative documentation, including chart records of medications, mental health issues and crisis status
- Crisis Intervention, 7%
Assisted in securing residential facility for battered women and their children Provided crisis intervention mechanisms and mediate between residents when necessary
- CPR, 7%
Transition students Accompany community outings Med certified, SCIP trained and certified first aide and CPR
- Patients, 6%
Worked closely with patients who were severely mentally ill and modeled desired behaviors.
- Social Work, 5%
Coordinated with the social workers and case managers all activities, such as contact with parents and other agencies.
- Mental Illness, 4%
Provide caring, personalized solutions for individuals living with emotional disorders and mental illness.
Most residential specialists use their skills in "mental health," "crisis intervention," and "cpr" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential residential specialist responsibilities here:
Communication skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a residential specialist to have is communication skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "social and human service assistants talk with clients about the challenges in their lives and assist them in getting help." Residential specialists often use communication skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "maintained communication with the domestic violence hotline to inform them of available vacancies for shelter placement. "
Compassion. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling residential specialist duties is compassion. The role rewards competence in this skill because "social and human service assistants often work with people who are in stressful and difficult situations." According to a residential specialist resume, here's how residential specialists can utilize compassion in their job responsibilities: "manage four clients with different special needs with caution and compassion to assure that their needs are being met. "
Organizational skills. This is an important skill for residential specialists to perform their duties. For an example of how residential specialist responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "social and human service assistants must often complete lots of paperwork and work with many different clients." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a residential specialist: "conflict resolution * organizational skills * team work * communication".
Problem-solving skills. For certain residential specialist responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "problem-solving skills." The day-to-day duties of a residential specialist rely on this skill, as "social and human service assistants help clients find solutions to their problems." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what residential specialists do: "conflict resolution using the (cpi) coping and processing method. "
Time-management skills. A commonly-found skill in residential specialist job descriptions, "time-management skills" is essential to what residential specialists do. Residential specialist responsibilities rely on this skill because "social and human service assistants often work with many clients." You can also see how residential specialist duties rely on time-management skills in this resume example: "escorted residents on time to medical appointments and social engagements. "
Interpersonal skills. Lastly, "interpersonal skills" is an important element of what a residential specialist does. Residential specialist responsibilities require this skill because "social and human service assistants must make their clients feel comfortable discussing sensitive issues." This resume example highlights how residential specialist duties rely on this skill: "key result medication monitoring meal planning /meal preparation interpersonal and social skills"
The three companies that hire the most residential specialists are:
- Professional42 residential specialists jobs
- Urban Resources26 residential specialists jobs
- Services for the UnderServed21 residential specialists jobs
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Compare different residential specialists
Residential specialist vs. Community support specialist
A community support specialist is responsible for supporting and providing care services for citizens with mental health conditions and other medical illnesses. Community support specialists coordinate with organizations and health institutions to generate resources that would help the patients in their daily activities, medications, and treatment plans. They also strategize community events and activities to observe the patients' social and personal behaviors and endorse them to a mental health professional for in-depth examination and counseling.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between residential specialists and community support specialist. For instance, residential specialist responsibilities require skills such as "patients," "patient care," "residential care," and "eating disorders." Whereas a community support specialist is skilled in "direct services," "severe mental illness," "medicaid," and "community support." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Community support specialists tend to make the most money working in the non profits industry, where they earn an average salary of $37,451. In contrast, residential specialists make the biggest average salary, $35,090, in the non profits industry.On average, community support specialists reach higher levels of education than residential specialists. Community support specialists are 7.2% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Residential specialist vs. Residential program worker
A direct support specialist provides care and assistance to individuals with intellectual and physical disabilities. They may work at nursing facilities, government institutions, or at the patients' homes. Their responsibilities usually revolve around helping patients with daily tasks such as bathing, dressing, going to the toilet, and attending appointments. They may also assist patients in taking medications, handle the laundry and dishes, cook and prepare meals according to nutrition plans, and run errands as necessary. Moreover, they are also responsible for coordinating with physicians, maintaining daily records, and processing documents.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, residential specialist responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "social work," "residential care," "meal preparation," and "eating disorders." Meanwhile, a residential program worker has duties that require skills in areas such as "motor vehicle," "adaptive," "money management," and "forks." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
On average, residential program workers earn a lower salary than residential specialists. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, residential program workers earn the most pay in the health care industry with an average salary of $28,780. Whereas residential specialists have higher pay in the non profits industry, with an average salary of $35,090.In general, residential program workers achieve similar levels of education than residential specialists. They're 2.6% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Residential specialist vs. Direct support specialist
Youth care specialists are social experts who coordinate programs for children and young people who need care while being away from their own families for some reason. These specialists are required to maintain a safe environment in the community so that children will feel safe, cared for, and nurture. They must lead various seminars for youths about topics such as job readiness, financial literacy, and higher education. They must also communicate the concerns and other important information to a child's assigned social worker and provide back-up support to case managers if needed.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, residential specialists are more likely to have skills like "patients," "social work," "residential care," and "eating disorders." But a direct support specialist is more likely to have skills like "basic math," "money management," "behavioral health," and "cleanliness."
Direct support specialists earn the best pay in the real estate industry, where they command an average salary of $36,378. Residential specialists earn the highest pay from the non profits industry, with an average salary of $35,090.Most direct support specialists achieve a similar degree level compared to residential specialists. For example, they're 2.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Residential specialist vs. Youth care specialist
Types of residential specialist
Updated January 8, 2025
