What is Direct Support?
Direct support is a one-on-one service that helps with daily life skills and tasks that strengthen one's independence. A direct support professional is responsible for a variety of tasks related to the general care of people with physical, cognitive, or developmental disabilities. The goal is to assist people to reach their full potential and to integrate and get engaged in their community.
How is Direct Support used?
Zippia reviewed thousands of resumes to understand how direct support is used in different jobs. Explore the list of common job responsibilities related to direct support below:
- Assisted other direct support counselors and colleagues in providing premium services to the individuals.
- Give direct support to the individual, family, and partnership for success
- DIRECT SUPPORT COUNSELOR Support client self-care routines, health, safety, and socialization among other daily living activities.
- Provide direct support to persons with Developmental Disabilities in community based residential settings and the agency's vocational rehabilitation program.
- Direct Support Professional: Responsible for the care and supervision of children and adolescent residential clients with intellectual disabilities.
- Direct Support Professional Cared for individuals with severe to profound mental retardation Assisted individuals with daily activities i.e.
Are Direct Support skills in demand?
Yes, direct support skills are in demand today. Currently, 6,863 job openings list direct support skills as a requirement. The job descriptions that most frequently include direct support skills are direct selling counselor, direct support professional, and direct support staff.
How hard is it to learn Direct Support?
Based on the average complexity level of the jobs that use direct support the most: direct selling counselor, direct support professional, and direct support staff. The complexity level of these jobs is challenging.
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What jobs can you get with Direct Support skills?
You can get a job as a direct selling counselor, direct support professional, and direct support staff with direct support skills. After analyzing resumes and job postings, we identified these as the most common job titles for candidates with direct support skills.
Direct Selling Counselor
- Direct Support
- Developmental Disabilities
- Medical Appointments
- DDS
- Groceries
- Direct Care
Direct Support Professional
Job description:
Direct support professionals are responsible for taking care of patients with physical or mental limitations. They do a variety of tasks for their patients, such as doing household chores, running errands for them, cooking for them, feeding them, bathing and dressing them, and helping them with their medication, among others. They also provide their patients with companionship, accompanying their patients to appointments, providing emotional support, and being with their patients for the most part of the day. They should be familiar with their patients' prescribed medicines, meal plans, therapy schedules, and other items related to the betterment of the patients' condition. Direct support professionals help the patients overcome their challenges and assist them in acclimating themselves with their current environment.
- Direct Support
- Developmental Disabilities
- Autism
- Direct Care
- DSP
- Mental Health
Direct Support Staff
Job description:
The direct support staff is an individual who takes responsibility for the overall care of people with developmental disabilities. Direct support professionals work directly with developmental illness patients in long-term health care facilities. They perform their jobs as home health and companion care providers who assist their clients in their daily movements and actions. It is their duty to ensure the comfort and safety of their clients. Also, they encourage behaviors and attitudes which strengthen community inclusion.
- Direct Support
- Direct Care
- Transport Clients
- Good Judgment
- Home Maintenance
- Ongoing Support
Direct Support Specialist
Job description:
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.
- Direct Support
- Mental Health
- CPR
- Mental Illness
- Developmental Disabilities
- Direct Care
Group Home Supervisor
- Developmental Disabilities
- Direct Support
- Medication Administration
- Autism
- Group Homes
- Medical Appointments
Community Living Specialist
- Developmental Disabilities
- Autism
- Direct Support
- Community Resources
- Medical Care
- Medical Appointments
Assistant House Manager
- Autism
- Developmental Disabilities
- Direct Support
- Cleanliness
- Mental Health
- Compassion
Life Skills Trainer
Job description:
Life skills trainers are personal health professionals who provide training assistance and supervision to patients, such as personal care, financial management, and social integration. These trainers are required to assist their clients with disabilities with daily living activities while documenting their behaviors and personal hygiene. They can organize therapeutic activities for individuals or groups to maximize their quality of life. Life skills trainers must also assist in meal preparation as well as perform tasks that include glucose monitoring, insulin therapy, and diabetes management.
- Medication Administration
- Therapeutic Recreation
- Medical Appointments
- Direct Support
- Rehabilitation
- CPR
Residential Aide
Job description:
A residential aide is responsible for assisting residents and patients in a community facility, supporting them in their daily activities and personal routines. Residential aides monitor the patients' health conditions, coordinate with medical professionals, and ensure that they receive the proper medications. They also assist the residents with their inquiries and concerns, as well as developing community programs and events, sustaining the healthy welfare of the citizens. A residential aide must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially when communicating with management and other organizations for assistance on charity works.
- Autism
- Developmental Disabilities
- Compassion
- Direct Support
- Cleanliness
- CPR
Direct Support Worker
- Developmental Disabilities
- CPR
- Home Health
- Direct Support
- Community Integration
- Money Management
Branch Chief
- Oversight
- Direct Support
- DOD
- Human Resources
- Logistics Support
- Technical Assistance
Day Program Manager
Job description:
A Day Program Manager oversees programs' daily operations, ensuring everything runs smoothly and efficiently according to objectives and standards. They are responsible for supervising staff, establishing guidelines and goals, setting schedules, liaising with internal and external parties, delegating responsibilities among teams, and monitoring operations' progress, resolving issues should any arise. Moreover, as a day program manager, it is essential to lead and encourage staff to reach goals while implementing the company's standards and regulations.
- Developmental Disabilities
- Oversight
- Autism
- Social Work
- Direct Support
- Mental Health
Action Officer
Job description:
An action officer is part of an army outfit. Their primary job is to produce and organize documentation of vital actions for evaluation by executive staff. They are also responsible for managing a variety of interagency communication; they must set up meetings and draft interagency briefs. Similarly, they are responsible for communication with government agencies and the private sector. An action officer must have extensive knowledge not only of army regulations, but also of government policies.
- DOD
- National Security
- Government Agencies
- Direct Support
- POC
- Situational Awareness
House Manager
Job description:
A household manager is someone who manages a household completely. Household managers have various duties and may manage staff depending on the size of a household. They can train and supervise the household staff. It is their job to organize and monitor the maintenance of the property and to manage household inventories. They arrange entertainment on social events and make travel and holiday arrangements. Also, they do administrative duties like budgeting, paying bills, and managing household schedules. To become a household manager, one must have a wide range of relevant skills and valuable job experience in a related job.
- Autism
- Developmental Disabilities
- Compassion
- Direct Support
- Group Homes
- Early Intervention
Direct Care Professional
- ADL
- Developmental Disabilities
- Mental Health
- Autism
- Direct Support
- Social Work
Deputy Chief Of Staff
- Human Resources
- Federal Agencies
- Logistics Support
- Direct Support
- Legal Assistance
- Press Releases
How much can you earn with Direct Support skills?
You can earn up to $32,878 a year with direct support skills if you become a direct selling counselor, the highest-paying job that requires direct support skills. Direct support professionals can earn the second-highest salary among jobs that use Python, $32,077 a year.
| Job title | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|
| Direct Selling Counselor | $32,878 | $16 |
| Direct Support Professional | $32,077 | $15 |
| Direct Support Staff | $31,268 | $15 |
| Direct Support Specialist | $37,771 | $18 |
| Group Home Supervisor | $37,776 | $18 |
Companies using Direct Support in 2026
The top companies that look for employees with direct support skills are CDM Smith, Sevita, and Oracle. In the millions of job postings we reviewed, these companies mention direct support skills most frequently.
| Rank | Company | % of all skills | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CDM Smith | 20% | 15,851 |
| 2 | Pediatric Partners, now a member of the Sevita family | 14% | 3,855 |
| 3 | Oracle | 10% | 46,152 |
| 4 | The Arc Mid-Hudson | 8% | 13 |
| 5 | Dungarvin | 6% | 317 |
Departments using Direct Support
The departments that use direct support the most are marketing, healthcare, and customer service.
| Department | Average salary |
|---|---|
| Marketing | $63,651 |
| Healthcare | $50,360 |
| Customer Service | $42,323 |
| Non Profit/Government | $40,878 |
| Education | $37,908 |