How to hire a sports athletic trainer

How to hire a sports athletic trainer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step sports athletic trainer hiring guide:

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

What does a sports athletic trainer do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the sports athletic trainer you need to hire. Certain sports athletic trainer roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A sports athletic trainer's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, sports athletic trainers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list shows salaries for various types of sports athletic trainers.

   Type of Sports Athletic Trainer	Description	Hourly rate
   Sports Athletic Trainer	Athletic trainers specialize in preventing, diagnosing, and treating muscle and bone injuries and illnesses.	$16-31
   Trainer	A trainer is responsible for instilling knowledge and process techniques for a specific business role. Duties of a trainer include facilitating engaging classes, identifying areas of improvement and opportunities for the learner, evaluating skills and attending to the learner's challenges, organizing training materials and scheduling training sessions, and submitting timely reports to the management on progress... Show more	$14-35
   Certified Athletic Trainer	A certified athletic trainer is a health and medical expert who specializes in providing health care assistance to athletes. They typically devise strategies to prevent injuries during training sessions and other activities, develop health care plans, and provide immediate care or first aid when injuries occur... Show more	$17-29

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Rehabilitation
   • Patient Care
   • CPR
   • Student Athletes
   • Athletic Events
   • Athletic Injuries
   • Event Coverage
   • OSHA
   • Emergency Care
   • Medical Care
   • NCAA
   • Athletic Training Room
   • Softball
   • Game Coverage

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Cover athletic events for football, soccer, basketball, track and field, baseball and softball, including travel.
   • Coordinate game day operations, travel arrangements and provide medical coverage for football, women's volleyball, and aquatics.
   • Maintain personal health information pertinent to require records for rehabilitation, fitness/wellness, and injury prevention programming.
   • Comply with all NCAA and NATA code of ethics, rules, and regulations.
   • Instruct and certify coaches, teacher, and other staff in CPR and first aid.
   • Work in-season with tennis and out-of-season with field hockey, women's soccer, and men's soccer.

   More sports athletic trainer duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the sports athletic trainer job description is a good way to get more applicants. A sports athletic trainer salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a sports athletic trainer in Kentucky may be lower than in Hawaii, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level sports athletic trainer. Additionally, a sports athletic trainer with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average sports athletic trainer salary

   $48,071yearly

   $23.11 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level sports athletic trainer salary

   $35,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 13, 2026

   Average sports athletic trainer salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Delaware	$52,075	$25
   2	Pennsylvania	$47,279	$23
   3	Ohio	$46,644	$22
   4	Arizona	$46,589	$22
   5	Colorado	$46,562	$22
   6	Florida	$45,683	$22
   7	Texas	$45,316	$22
   8	Maryland	$45,215	$22
   9	North Carolina	$44,654	$21
   10	Illinois	$44,049	$21
   11	Montana	$43,491	$21
   12	Indiana	$40,506	$19
   13	Utah	$36,792	$18

   Average sports athletic trainer salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Baptist Health Care	$63,910	$30.73	3
   2	University of Southern California	$62,544	$30.07	6
   3	Thomas Jefferson University	$62,399	$30.00	1
   4	Baptist Health Home Care	$61,916	$29.77	13
   5	Erlanger Health System	$61,620	$29.63	6
   6	Queens Health Systems	$60,419	$29.05	3
   7	Select Medical	$59,243	$28.48	2,678
   8	University of Maryland Medical System	$57,864	$27.82	24
   9	Huntsville Hospital	$57,693	$27.74	5
   10	Community Health Network	$56,379	$27.11	16
   11	Southwest General	$55,914	$26.88	1
   12	LifePoint Health	$55,902	$26.88	307
   13	Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health	$55,192	$26.53	1
   14	Froedtert Hospital	$54,342	$26.13	14
   15	Memorial Healthcare System	$53,540	$25.74	1
   16	Mayo Clinic	$52,943	$25.45	29
   17	Ascension Michigan	$52,772	$25.37	48
   18	Bon Secours Community Hospital	$52,554	$25.27	68
   19	Children's Health Corporation	$52,500	$25.24	5
   20	UCHealth	$52,364	$25.18	14

4. Writing a sports athletic trainer job description

   A sports athletic trainer job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a sports athletic trainer job description:

   Sports athletic trainer job description example

   Athletic Trainer Sports, Sports Outreach Program, Bethesda East, FT, 10A-6:30P-129063Baptist Health has a commitment to strengthening the compassionate care we provide. With the addition of Bethesda Hospital East and Bethesda Hospital West, Baptist Health is able to provide the Palm Beach community expanded access to healthcare services.
   
   Bethesda Hospitals East and West are two not-for-profit hospitals in Boynton Beach, Florida and are a part of Baptist Health South Florida, the region's largest not-for-profit healthcare organization with more than 23,000 employees working across 11 hospital campuses and more than 100 outpatient facilities throughout Miami-Dade, Monroe, Broward, and Palm Beach counties. In 2016 we welcomed the newest weapon in the fight against cancer, the world-class Miami Cancer Institute and proton therapy center.
   
   Baptist Health South Florida is once again one of the 2021 Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For! This is the 21st time Baptist Health has been recognized on the list. We have also been recognized for being among the best healthcare providers in the nation by U.S. News & World Reports in its 2020-2021 Best Hospitals report and have been honored as one of PEOPLE's 2020 50 Companies That Care by PEOPLE magazine and Great Place to Work.
   
   Everything we do at Baptist Health, we do to the best of our ability. That includes supporting our team with extensive training programs, millions of dollars in tuition assistance, on-site Early Learning Center for children, comprehensive benefits and more. Working within our award-winning culture means getting the respect and support you need to do your best work ever. Find out why this is the best place to be your best!Description
   
   Works as a Sports Athletic Training under the clinical supervision of the practice physician(s). To work directly with our Student athletes overseeing athletic events that occur weekly at high school location(s) within Palm Beach County. Also with the opportunity to work as a physician extender providing direct patient care under the clinical supervision of the practice physician(s). The athletic trainer is a clinical expert in musculoskeletal conditions, who can provide a high standard of care to all orthopedic patients. The AT serves as a liaison between the patient and physician. Directly reports to the Baptist Health orthopedic care program leader in the northern region. Assist the direct leader with patient/customer complaints and/or issues related to operational clinical matters to maximize patient satisfaction efforts. Commnicates regularly with patients and may work with a variety of orthopedic specialties. Practices the Baptist Health mission of service excellence in providing professional, compassionate and friendly service to our patients and physicians.
   Estimated salary range for this position is $44,160 - $57,408 / year depending on experience.
   Qualifications
   Required licenses and certifications: AED, AL, BLS, ATC. BS in Athletic Training. State of Florida Deparment of Health license in Athletic Training, certified by the National Athletic Trainer Asssociation Board of Certification, Inc. in Athletic Training. Professional, detail-oriented team player with effective interpersonal communication skills. Confidentiality a must. Proficient in computer applications and typing skills. Experience in electronic medical record systems preferred. Bilingual preferred. High ethical standards, HIPAA/OSHA compliance required.
   
   Job Physical TherapyPrimary Location Boynton BeachOrganization Bethesda Hospital, Inc.Schedule Full-time Job Posting Sep 12, 2022, 4:00:00 AMUnposting Date Ongoing

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right sports athletic trainer 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 sports athletic trainer job on Zippia to find and attract quality sports athletic trainer candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting sports athletic trainers 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 sports athletic trainer

   Once you have selected a candidate for the sports athletic trainer 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 employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

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 sports athletic trainer?