How to hire a staff therapist

How to hire a staff therapist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step staff therapist hiring guide:

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

What does a staff therapist do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the staff therapist you need to hire. Certain staff therapist 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

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a staff therapist to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a staff therapist that fits the bill.

   This list shows salaries for various types of staff therapists.

   Type of Staff Therapist	Description	Hourly rate
   Staff Therapist	Respiratory therapists care for patients who have trouble breathing—for example, from a chronic respiratory disease, such as asthma or emphysema. Their patients range from premature infants with undeveloped lungs to elderly patients who have diseased lungs... Show more	$16-37
   Respiratory Care Practitioner	A Respiratory Care Practitioner assesses and treats patients with pulmonary diseases. They diagnose lung and breathing disorders and recommend treatment methods.	$14-47
   Respiratory Supervisor	A respiratory supervisor is tasked with the job of administering life support and respiratory therapy to patients with abnormalities, deficiencies, and injuries of the cardiopulmonary system. They work under the supervision of the physician in charge... Show more	$14-57

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Individual Therapy
   • Mental Health
   • Group Therapy
   • Crisis Intervention
   • Physical Therapy
   • ICU
   • Occupational Therapy
   • EKG
   • Family Therapy
   • Respiratory Care
   • Therapy Services
   • Substance Abuse
   • Acute Care

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage ventilator care, intubation, arterial line placement, mechanical ventilation, BIPAP, and CPAP.
   • Lead RRT position involves direct resident care such as ventilator set up, changes, weaning, and maintaining.
   • Provide high-quality patient care in all areas of the facility including ICU, CCU, PACU, NICU and ER.
   • Chart record of patient therapy; teach patients proper use and administration of respiratory medication such as MDI s and spacers.
   • Conduct weekly Medicare, Medicaid and private pay reports, submit quality indicator and MDS reports and metrics for QA/QC reports.
   • Document resident progress using MDS weekly, quarterly, annually and significant changes regarding therapeutic activity pattern.

   More staff therapist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your staff therapist job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A staff therapist salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, staff therapists' average salary in arkansas is 48% less than in alaska.
   • Seniority. Entry-level staff therapists earn 55% less than senior-level staff therapists.
   • Certifications. A staff therapist with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a staff therapist's salary.

   Average staff therapist salary

   $52,147yearly

   $25.07 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level staff therapist salary

   $35,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

   Average staff therapist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$69,370	$33
   2	New York	$67,226	$32
   3	Oregon	$60,519	$29
   4	Pennsylvania	$54,753	$26
   5	Indiana	$54,305	$26
   6	Texas	$49,952	$24
   7	North Carolina	$47,532	$23
   8	Missouri	$47,027	$23
   9	Georgia	$46,708	$22
   10	Illinois	$45,691	$22
   11	Iowa	$44,889	$22

   Average staff therapist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Stanford University	$75,383	$36.24	2
   2	University of California-Berkeley	$68,380	$32.88
   3	WakeMed	$66,303	$31.88	3
   4	Carnegie Mellon University	$60,084	$28.89	3
   5	Syracuse University	$58,482	$28.12
   6	Haven Behavioral Healthcare	$56,293	$27.06	8
   7	the Montrose Center	$55,788	$26.82	3
   8	Aspire Health	$55,097	$26.49	5
   9	FirstHealth of the Carolinas	$55,084	$26.48
   10	GradyHealth	$53,571	$25.76	1
   11	Goshen Valley	$53,419	$25.68
   12	comhar	$53,279	$25.61	4
   13	Juvenile Protective Association	$52,119	$25.06	1
   14	WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA	$50,968	$24.50	30
   15	University of Iowa Center for Advancement	$50,160	$24.12	8
   16	University of Pennsylvania	$50,148	$24.11	5
   17	Community Counseling Centers of Chicago	$49,433	$23.77	2
   18	DePaul University	$35,778	$17.20

4. Writing a staff therapist job description

   A staff therapist 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. Below, you can find an example of a staff therapist job description:

   Staff therapist job description example

   WE SERVE ALL. WE HIRE ALL. WE ACCEPT ALL.
   
   Now interviewing for a Licensed Therapist
   
   Up to a $2,000 Hiring Bonus
   
   Aspire Indiana Health is a nonprofit provider of comprehensive "whole health" services including primary medical care, behavioral health, recovery services and programs addressing the social determinants of health such as housing and employment. Aspire has health centers in five Central Indiana counties serving Hoosiers of all ages and walks of life.
   
   Position Summary
   
   This full-time Licensed Therapist position will provide outpatient, individual, and group therapy services to adults at our Noblesville Outpatient Office. Duties include, but are not limited to: evaluations/assessments, treatment plans, crisis intervention/emergency services, individual and group therapy/counseling services and substance abuse treatment.
   
   Education/Experience/Requirements
   
   + Master's Degree in Social Work, Psychology, Sociology or related field from a college/university accredited by the US Department of Education required
   
   + Two (2) years' experience in a clinical setting working with a variety of populations required
   
   + Community Mental Health experience highly preferred
   
   + Knowledge of social service systems, community resources, legal systems and child welfare systems highly preferred
   
   Licensure
   
   + Must be recognized as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) or Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) by the State of Indiana
   
   + Licensed Clinical Addictions Counselor (LCAC) license, a plus
   
   Learn more about us at Aspireindiana.org, and see our Core Values, benefits and current job listings on our Careers page. Or check out our Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube pages.
   
   Drug screen, TB test and extensive background checks (including Criminal History, Sex Offender Registry Search, State Central Registry Check, Education Verification, and Professional References) are required of all Aspire employees.
   
   All individuals who join Aspire are strongly encouraged to have a flu shot and required to be fully vaccinated against COVID19 prior to joining Aspire to further protect our staff and the patients we serve. We also adhere to CDC protocols including wearing masks, social distancing, and sanitizing.
   
   Aspire Indiana Health is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
   
   
   External Company Name: Aspire Indiana Health, Inc.
   
   Street: 2020 Brown Street

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right staff therapist for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with staff therapists they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit staff therapists who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your staff therapist job on Zippia to find and attract quality staff therapist candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit staff therapists, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   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 staff therapist

   Once you've found the staff therapist candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   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 staff therapist first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

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 staff therapist?