Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between therapeutic support staff and case workers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a therapeutic support staff, becoming a case worker takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a case worker has an average salary of $41,459, which is higher than the $34,086 average annual salary of a therapeutic support staff.
The top three skills for a therapeutic support staff include autism, social work and rehabilitation. The most important skills for a case worker are social work, crisis intervention, and patients.
| Therapeutic Support Staff | Case Worker | |
| Yearly salary | $34,086 | $41,459 |
| Hourly rate | $16.39 | $19.93 |
| Growth rate | 12% | 9% |
| Number of jobs | 192,172 | 107,329 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Average age | 43 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 4 |
A therapeutic support staff member specializes in providing guidance and counseling to individuals with emotional support needs, mainly children. They are primarily responsible for building rapport with clients while assessing their different conditions and needs. Through this assessment, therapeutic support staff can develop specific treatments in collaboration with mental health practitioners. One may directly work with schools, clinics, and other medical health facilities. Furthermore, it is essential to maintain all clients' records and monitor their progress, regularly updating the assigned physician or caseworker.
Caseworkers are social workers who watch over the welfare of underprivileged individuals and at-risk families by counseling and providing them with assistance. Usually employed under the government or a local non-profit organization, a caseworker must conduct a thorough interview and house visits to determine the needs of the family. They then refer them to any programs or agencies that can give them the specific care and help needed. Furthermore, it is crucial to identify neglect and abuse signs, reporting them to the authorities right away.
Therapeutic support staff and case workers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Therapeutic Support Staff | Case Worker | |
| Average salary | $34,086 | $41,459 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $42,000 | Between $30,000 And $55,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | - | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | - | Appalachian Regional Healthcare |
| Best paying industry | - | Education |
There are a few differences between a therapeutic support staff and a case worker in terms of educational background:
| Therapeutic Support Staff | Case Worker | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | California State University - Long Beach | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between therapeutic support staff' and case workers' demographics:
| Therapeutic Support Staff | Case Worker | |
| Average age | 43 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 25.4% Female, 74.6% | Male, 26.8% Female, 73.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 5.5% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.9% | Black or African American, 13.4% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 2.7% White, 63.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 10% |