How to hire a therapy aide

How to hire a therapy aide, step by step

Here's a step-by-step therapy aide hiring guide:

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

What does a therapy aide do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the therapy aide you need to hire. Certain therapy aide 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

   Hiring the perfect therapy aide also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   The following list breaks down different types of therapy aides and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Therapy Aide	Description	Hourly rate
   Therapy Aide	Occupational therapy assistants and aides help patients develop, recover, and improve the skills needed for daily living and working. Occupational therapy assistants are directly involved in providing therapy to patients; occupational therapy aides typically perform support activities... Show more	$11-17
   Rehabilitation Technician	A rehabilitation technician is responsible for assisting therapists and other medical personnel on supporting the patients in their daily activities and physical therapy sessions. Rehabilitation technicians provide high-quality care services for the patients by administering medications, accompanying them on medical appointments, and ensuring the cleanliness and orderliness of all equipment and facilities to prevent hazards within the premises... Show more	$11-17
   Rehab Technician	A rehab technician's role is to assist physical therapists and patients in a hospital or similar facility. Typically, their responsibilities revolve around gathering a patient's personal information and medical history, escorting them to corresponding rooms, and conducting initial tests and assessments... Show more	$10-17

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Patient Care
   • Rehabilitation
   • BARS
   • Physical Therapy
   • Occupational Therapy
   • Home Health
   • Direct Supervision
   • Cleanliness
   • CPR
   • Autism
   • Therapy Services
   • Speech Therapy
   • Therapy Equipment

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Assist in implementing clinical treatment programs using ABA (apply behavior analysis).
   • Prepare patients for physical therapy treatment by welcoming, comforting, providing and/or assisting patient into physical therapy apparel.
   • Require the physical ability and training to conduct CPR.
   • Fabricate and modify splints according to Dr. Gupta's specifications.
   • Perform wound care, remove sutures, and help the therapists in fabricating custom make orthotic splints.
   • Collect data on client's achievements for the purpose of documenting activities, preparing reports and/or updating IEP logs.

   More therapy aide duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the therapy aide job description is a good way to get more applicants. A therapy aide 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 therapy aide in Kansas may be lower than in Montana, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level therapy aide. Additionally, a therapy aide with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average therapy aide salary

   $14.09hourly

   $29,312 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level therapy aide salary

   $23,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 21, 2026

   Average therapy aide salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Massachusetts	$36,717	$18
   2	South Dakota	$36,529	$18
   3	Ohio	$36,112	$17
   4	California	$33,311	$16
   5	Washington	$33,299	$16
   6	Oregon	$33,244	$16
   7	North Dakota	$32,088	$15
   8	Louisiana	$32,063	$15
   9	Minnesota	$31,771	$15
   10	Missouri	$29,433	$14
   11	North Carolina	$28,703	$14
   12	Florida	$25,713	$12
   13	New York	$24,506	$12
   14	New Jersey	$24,204	$12
   15	Illinois	$23,933	$12
   16	New Mexico	$22,935	$11
   17	Texas	$22,139	$11

   Average therapy aide salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	State Bar of Michigan	$37,009	$17.79	7
   2	University of Washington	$34,824	$16.74	4
   3	State Of Illinois - Illinois Student Assistance Commission	$34,790	$16.73	20
   4	Oregon Health & Science University	$34,163	$16.42	3
   5	County of Riverside	$33,648	$16.18	4
   6	Achievement Centers for Children	$32,948	$15.84	1
   7	Prime Healthcare	$32,246	$15.50	12
   8	Encompass Health	$32,180	$15.47	501
   9	NorthLakes Community Clinic	$31,958	$15.36
   10	Health Alliance	$31,809	$15.29	15
   11	Ovid Therapeutics	$31,369	$15.08
   12	Salem Health	$31,249	$15.02
   13	Parkland Hospital	$31,219	$15.01
   14	Avera Health	$31,099	$14.95	8
   15	Crozer Health	$31,089	$14.95
   16	Baptist Health Home Care	$30,861	$14.84	3
   17	St. Peter's Health Partners	$30,793	$14.80	21
   18	Bryn Mawr Urology	$30,755	$14.79
   19	Gritman Medical Center	$30,658	$14.74
   20	Crouse Hospital	$30,574	$14.70

4. Writing a therapy aide job description

   A therapy aide 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 therapy aide job description:

   Therapy aide job description example

   Children s Specialized Hospital is the nation s leading provider of inpatient and outpatient care for children from birth to 21 years of age facing special health challenges from chronic illnesses and complex physical disabilities like brain and spinal cord injuries, to developmental and behavioral issues like autism and mental health.
   
   Children's Specialized Hospital is now in its third century of caring for those in need. Our Boards of Trustees, physicians, therapists, nurses, staff, volunteers, and donors remain dedicated to the very ideals of the Hospital's founders and committed to providing the best care possible so that every child who seeks our help reaches their fullest potential.
   
   At 16 different New Jersey locations, our pediatric specialists partner with families to make our many innovative therapies and medical treatments more personalized and effective...so children can achieve more of their goals.
   
   Provides support to clinical staff to ensure quality patient care in a clean and safe environment. Completes routine tasks related to cleanliness and maintenance of equipment and physical plant. As appropriate, may participate in patient treatment sessions under the direct supervision of clinicians. Assists with the set up and clean up of therapeutic activities. Provides additional support to clinical staff as needed.
   Essential Job Functions Assists with patient care activities as appropriate under the direct supervision of a clinician (ex. ADLs, patient transport, pool, exercise program, etc.)
   Assists clinicians in preparation and clean up for patient care. Practices infection control procedures in cleaning of mats, therapy equipment and toys using a hospital approved disinfectant as per hospital policy and procedure and including areas such as waiting area, ADL kitchen, gym, breakout rooms and therapy treatment space.
   Maintains a safe environment for patient care activities.
   Monitors and maintains inventory of general supplies and equipment. Orders and follows up on receipt of supplies and equipment in timely manner. Maintains temperature logs and monitors inspection of therapy equipment as indicated.
   Provides additional support to staff as needed. (pantry order, hand washing monitor, MSDS book, photocopying, voicemails, volunteer orientation, data collection and entry, etc.)
   Completes any other duties as assigned. Formal Education and Job-Related Experience
   * Desired criteria include: Experience working with children, especially special needs children preferred. Excellent customer service skills for interacting with families on site and on the phone. Certification
   * AHA BLS Provider Certification required. License
   * None Education and Experience - Additional Comments
   * Ability to take and follow directions, physical stamina and emotional maturity, computer knowledge. Job Specific Contacts
   * Constant contact with therapists. Requrent contact with other hospital personnel and volunteers. Working Conditions and Physical Effort Physical Enviornment Outpatient setting including gym, pool, casting, etc. Comments Eye|hand coordination, lifting pulling, walking, concentration, analysis, customer sensitivity, etc. Stamina for standing, transporting material and equipment, assisting with patient transfers. Supervisory Responsibility Comments May assist with supervision and training of volunteers assigned to site. Physical Demands
   * Outpatient setting including gym, pool, casting, etc. Working Environment - Additional Comments
   * Eye|hand coordination, lifting pulling, walking, concentration, analysis, customer sensitivity, etc. Stamina for standing, transporting material and equipment, assisting with patient transfers. Job Provides Direction To
   * May assist with supervision of volunteers assigned to site.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find therapy aides for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your therapy aide job on Zippia to find and recruit therapy aide candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting therapy aides 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.

   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 therapy aide

   Once you have selected a candidate for the therapy aide 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.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new therapy aide. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

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 therapy aide?