What does a youth advocate do?
Youth advocates are individuals who responsible for maintaining the human rights of youth while assisting them in developing their skills in all areas of life, such as education, health, employment, and relationships. These advocates are required to discuss youth development and involvement with various leaders in the community. They must provide crisis interventions by performing one-on-one and group meetings with young adults. Youth advocates must also work with mental health professionals within the community so that they can guide teenagers with drug or alcohol problems and mental health issues.
Youth advocate responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real youth advocate resumes:
- Assist in achieving and maintaining DoD certification and national accreditation or equivalent compliance.
- Assist patients in securing medical coverage by screening refer patients and coordinating the application process through successful approval.
- Retain proper certifications for cardio-pulmonary resuscitation, first aid, driver's license and insurance.
Youth advocate skills and personality traits
We calculated that 10% of Youth Advocates are proficient in Mental Health, Social Work, and Foster Care. They’re also known for soft skills such as Emotional skills, Communication skills, and Interpersonal skills.
We break down the percentage of Youth Advocates that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Mental Health, 10%
Develop and maintain positive working relationships with mental health professionals and various community organizations or services.
- Social Work, 9%
Co-facilitated with social workers and teachers in positive workshops targeted for children.
- Foster Care, 8%
Facilitated a therapeutic environment for girls placed in foster care.
- Community Resources, 7%
Collaborated with referral agencies to identify community resources available to students and families.
- Youth Development, 7%
Engage community agencies to provide leadership and structural opportunities for youth development within the program and juvenile probation guidelines.
- Crisis Intervention, 6%
Assist in running groups, implementing programming, utilizing therapeutic crisis interventions, medication administration.
Most youth advocates use their skills in "mental health," "social work," and "foster care" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential youth advocate responsibilities here:
Communication skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling youth advocate duties is communication skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "clients talk to social workers about challenges in their lives." According to a youth advocate resume, here's how youth advocates can utilize communication skills in their job responsibilities: "worked on strengthening communication between parents and children with mental health disabilities. "
Interpersonal skills. youth advocates are also known for interpersonal skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to youth advocate responsibilities, because "social workers must be able to work with different groups of people." A youth advocate resume example shows how interpersonal skills is used in the workplace: "worked on counseling and behavioral management, interpersonal, conflict and anger management. "
Organizational skills. For certain youth advocate responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "organizational skills." The day-to-day duties of a youth advocate rely on this skill, as "social workers must help and manage multiple clients, often assisting with their paperwork or documenting their treatment." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what youth advocates do: "provided basic counseling services to students enrolled in organizational programs with behavioral issues. "
Problem-solving skills. Another common skill required for youth advocate responsibilities is "problem-solving skills." This skill comes up in the duties of youth advocates all the time, as "social workers must analyze their clients’ complex situations and develop practical solutions." An excerpt from a real youth advocate resume shows how this skill is central to what a youth advocate does: "participated in county level committees to develop targeted solutions for youth who have aged out of foster care. "
Compassion. Lastly, "compassion" is an important element of what a youth advocate does. Youth advocate responsibilities require this skill because "social workers often work with people who are in stressful and difficult situations." This resume example highlights how youth advocate duties rely on this skill: "provide compassion and caring for and of chronically homeless youth. "
The three companies that hire the most youth advocates are:
- First Place for Youth11 youth advocates jobs
- The Child Center of NY9 youth advocates jobs
- Professional6 youth advocates jobs
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Compare different youth advocates
Youth advocate vs. Behavioral therapist
A behavioral therapist is responsible for supporting patients with various developmental disorders and behavioral difficulties. Behavioral therapists conduct counseling to the patients, identifying their personal and social challenges, and administering treatment plans to modify unusual behaviors. They also coordinate with other medical professionals to plan activities and therapy sessions for patients' needs. A behavioral therapist maintains a record of the patients' progress, help them on developing social engagement, and adjust treatment strategies depending on the patients' noticeable changes.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a youth advocate are more likely to require skills like "mental health," "foster care," "community resources," and "youth development." On the other hand, a job as a behavioral therapist requires skills like "autism," "behavior analysis," "patients," and "provide aba." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Behavioral therapists really shine in the energy industry with an average salary of $41,338. Comparatively, youth advocates tend to make the most money in the automotive industry with an average salary of $31,171.behavioral therapists tend to reach similar levels of education than youth advocates. In fact, behavioral therapists are 3.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.2% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Youth advocate vs. Behavior therapist
A behavior therapist is an individual psychologist who is responsible for helping patients with mental disorders such as depression and schizophrenia. Behavior therapists must equip patients with psychological tools to help them diminish unhealthy thoughts so that they can effectively deal with the challenges of their daily lives. They are required to devise problem-solving methods such as psychotherapy and counseling to help patients improve their quality of life. Behavior therapists must also collaborate with the families of their patients to help them overcome behavioral issues more effectively.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that youth advocate responsibilities requires skills like "mental health," "foster care," "community resources," and "youth development." But a behavior therapist might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "autism," "applied behavior analysis," "behavior analysis," and "autism spectrum disorder."
Behavior therapists earn a higher average salary than youth advocates. But behavior therapists earn the highest pay in the education industry, with an average salary of $38,181. Additionally, youth advocates earn the highest salaries in the automotive with average pay of $31,171 annually.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Behavior therapists tend to reach higher levels of education than youth advocates. In fact, they're 5.4% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.2% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for youth advocates in the next 3-5 years?
Debra Minsky-Kelly
Director of Field Education / Clinical Assistant Professor of Social Work, Carthage College
Youth advocate vs. Intensive in-home counselor
An Intensive In-Home Counselor conducts individual counseling sessions for parents and deals with delicate issues like sexual addiction. They also prepare progress reports for clients.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from youth advocate resumes include skills like "social work," "foster care," "youth development," and "social services," whereas an intensive in-home counselor is more likely to list skills in "family therapy," "mental health issues," "intensive in-home," and "therapeutic interventions. "
Intensives in-home counselor earn the highest salary when working in the utilities industry, where they receive an average salary of $56,398. Comparatively, youth advocates have the highest earning potential in the automotive industry, with an average salary of $31,171.intensives in-home counselor typically earn higher educational levels compared to youth advocates. Specifically, they're 12.5% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.8% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Youth advocate vs. Residential counselor
A residential counselor is responsible for guiding and providing the residents with their basic needs and other resources to support them in their daily living. Residential counselors' duties include maintaining the safety of the community by enforcing safety guidelines and procedures for the residents' compliance, organizing productive and engaging community activities, updating the residents of any changes and policies in the community, and resolving conflicts by counseling and understanding each resident's differences. A residential counselor must have excellent communication and decision-making skills to ensure the development of residents in a living facility.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between youth advocates and residential counselors, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a youth advocate might have more use for skills like "youth development," "social services," "life training," and "community outreach." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of residential counselors require skills like "medication administration," "developmental disabilities," "mental illness," and "autism. "
In general, residential counselors earn the most working in the education industry, with an average salary of $35,120. The highest-paying industry for a youth advocate is the automotive industry.In general, residential counselors hold similar degree levels compared to youth advocates. Residential counselors are 2.3% less likely to earn their Master's Degree and 0.0% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of youth advocate
Updated January 8, 2025
