---
title: "Social and Human Service Assistant"
description: "Assist other social and human service providers in providing client services in a wide variety of fields, such as psychology, rehabilitation, or social…"
canonical: "https://nuecareer.com/careers/social-and-human-service-assistant"
last-updated: "2026-08-23T15:56:39.581Z"
---

# Social and Human Service Assistant

**Category:** Community and Social Service · **SOC code:** 21-1093 · **O\*NET-SOC code:** 21-1093.00

Assist other social and human service providers in providing client services in a wide variety of fields, such as psychology, rehabilitation, or social work, including support for families. May assist clients in identifying and obtaining available benefits and social and community services. May assist social workers with developing, organizing, and conducting programs to prevent and resolve problems relevant to substance abuse, human relationships, rehabilitation, or dependent care.

Also advertised as: Addictions Counselor Assistant; Advocate; Clinical Assistant; Residential Care Assistant; Social Services Aide; Social Services Assistant; Social Work Assistant; Social Work Associate.

## At a glance

- **Median annual wage:** $45,930 (BLS OEWS, May 2025)
- **Median hourly wage:** $22.08/hr
- **Wage range (10th–90th percentile):** $34,200 to $63,290, with the middle half between $38,150 and $54,350
- **Total US employment:** 437,860
- **Typical entry education:** High school
- **Preparation required:** Medium preparation — O\*NET rates this "Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed"
- **Projected growth:** +6.4% over 2024–2034 (BLS EP, 2024–2034)
- **Annual job openings:** 50,600 openings a year
- **AI-resilience score:** 38/100 — a NueCareer heuristic over O\*NET work activities and context, not a BLS or O\*NET figure

## Pay

National wage distribution, BLS OEWS, May 2025, across 437,860 US jobs.

| Percentile | Annual wage |
| --- | --- |
| 10th | $34,200 |
| 25th | $38,150 |
| 50th (median) | $45,930 |
| 75th | $54,350 |
| 90th | $63,290 |
| Mean (average) | $47,690 |

### Pay by state

The 15 highest-paying states, by median annual wage. The cost-of-living-adjusted column divides the state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity, so the columns answer different questions: the first is what the job pays there, the second is what that pay buys there.

| State | Median annual wage | Cost-of-living adjusted | Employment |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| DC | $59,460 | $54,103 | 2,080 |
| WA | $54,770 | $51,181 | 7,590 |
| OR | $51,230 | $49,564 | 11,260 |
| CA | $51,090 | $46,143 | 58,730 |
| MN | $49,940 | $50,638 | 11,110 |
| NJ | $48,420 | $44,502 | 17,270 |
| RI | $47,720 | $46,656 | 2,290 |
| ME | $47,710 | $49,160 | 4,580 |
| CO | $47,690 | $46,278 | 5,410 |
| ID | $47,540 | $49,783 | 3,810 |
| WI | $47,500 | $50,481 | 7,750 |
| AK | $47,360 | $46,269 | 1,370 |
| MD | $47,210 | $44,979 | 7,280 |
| NY | $47,190 | $43,726 | 40,970 |
| MA | $47,130 | $44,564 | 9,180 |

39 more states with published wage data are omitted here. The full table for all 54 states is at https://nuecareer.com/careers/social-and-human-service-assistant/salary-by-state, or as JSON at https://nuecareer.com/api/v1/careers/social-and-human-service-assistant.

## Outlook

BLS projects employment to move from 449,600 in the 2024–2034 base year to 478,500 by the end of the cycle — a gain of 28,900 jobs, or +6.4%. Much faster than average: 6.4% against 3.1% projected for all occupations over the same cycle. About 50,600 openings a year are expected on average, counting openings from growth as well as from workers leaving the occupation permanently. Source: BLS EP, 2024–2034.

## How to get in

- **Typical entry education:** High school diploma or equivalent (BLS Employment Projections).
- **Preparation level:** Medium preparation — O\*NET's preparation band for this occupation is "Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed".
- **Related work experience typically required:** None.
- **Typical on-the-job training:** Short-term on-the-job training.

### Education people in this job actually hold

O\*NET surveys incumbents, so this distribution describes who is in the job today and can differ from the BLS entry requirement above.

| Education level | Share of workers |
| --- | --- |
| Bachelor's Degree | 39.4% |
| Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 18.0% |
| Some College Courses | 16.2% |
| High School Diploma | 10.4% |
| Master's Degree | 7.4% |
| Post-Master's Certificate | 3.8% |

## What the work involves

- Provide information or refer individuals to public or private agencies or community services for assistance.
- Assess clients' cognitive abilities and physical and emotional needs to determine appropriate interventions.
- Submit reports and review reports or problems with superior.
- Develop and implement behavioral management and care plans for clients.
- Interview individuals or family members to compile information on social, educational, criminal, institutional, or drug history.
- Keep records or prepare reports for owner or management concerning visits with clients.
- Advise clients regarding food stamps, child care, food, money management, sanitation, or housekeeping.
- Visit individuals in homes or attend group meetings to provide information on agency services, requirements, or procedures.

## Skills and knowledge

### Essential skills

- Active Listening — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Speaking — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Reading Comprehension — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Writing — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Critical Thinking — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Monitoring — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Active Learning — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Learning Strategies — importance 2.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Transferable skills

These are the skills that carry into other occupations, and they drive the related-occupation and career-change rankings on this site.

- Social Perceptiveness — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Service Orientation — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Coordination — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Persuasion — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Complex Problem Solving — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Judgment and Decision Making — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Negotiation — importance 3.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Time Management — importance 3.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Knowledge areas

- Customer and Personal Service — importance 4.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Psychology — importance 4.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Therapy and Counseling — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- English Language — importance 3.7 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Administrative — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Sociology and Anthropology — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Abilities

- Oral Expression — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Oral Comprehension — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Written Comprehension — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Written Expression — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Problem Sensitivity — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Deductive Reasoning — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

## Who it suits

O\*NET rates every occupation on the six Holland (RIASEC) interest areas, on a 1–7 scale. This occupation's strongest areas are Social (S), Conventional (C), Enterprising (E).

| Interest area | Score (1–7) |
| --- | --- |
| S — Social | 6.09 |
| C — Conventional | 4.57 |
| E — Enterprising | 3.61 |
| I — Investigative | 2.80 |
| A — Artistic | 1.95 |
| R — Realistic | 1.28 |

### Personality fit

These scores are **derived by NueCareer**, not published by any government agency: they are cosine similarities between a personality type's trait profile and this occupation's O\*NET interest and work-style ratings, expressed 0–100. Treat them as a starting point for exploration, not as evidence that a type belongs in a job.

| Type | Fit score (0–100) |
| --- | --- |
| ESFJ | 83.1 |
| ENFJ | 75.8 |
| ESFP | 69.1 |
| ISFJ | 67.1 |
| ESTJ | 60.0 |

Best-fitting types: ESFJ.

## Related occupations

O\*NET's primary related occupations, in its own ranked order.

- [School Social Worker](https://nuecareer.com/careers/school-social-worker) — median $59,550
- [Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Worker](https://nuecareer.com/careers/mental-health-and-substance-abuse-social-worker) — median $60,280
- [Healthcare Social Worker](https://nuecareer.com/careers/healthcare-social-worker) — median $67,880
- [Marriage and Family Therapist](https://nuecareer.com/careers/marriage-and-family-therapist) — median $66,940
- [Mental Health Counselor](https://nuecareer.com/careers/mental-health-counselor) — median $60,320
- [Rehabilitation Counselor](https://nuecareer.com/careers/rehabilitation-counselor) — median $46,850
- [Community Health Worker](https://nuecareer.com/careers/community-health-worker) — median $51,850
- [Clinical Psychologist](https://nuecareer.com/careers/clinical-psychologist) — median $100,580
- [Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselor and Advisor](https://nuecareer.com/careers/educational-guidance-and-career-counselor-and-advisor) — median $64,330
- [Health Education Specialist](https://nuecareer.com/careers/health-education-specialist) — median $64,070

## Sources

- **O\*NET** — O\*NET 30.3 Database, May 2026. https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html
- **BLS OEWS** — BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. https://www.bls.gov/oes/
- **BLS EP** — BLS Employment Projections, Table 1.2, 2024–2034. https://www.bls.gov/emp/
- **BLS OOH** — BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2024–2034 edition. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/
- **BEA RPP** — BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024. https://www.bea.gov/data/prices-inflation/regional-price-parities-state-and-metro-area

---

This bank includes information from the O\*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. NueCareer has transformed the data by joining it to BLS wage and projection data and deriving facet, personality-fit and AI-resilience scores. BLS and BEA data are public domain (17 U.S.C. §105).

O\*NET content is used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). How these figures are sourced and derived: https://nuecareer.com/careers/methodology

JSON representation of this page: https://nuecareer.com/api/v1/careers/social-and-human-service-assistant