Social and Human Service Assistants
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.
Most important skills
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Social Perceptiveness
- Service Orientation
- Reading Comprehension
- Coordination
- Writing
- Critical Thinking
Key knowledge
- Customer and Personal Service
- Psychology
- Therapy and Counseling
- English Language
- Administrative
- Sociology and Anthropology
- Computers and Electronics
- Education and Training
What the work involves
- Provide information or refer individuals to public or private agencies or community services for assistance.
- Keep records or prepare reports for owner or management concerning visits with clients.
- Visit individuals in homes or attend group meetings to provide information on agency services, requirements, or procedures.
- Advise clients regarding food stamps, child care, food, money management, sanitation, or housekeeping.
- Submit reports and review reports or problems with superior.
- Interview individuals or family members to compile information on social, educational, criminal, institutional, or drug history.
- Assess clients' cognitive abilities and physical and emotional needs to determine appropriate interventions.
- Develop and implement behavioral management and care plans for clients.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Social, Conventional, Enterprising.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- Bachelor's Degree (39.4% of respondents)
- Related experience
- Over 6 months, up to and including 1 year (33.8%)
- On-the-job training
- Over 1 month, up to and including 3 months (42.1%)
- Preparation level
- O*NET job zone 4: Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
- Licensing
- Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.
Check before planning
- Licensing for Social and Human Service Assistants is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.
Limits
- Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
- Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0
Work environment
How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).
Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.
| Condition | Level | Compared with other occupations | Most common answer (O*NET survey) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact with others | Very high | Higher on contact with others than 91% of occupations compared | 88% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others” |
| Dealing with the public | Very high | Higher on dealing with the public than 90% of occupations compared | 64% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Teamwork | Very high | Higher on teamwork than 82% of occupations compared | 71% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Freedom to make decisions | Low | Lower on freedom to make decisions than 68% of occupations compared | 40% of surveyed respondents chose “A lot of freedom” |
| Time pressure | High | Higher on time pressure than 71% of occupations compared | 51% of surveyed respondents chose “Every day” |
| Conflict situations | Very high | Higher on conflict situations than 92% of occupations compared | 45% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a week or more but not every day” |
| Dealing with unpleasant or angry people | Very high | Higher on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 85% of occupations compared | 39% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a month or more but not every week” |
| Consequence of error | Low | Lower on consequence of error than 64% of occupations compared | 34% of surveyed respondents chose “Fairly serious” |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: high
- Conflict situations: very high
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: very high
- Consequence of error: low
Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.
Full answer distributions
Contact with others
- No contact with others: 0%
- Occasional contact with others: 0%
- Contact with others about half the time: 0%
- Contact with others most of the time: 12.36%
- Constant contact with others: 87.64%
n = 26, Incumbent 08/2020
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 0%
- Fairly important: 0.64%
- Important: 13.53%
- Very important: 21.47%
- Extremely important: 64.36%
n = 27, Incumbent 08/2020
Teamwork
- Not important at all: 0%
- Fairly important: 0%
- Important: 9.33%
- Very important: 19.92%
- Extremely important: 70.75%
n = 27, Incumbent 08/2020
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 0.64%
- Very little freedom: 15.08%
- Limited freedom: 14.36%
- Some freedom: 29.5%
- A lot of freedom: 40.41%
n = 27, Incumbent 08/2020
Time pressure
- Never: 10.29%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 0%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 7.89%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 30.74%
- Every day: 51.08%
n = 27, Incumbent 08/2020
Conflict situations
- Never: 3.07%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 6.14%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 22.57%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 45.19%
- Every day: 23.03%
n = 27, Incumbent 08/2020
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: 0%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 12.52%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 39.32%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 27.28%
- Every day: 20.88%
n = 27, Incumbent 08/2020
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: 14.54%
- Fairly serious: 33.83%
- Serious: 27.78%
- Very serious: 13.74%
- Extremely serious: 10.12%
n = 26, Incumbent 08/2020
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O*NET-SOC 21-1093.00 · SOC 21-1093 (exact, high confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8