How To Become A Certified Recreational Therapist: What It Is and Career Path

What is a certified recreational therapist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

The average certified recreational therapist salary is $61,472. The most common degree is a bachelor's degree degree with an rehabilitation science major. It usually takes 6-12 months of experience to become a certified recreational therapist. Certified recreational therapists with a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist (CTRS) certification earn more money. Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 4% and produce 600 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreCertified Recreational TherapistUS Average

Salary

4.8

Avg. Salary $61,472

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

8.6

Growth Rate 4%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

10.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.77%

Asian 3.27%

Black or African American 6.53%

Hispanic or Latino 10.21%

Unknown 4.49%

White 74.73%

Gender

female 80.41%

male 19.59%

Age - 43

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 43

Stress Level

8.6

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

7.8

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

7.9

Work Life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Newest jobs for Certified Recreational Therapist in ,

Receive alerts for the newest job postings.

Key steps to become a certified recreational therapist

Explore certified recreational therapist education requirements

Most common certified recreational therapist degrees

Bachelor's

82.3 %

Master's

11.5 %

Associate

5.2 %

Start to develop specific certified recreational therapist skills

Skills	Percentages
Patients	22.40%
Therapeutic Recreation	17.17%
Rehabilitation	12.01%
Recreation Therapy	9.91%
CTRS	9.52%

Complete relevant certified recreational therapist training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New certified recreational therapists learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a certified recreational therapist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real certified recreational therapist resumes.

Research certified recreational therapist duties and responsibilities

Manage ventilator care, intubation, arterial line placement, mechanical ventilation, BIPAP, and CPAP.
Provide instruction and awareness on use of adaptive equipment.
Function as a PRN CTRS for an adult inpatient psychiatric hospital.
Research and purchase adaptive equipment, activity supplies and daily needs for the program.

Prepare your certified recreational therapist resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your certified recreational therapist resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a certified recreational therapist resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Certified Recreational Therapist Resume templates

Build a professional Certified Recreational Therapist resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Certified Recreational Therapist resume.

Apply for certified recreational therapist jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a certified recreational therapist job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams