What is a community worker and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
Quoted Expert
Debra Minsky-Kelly

Experience isn't crucial for becoming a Community Worker: what's most significant is a promise to supporting individuals with learning incapacities to benefit from life. There are abilities that numerous local area laborers have to achieve to fulfill their obligations.

In case you're keen on turning into a Community Worker, one of the main interesting points is how much schooling you need. We've verified that 45.5% of Community Workers have a four-year certification. As far as advanced education levels, we found that 20.2% of Community Workers have graduate degrees. Despite the fact that most local area laborers have a higher education, it's conceivable to get one with just a secondary school degree or GED.

Community Workers are people who work with families or social networks to help advance or reestablish the social working of a local area. These specialists should advance social equity and augmenting human potential while pushing the privileges of people and local gatherings. They should have the right staff and adaptability to work with various customer gatherings to survey and assess local area activities and projects. Community Workers should likewise work for non-benefit associations, government, and private areas to offer human types of assistance.

What general advice would you give to a Community Worker?

D

Debra Minsky-KellyDebra Minsky-Kelly LinkedIn Profile

Director of Field Education / Clinical Assistant Professor of Social Work, Carthage College

I think there are two critical skills for social workers, whether they are first entering the workforce or seasoned professionals. These skills are humility and an appreciation for ambiguity in our work. A humble approach to our work empowers clients to become experts on their circumstances. Social workers are then positioned in a collaborative role to help clients use existing skills and resources to improve their situations. An appreciation for ambiguity is closely related to the idea of humility. It helps us to remember that practice situations we face in this field are often far more complicated than they appear on the surface. Thus, all social workers need to make a strong commitment to lifelong learning and ongoing consultation with colleagues to ensure that multiple perspectives are included as we work to solve complex problems.
ScoreCommunity WorkerUS Average
Salary
3.1

Avg. Salary $40,029

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level
7.1

Growth Rate 12%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity
10.0
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.21%

Asian 6.22%

Black or African American 8.80%

Hispanic or Latino 22.86%

Unknown 6.40%

White 54.51%

Gender

female 68.36%

male 31.64%

Age - 42
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 - 42
Stress Level
7.1

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level
8.1

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance
7.9

Work Life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Community Worker career paths

Key steps to become a community worker

  1. Explore community worker education requirements

    Most common community worker degrees

    Bachelor's

    55.2 %

    Associate

    17.2 %

    Master's

    11.1 %
  2. Start to develop specific community worker skills

    Skills
    ascdesc
    Percentages
    ascdesc
    Social Services11.95%
    Mental Health7.57%
    Rehabilitation7.39%
    Financial Eligibility5.82%
    Community Resources5.76%
  3. Complete relevant community worker training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New community workers 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 community worker based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real community worker resumes.
  4. Research community worker duties and responsibilities

    • Prepare patients for abortion procedures; assist doctor and perform ultrasounds during procedures; support women physically and emotionally after abortions.
    • Examine injured persons and administer first aid or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, if necessary, using training and medical supplies and equipment.
  5. Prepare your community worker resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your community worker 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 community worker resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose From 10+ Customizable Community Worker Resume templates

    Build a professional Community Worker 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 Community Worker resume.
    Community Worker Resume
    Community Worker Resume
    Community Worker Resume
    Community Worker Resume
    Community Worker Resume
    Community Worker Resume
    Community Worker Resume
    Community Worker Resume
    Community Worker Resume
  6. Apply for community worker jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a community worker job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

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

How Did You Land Your First Community Worker Job

Zippi

Are you a Community Worker?

Share your story for a free salary report.

Average community worker salary

The average Community Worker salary in the United States is $40,029 per year or $19 per hour. Community worker salaries range between $28,000 and $55,000 per year.

Average Community Worker Salary
$40,029 Yearly
$19.24 hourly

What Am I Worth?

Loading...
Loading...
salary-calculator

How do community workers rate their job?

-/5

5 Stars

4 Stars

3 Stars

2 Stars

1 Star

Community Worker reviews

profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Jan 2024
Cons

can be easy to get burnt out, pay is ok


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Aug 2020
Cons

Salary but I feel it will be worth it


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Feb 2020
Pros

Care of others. Wound dressing. Personal Cares.

Cons

Housework.. Heavy lifting. Grocery shopping for others.


Working as a Community Worker? Share your experience anonymously.
Overall Rating*
Career Growth
Work/Life balance
Pay/Salary

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Browse community and social services jobs