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Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists
Provide social services to assist in rehabilitation of law offenders in custody or on probation or parole. Make recommendations for actions involving formulation of rehabilitation plan and treatment of offender, including conditional release and education and employment stipulations.
Other titles employers use
Adult Probation Officer · Correctional Counselor · Deputy Probation Officer (DPO) · Juvenile Probation Officer · Parole Agent · Parole Officer (PO) · Probation Agent · Probation and Parole Officer
Inside the work
What you would actually do.
6 responsibilities that define the role, before job titles and workplaces change the details.
- Prepare and maintain case folder for each assigned inmate or offender.
- Gather information about offenders' backgrounds by talking to offenders, their families and friends, and other people who have relevant information.
- Interview probationers and parolees regularly to evaluate their progress in accomplishing goals and maintaining the terms specified in their probation contracts and rehabilitation plans.
- Discuss with offenders how such issues as drug and alcohol abuse and anger management problems might have played roles in their criminal behavior.
- Supervise people on community-based sentences, such as electronically monitored home detention, and provide field supervision of probationers by conducting curfew checks or visits to home, work, or school.
- Investigate alleged parole violations, using interviews, surveillance, and search and seizure.
Who it suits
Would this work hold your attention?
This career often appeals to people drawn to helping, organizing and persuading work.
- Organizing
- Creating order, checking details, and keeping work accurate
- Persuading
- Leading, selling, starting projects, or making a case
Skills and strengths
What you would get good at.
Compare the skills the work relies on, the subjects behind it, and the abilities that make it easier to learn.
Core skills
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Social Perceptiveness
- Reading Comprehension
- Critical Thinking
- Writing
Subjects to know
- Law and Government
- Public Safety and Security
- English Language
- Psychology
- Therapy and Counseling
Useful strengths
- Oral Expression
- Written Comprehension
- Problem Sensitivity
- Deductive Reasoning
- Oral Comprehension
Working day
Picture yourself doing it.
These measures show how much of the day involves people, movement, conversation, and hands-on work.
| Measure | Out of 5 | What that means here |
|---|---|---|
| Close to other people | 3.6 | Shared rooms, but not shoulder to shoulder |
| On your feet | 2.5 | Mostly seated |
| Talking face to face | 4.7 | Continuous — the job is conversations |
| Working with your hands | 2.9 | Little of the day |
Preparation
How people prepare for this work.
Employers usually ask for a bachelor's degree. Other routes may also lead into the field.
- A four-year degree 88%
- A two-year degree 5%
- A certificate or some college 3%
- A master's degree 3%
Tools of the work
Technology you may use.
- Office suite software
- Data base user interface and query software
- Electronic mail software
- Web page creation and editing software
- Spreadsheet software
- Presentation software
- Word processing software
- Project management software
Opportunity near you
See where this work is growing.
Choose a state to compare the size of the field, annual openings, and expected hiring change.
- People doing this work
- 13,100
- Job openings each year
- 1,010
- Expected hiring change, 2022–2032
- 3.1%
Compare every available state
| State | People doing it | Job openings each year | Expected change |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 13,100 | 1,010 | 3.1% |
| Texas | 7,880 | 640 | 10.1% |
| New York | 7,070 | 120 | 20.9% |
| Pennsylvania | 4,530 | 350 | 3.7% |
| Florida | 3,940 | 290 | — |
| Virginia | 3,550 | 280 | 6.6% |
| North Carolina | 3,370 | 250 | — |
| Illinois | 3,030 | 230 | 3.1% |
| Colorado | 2,960 | 250 | 15.6% |
| Tennessee | 2,850 | 240 | 16.3% |
| Ohio | 2,840 | 220 | 1.8% |
| New Jersey | 2,770 | 210 | — |
| Oregon | 2,480 | 200 | 11.2% |
| Georgia | 2,430 | 190 | 7.0% |
| Washington | 2,260 | 200 | 9.2% |
| Michigan | 2,230 | 170 | −1.8% |
| Missouri | 2,180 | 160 | −1.8% |
| Minnesota | 2,090 | 160 | 5.0% |
| Indiana | 2,070 | 160 | 3.5% |
| Arizona | 1,570 | 120 | 6.1% |
| Wisconsin | 1,260 | 100 | — |
| Maryland | 1,180 | 90 | 6.3% |
| Alabama | 1,130 | 90 | 2.7% |
| Arkansas | 1,010 | 80 | 1.0% |
| Louisiana | 980 | 80 | 3.2% |
| Nevada | 970 | 80 | 4.3% |
| Kentucky | 950 | 70 | 1.1% |
| Iowa | 940 | 70 | 6.8% |
| Oklahoma | 940 | 70 | 2.2% |
| Connecticut | 910 | 70 | 7.1% |
| Utah | 900 | 70 | 8.4% |
| Nebraska | 740 | 60 | 4.2% |
| West Virginia | 740 | 60 | 2.8% |
| Massachusetts | 720 | 60 | 7.5% |
| Kansas | 700 | 50 | 4.5% |
| Idaho | 660 | 50 | 4.8% |
| New Mexico | 620 | 50 | 1.6% |
| Mississippi | 490 | 40 | — |
| Alaska | 440 | 30 | 2.3% |
| Delaware | 400 | 30 | — |
| Montana | 380 | 30 | 5.6% |
| South Dakota | 360 | 30 | — |
| New Hampshire | 230 | 20 | — |
| North Dakota | 220 | 20 | — |
| Vermont | 210 | 20 | 10.5% |
| District of Columbia | 200 | 20 | 17.6% |
| Maine | 180 | 10 | — |
| Wyoming | 170 | 10 | — |
| Guam | 50 | 0 | −16.7% |
Career to college
Build a path toward this work.
Start with a related major, then compare colleges where students complete that field.
Where to study
Colleges with strong activity in these fields.
Start with program size, admission, and likely cost. Open a college for the full picture.
California State University-Los Angeles
- Degrees each year
- 279
- Admit rate
- 92%
- Annual cost after aid
- $5,000
Liberty University
- Degrees each year
- 231
- Admit rate
- 99%
- Annual cost after aid
- $27,000
California State University-Sacramento
- Degrees each year
- 186
- Admit rate
- 94%
- Annual cost after aid
- $9,000
Arizona State University Campus Immersion
- Degrees each year
- 183
- Admit rate
- 90%
- Annual cost after aid
- $17,000
The University of Texas at Arlington
- Degrees each year
- 182
- Admit rate
- 81%
- Annual cost after aid
- $13,000
Aurora University
- Degrees each year
- 175
- Admit rate
- 85%
- Annual cost after aid
- $15,000
Ohio State University-Main Campus
- Degrees each year
- 163
- Admit rate
- 51%
- Annual cost after aid
- $10,000
Florida Atlantic University
- Degrees each year
- 160
- Admit rate
- 73%
- Annual cost after aid
- $8,000