All careers

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.

What you’d do

  • 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.
  • Recommend remedial action or initiate court action in response to noncompliance with terms of probation or parole.
  • Arrange for medical, mental health, or substance abuse treatment services according to individual needs or court orders.

Skills that matter

  • Active Listening
  • Social Perceptiveness
  • Speaking
  • Critical Thinking
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Complex Problem Solving

How to get there

Considerable preparation: most need a four-year bachelor's degree

Also called

  • Correctional Counselor
  • Juvenile Probation Officer
  • Parole Officer (PO)
  • Probation Officer
  • Adult Probation Officer
  • Deputy Probation Officer (DPO)

Related careers

See all careers

  • Correctional Officers and Jailers

    Guard inmates in penal or rehabilitative institutions in accordance with established regulations and procedures.

    Little to some preparation: usually a high school diploma or GED, though some jobs do not need one

  • Child, Family, and School Social Workers

    Provide social services and assistance to improve the social and psychological functioning of children and their families and to maximize…

    Considerable preparation: most need a four-year bachelor's degree

  • First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers

    Directly supervise and coordinate activities of correctional officers and jailers.

    Medium preparation: usually vocational school, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree

  • Rehabilitation Counselors

    Counsel individuals to maximize the independence and employability of persons coping with personal, social, and vocational difficulties…

    Extensive preparation: most need graduate school, such as a master's degree or higher

  • Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers

    • Bright Outlook
    • Rapid Growth

    Assess and treat individuals with mental, emotional, or substance abuse problems, including abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and/or other drugs.

    Extensive preparation: most need graduate school, such as a master's degree or higher

  • Social and Human Service Assistants

    • Bright Outlook
    • Rapid Growth

    Assist other social and human service providers in providing client services in a wide variety of fields, such as psychology…

    Considerable preparation: most need a four-year bachelor's degree