Career
Psychiatric technicians
Care for patients with mental illness in hospitals and clinics.
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Provide nursing, psychiatric, or personal care to patients with cognitive, intellectual, or developmental disabilities.
- Encourage patients to develop work skills and to participate in social, recreational, or other therapeutic activities that enhance interpersonal skills or develop social relationships.
- Restrain violent, potentially violent, or suicidal patients by verbal or physical means as required.
- Lead prescribed individual or group therapy sessions as part of specific therapeutic procedures.
- Monitor patients' physical and emotional well-being and report unusual behavior or physical ailments to medical staff.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on people & care, then ideas & analysis?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Provide nursing, psychiatric, or personal care to patients with cognitive, intellectual, or developmental disabilities.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Social Perceptiveness, Monitoring, Active Listening, Speaking.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
Under 2 years of education after high school (postsecondary nondegree award), for a median of $45,130 a year and 17,000 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Psychiatric/Mental Health Services TechnicianCIP 51.1502
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Psychiatric Aides$44,910 · +1.9%
- Physical Therapist Assistants$68,380 · +23.0%
- Occupational Therapy Aides$39,160 · +3.6%
- Physical Therapist Aides$35,240 · +4.0%
- Occupational Therapy Assistants$72,300 · +21.5%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.