Working as a Child Protective Specialist is a great opportunity if you are a recent college graduate or a seasoned professional. Extensive training, coaching and professional development is available.
A career path includes advancement to supervisory and managerial positions. We offer a robust benefits package and support continuing education through a number of scholarship opportunities.
- What It Means to Be a Child Protective Specialist
- Required Qualifications
- Frequently Asked Questions About Being a CPS
- Salary
- Apply
What It Means to Be a Child Protective Specialist
Child Protective Specialists (CPS) respond directly to reports of child abuse and/or neglect. Using investigatory and social work skills, they engage and partner with families and community resources to ensure the safety and well-being of children throughout New York City.
As a CPS you will:
- Complete field visits to investigate allegations of abuse and/or neglect.
- Engage in a strength-based approach with families in order to assess their individual and collective strengths and needs.
- Interview family members and others who interact with the family to assess child safety and well-being.
- Assess the risk of future abuse or neglect of children in the family.
- Coordinate a team of family members, staff and service providers to evaluate the safety and identify interventions that can reduce risks to children.
- Remove child(ren) into protective custody or foster care, when children are found to be in imminent danger.
- Enter and maintain accurate and timely computerized records of all case information.
- Help families navigate government agencies and access entitlement benefits.
- File petitions and testify in family court and other legal proceedings as necessary.
Required Qualifications
- A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college, in a specified discipline.
- Twenty-four-semester credits in any combination of the following fields: social work, psychology, sociology, human services, criminal justice, education (including early childhood), nursing or cultural anthropology.
- At least 12 credits must be in one of these disciplines.
- Candidates must demonstrate English language proficiency and basic typing skill.
- All candidates must successfully complete a comprehensive drug screening.
Candidates who speak and/or write in the following languages are encouraged to apply:
Spanish, Russian, Albanian, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, French, Haitian Creole, Korean, Polish, Urdu, and African languages.
New York City residency is NOT required.
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