Skills it runs on
The capabilities O*NET rates most important for this occupation — the human ground the work is built on.
See all skills →Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists
Occupation · SOC 21-1092.00
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.
Also called: Correctional Counselor · Juvenile Probation Officer · Parole Officer (PO) · Probation Officer · Adult Probation Officer · Deputy Probation Officer (DPO) · Parole Agent · Probation Agent · Probation Counselor · Probation and Parole Officer · Adult Probation and Parole Officer · Attendance Officer
Job family: Community and Social Service Occupations
Take this to your AI
A source-stamped Markdown brief of this occupation — paste it into an agent, or fetch
/roles/role-21-1092-00/context.md directly.
AI work map
A fast read on where AI already shows up in this occupation, where it stays a copilot, where humans remain in the loop, and what the labor market is doing. Built from observed Claude.ai conversations mapped to O*NET tasks and from published research — measures of usage and exposure, not advice or predictions that the job is going away.
Market signal
Independent published positions, read together — not a forecast.
- About average employment outlook (+2.6% by 2034)
- 7,900 openings/yr
- High AI exposure
- Median pay $64,520/yr
- Can largely be done remotely (teleworkable)
- A reversal from 2013 — rated low automation risk then (37th), high AI task-overlap now (66th)
66th-percentile task overlap — yet about 7,900 openings a year (+2.6% projected, BLS) . What exposure means →
AI & job outlook
What today's research says about this occupation's exposure to AI, how AI is actually being used in it, and where employment is headed. These are positions within published studies — measures of exposure and usage, not predictions that this job will disappear.
Exposure to current AI
Each study uses its own scale, so the raw scores are not comparable across rows — the percentile (this job's rank among all U.S. occupations with data) is the comparable figure, and sizes the bars.
| Measure | Rank vs all occupations | Percentile | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall AI exposure (Felten et al.) Moderate | 61st | 0.5 | |
| LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou) Moderate | 52nd | 0.6 | |
| AI assistant applicability (Microsoft) High | 86th | 0.3 |
OpenAI's exposure study scores tasks three ways: with a language model alone (α 0.2), with simple added tooling (β 0.4), and including AI-powered software (γ 0.6). Higher means more of the job's tasks could be done at least twice as fast — not that they will be automated away.
Most of this job's tasks can be done remotely (Dingel–Neiman), which tends to track with higher digital and AI exposure.
Historical automation estimate (2013)
A pre-LLM (2013) estimate of how automatable this job is by computerization and robotics. Shown for historical context only — it is not part of any current AI ranking.
Frey–Osborne probability 0.3 · 37th percentile among occupations · Moderate
Job outlook
Independent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics employment projection for 2024–2034 — a labor-market forecast, not an AI-impact forecast.
| Outlook | About average · +2.6% by 2034 |
| Projected annual openings | 7,900 |
| Employment 2024 → 2034 | 92,300 → 94,800 |
“Annual openings” counts new jobs plus replacements for workers who leave the occupation, so it can be large even when growth is modest.
Where this work sits on the global GenAI gradient
The ILO's 2025 global study scores generative-AI exposure on the international ISCO-08 occupation system, not US SOC. Bridged through the published (and approximate, many-to-many) IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 crosswalk, this US occupation corresponds to the international occupation below. Exposure here means how much of the work's tasks today's AI can attempt — task overlap, not automation, adoption, or jobs lost.
Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists sits at the 53rd percentile of 427
occupations on the global GenAI task-exposure gradient
— exposure eased from 2023 to 2025. Each dot is one occupation; the
ringed one is this work. Exposure is task overlap, not automation or jobs lost.
28% mean task exposure (2025)
53rd percentile of 427 placed occupations
−1 pts shift 2023 → 2025
| International occupation (ISCO-08) | Task exposure (2025) | Most tasks fall in |
|---|---|---|
| Social Work and Counselling Professionals · 2635 | 28% | Not exposed |
Read the whole six-band gradient on the GenAI exposure gradient page. The crosswalk is approximate: a US occupation can map to several international ones, and the ILO scores describe the international occupation, not this exact US role.
Tasks
All 21 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, ordered by importance. Each links to its own page with AI-exposure and observed-use detail.
- Prepare and maintain case folder for each assigned inmate or offender. Core · importance 4.5
- Gather information about offenders' backgrounds by talking to offenders, their families and friends, and other people who have relevant information. Core · importance 4.4
- Interview probationers and parolees regularly to evaluate their progress in accomplishing goals and maintaining the terms specified in their probation contracts and rehabilitation plans. Core · importance 4.4
- Discuss with offenders how such issues as drug and alcohol abuse and anger management problems might have played roles in their criminal behavior. Core · importance 4.4
- 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. Core · importance 4.4
- Investigate alleged parole violations, using interviews, surveillance, and search and seizure. Core · importance 4.4
- Arrange for medical, mental health, or substance abuse treatment services according to individual needs or court orders. Core · importance 4.3
- Develop liaisons and networks with other parole officers, community agencies, correctional institutions, psychiatric facilities, and aftercare agencies to plan for helping offenders with life adjustments. Core · importance 4.3
- Recommend remedial action or initiate court action in response to noncompliance with terms of probation or parole. Core · importance 4.3
- Administer drug and alcohol tests, including random drug screens of offenders, to verify compliance with substance abuse treatment programs. Core · importance 4.3
- Inform offenders or inmates of requirements of conditional release, such as office visits, restitution payments, or educational and employment stipulations. Core · importance 4.3
- Participate in decisions about whether cases should go before courts and which court should hear them. Core · importance 4.2
- Conduct prehearing and presentencing investigations and testify in court regarding offenders' backgrounds and recommended sentences and sentencing conditions. Core · importance 4.2
- Develop rehabilitation programs for assigned offenders or inmates, establishing rules of conduct, goals, and objectives. Supplemental · importance 4.2
- Write reports describing offenders' progress. Core · importance 4.2
- Arrange for postrelease services, such as employment, housing, counseling, education, and social activities. Core · importance 4.1
- Recommend appropriate penitentiary for initial placement of an offender. Supplemental · importance 4.0
- Assess the suitability of penitentiary inmates for release under parole and statutory release programs and submit recommendations to parole boards. Supplemental · importance 3.7
- Identify and approve work placements for offenders with community service sentences. Supplemental · importance 3.6
- Provide offenders or inmates with assistance in matters concerning detainers, sentences in other jurisdictions, writs, and applications for social assistance. Core · importance 3.5
- Develop and prepare packets containing information about social service agencies, assistance organizations, and programs that might be useful for inmates or offenders. Core · importance 3.4
Work activities
- Maintain client information or service records.
- Write reports or evaluations.
- Explain regulations, policies, or procedures.
- Counsel clients or patients with substance abuse issues.
- Collect information about clients.
- Plan programs to address community mental wellness needs.
- Develop working relationships with others to facilitate program activities.
- Arrange physical or mental health services for clients.
- Help clients get needed services or resources.
- Recommend legal actions.
- Interview clients to gather information about their backgrounds, needs, or progress.
- Evaluate characteristics of individuals to determine needs or eligibility.
- Investigate legal issues.
- Refer individuals to educational or work programs.
- Provide educational materials to community members.
- Administer drug screening tests.
- Monitor health or behavior of people or animals.
- Visit individuals in their homes to provide support or information.
Knowledge, skills & abilities
O*NET importance rating, from 1 (not important) to 5 (extremely important).
Knowledge
Abilities
| Oral Expression | 4.1 | |
| Written Comprehension | 4.0 | |
| Problem Sensitivity | 4.0 | |
| Deductive Reasoning | 4.0 | |
| Oral Comprehension | 3.9 | |
| Inductive Reasoning | 3.9 | |
| Written Expression | 3.8 | |
| Speech Recognition | 3.8 | |
| Speech Clarity | 3.8 | |
| Near Vision | 3.3 | |
| Information Ordering | 3.0 | |
| Category Flexibility | 3.0 | |
| Selective Attention | 3.0 |
Essential skills
| Active Listening | 4.0 | |
| Speaking | 4.0 | |
| Reading Comprehension | 3.9 | |
| Critical Thinking | 3.9 | |
| Writing | 3.8 | |
| Monitoring | 3.8 | |
| Active Learning | 3.4 |
Transferable skills
| Social Perceptiveness | 4.0 | |
| Complex Problem Solving | 3.8 | |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.6 | |
| Time Management | 3.4 | |
| Coordination | 3.1 | |
| Persuasion | 3.1 | |
| Negotiation | 3.1 | |
| Instructing | 3.0 | |
| Service Orientation | 3.0 | |
| Systems Analysis | 2.9 |
Skills in demand
Skills employers ask for in job postings for this occupation (Lightcast), with whether each is a common or specialized skill.
Showing the top 40 of 42.
Tools & technology
Work context
How characteristic each condition is of the job, on O*NET's 1–5 context scale (higher = more present in day-to-day work). Each condition links to how it varies across all occupations.
How to get in
- Job zone
- Zone 4 — Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
- Education
- Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
- Typical entry-level education
- Bachelor's degree · BLS, the typical path — not a requirement
- Related experience
- A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
- Preparation level
- SVP (7.0 to < 8.0) — total schooling plus on-the-job experience.
What to study: Public Administration and Social Service Professions . Fields of study crosswalked to this occupation (NCES CIP–SOC), not a requirement.
Education of current workers
Share of people in this occupation at each level of education.
| Bachelor's Degree | 88.0% | |
| Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 5.3% | |
| Master's Degree | 2.4% | |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 1.7% | |
| Some College Courses | 1.7% | |
| High School Diploma | 0.8% |
Interests & work styles
The interests and personal qualities O*NET associates with people who do this work.
Work styles
| Dependability | 8.0 | |
| Attention to Detail | 7.0 | |
| Integrity | 6.0 | |
| Social Orientation | 5.0 | |
| Self-Control | 4.0 | |
| Stress Tolerance | 3.0 |
Interest areas
| Social Service | 6.3 | |
| Professional Advising | 4.5 | |
| Protective Service | 4.4 | |
| Social Science | 4.2 | |
| Law | 4.0 | |
| Personal Service | 2.9 |
Career interests (Holland / RIASEC)
| Social | 5.6 | |
| Conventional | 4.2 | |
| Enterprising | 3.9 | |
| Investigative | 3.4 |
Wages & employment
U.S. · annual wages (BLS OEWS)
| 10th percentile | $45,390 |
| 25th percentile | $52,580 |
| Median (50th) | $64,520 |
| 75th percentile | $84,030 |
| 90th percentile | $106,290 |
| People employed | 86,820 |
Industries that employ this occupation
Where these workers are employed, by number of jobs (national, BLS OEWS). Pay shown is the occupation's national median, not industry-specific.
| Industry | Workers | National median pay |
|---|---|---|
| Health Care and Social Assistance · Sector | 1,570 | $42,220 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services · Sector | 680 | $54,180 |
| Residential Mental Health and Substance Abuse Facilities · National industry | 170 | $42,480 |
| Other Services (except Public Administration) · Sector | 90 | $46,800 |
Where this work is most concentrated
Industries where this occupation is far more common than in the economy as a whole. The location quotient is how many times more concentrated it is here (a value of 5 means five times its economy-wide share).
| Industry | Concentration | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Residential Mental Health and Substance Abuse Facilities · National industry | 1.17× | 170 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services · Sector | 0.13× | 680 |
| Health Care and Social Assistance · Sector | 0.12× | 1,570 |
Related occupations
Part of the Public Service & Safety career cluster.
- Correctional Officers and Jailers · 33-3012.00 Compare →
- Child, Family, and School Social Workers · 21-1021.00 Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers · 33-1011.00 Compare →
- Rehabilitation Counselors · 21-1015.00 Compare →
- Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers · 21-1023.00 Compare →
- Social and Human Service Assistants · 21-1093.00 Compare →
- Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers · 33-3051.00 Compare →
- Healthcare Social Workers · 21-1022.00 Compare →
- Substance Abuse and Behavioral Disorder Counselors · 21-1011.00 Compare →
- Mental Health Counselors · 21-1014.00 Compare →
- Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors · 21-1012.00 Compare →
- Detectives and Criminal Investigators · 33-3021.00 Compare →
Side-by-side comparisons place two occupations’ pay, preparation, skills, and AI exposure on the same page — same data, same scale, no forecast.
What you can do with this
Options the data surfaces for Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists — not advice or a forecast. Each is a real cross-link you can follow into the evidence.
Skills that travel
Capabilities this work builds that are used across many other occupations.
Adjacent roles
Occupations O*NET rates as related — the nearby moves on the map.
Paths in
How people typically prepare for this work.
- Bachelor's degree · typical entry level
- Job zone 4 — Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed · preparation tier
- Public Administration and Social Service Professions · field of study
Zoom out
On the global GenAI exposure gradient this work sits around the 53rd percentile of 427 international occupations.
Write a report on thisheadline · factoids · citation
Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists show 66th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 7,900 annual U.S. openings
- Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists rank in the 66th percentile (Moderate band) for AI task overlap across U.S. occupations — a measure of how much of the work today's AI can attempt, not how much is automated.Eloundou et al. (GPTs are GPTs) + Felten AIOE
- The occupation is projected to see about 7,900 U.S. job openings per year (2024–34), counting growth and replacement — a labor-demand projection made independently of AI.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
- BLS projects employment to be about average (+2.6%) from 2024 to 2034.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
- Median annual pay is $64,520, across about 86,820 U.S. workers.BLS OEWS (May 2024)
Copy the whole kit
Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists show 66th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 7,900 annual U.S. openings • Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists rank in the 66th percentile (Moderate band) for AI task overlap across U.S. occupations — a measure of how much of the work today's AI can attempt, not how much is automated. (Eloundou et al. (GPTs are GPTs) + Felten AIOE) • The occupation is projected to see about 7,900 U.S. job openings per year (2024–34), counting growth and replacement — a labor-demand projection made independently of AI. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34) • BLS projects employment to be about average (+2.6%) from 2024 to 2034. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34) • Median annual pay is $64,520, across about 86,820 U.S. workers. (BLS OEWS (May 2024)) Source: Singulariki — "Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists". https://singulariki.com/roles/role-21-1092-00 Note: AI task overlap measures what today's AI can attempt, not automation, job loss, or a forecast.
AssetsShare imageMethodology & sourcesPress & newsroomThe newsroom
Every line is built only from figures this page already shows and cites. AI task overlap means what today's AI can attempt — not automation, job loss, or a forecast.
Sources for this page
Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.
- O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai Microsoft Research
- “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic
- AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans academic
- ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025 International Labour Organization
- IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022 Institute for Structural Research (IBS)
- Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation academic
- Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome academic
Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.
Cite this page
Plain
Singulariki. "Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/roles/role-21-1092-00
APA
Singulariki. (2026). Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/roles/role-21-1092-00
BibTeX
@misc{singulariki-role-21-1092-00,
title = {Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists},
author = {{Singulariki}},
year = {2026},
note = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026},
url = {https://singulariki.com/roles/role-21-1092-00}
} Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.