Community Health Workers build social perceptiveness, service orientation and instructing skills that carry over to other work. Below are 25 careers ranked by how closely their skills match, with pay from BLS May 2025. The closest match is Patient Representatives (89%).
Updated October 2026 · Data: O*NET 31.0 and BLS OEWS May 2025 · How we match careers
Sorted by skill match.
| # | Career | Skill match | Median pay | Pay change | Extra education |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Patient Representatives | 89% | $50,290Pay for the broader BLS group “Health Technologists and Technicians, All Other” | Not compared | None |
| 2 | Social and Community Service Managers | 82% | $80,390 | +55% | None |
| 3 | Special Education Teachers, Secondary School | 80% | $74,260 | +43% | None |
| 4 | Clinical Nurse Specialists | 80% | $97,550Pay for the broader BLS group “Registered Nurses” | Not compared | Graduate degree |
| 5 | Psychiatric Technicians | 79% | $45,130 | −13% | None |
| 6 | Recreational Therapists | 79% | $61,960 | +19% | None |
| 7 | Special Education Teachers, Preschool | 78% | $64,830 | +25% | None |
| 8 | Directors, Religious Activities and Education | 77% | $52,100 | 0% | None |
| 9 | Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education | 76% | $72,040 | +39% | None |
| 10 | Midwives | 76% | $65,790Pay for the broader BLS group “Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Workers, All Other” | Not compared | Graduate degree |
Compared with Community Health Workers, median $51,850. Skill match is our estimate (0–99) from O*NET 31.0 skills, knowledge, work activities and interests, adjusted for preparation and big pay drops. Pay: BLS OEWS May 2025, national median.
How important each skill is in work as community health workers (O*NET importance, scale 1–5).
The gaps that show up most often across your top 10 matches.
Free and low-cost training: use the CareerOneStop training finder below.
A concrete first step, the skills to add, and the hard parts of each job, from O*NET 31.0 education, training and work context data.
89% skill match · $50,290 (broader BLS group)
Programming · Technology Design · Management of Financial Resources
82% skill match · $80,390 · +55% pay
Operations Analysis · Management of Financial Resources · Management of Material Resources
80% skill match · $74,260 · +43% pay
Technology Design · Time Management · Operations Analysis
If you want to stay close to what you do now, these roles are the nearest.
The closest matches are Patient Representatives (89% skill match, median $50,290), Social and Community Service Managers (82% skill match, median $80,390) and Special Education Teachers, Secondary School (80% skill match, median $74,260), based on O*NET 31.0 data and BLS May 2025 pay.
Among the 25 matches, 15 pay more than community health workers at the median. The biggest increases: Registered Nurses (+88%, $97,550), Social and Community Service Managers (+55%, $80,390) and Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary (+55%, $80,250).
20 of the 25 matches usually need no more education than you have now, based on O*NET Job Zones. 5 usually need a graduate degree: Clinical Nurse Specialists, Midwives and Dietitians and Nutritionists.
We compare the importance of skills, knowledge, work activities and interests in O*NET 31.0 for your job and every other career, then adjust for extra preparation and big pay drops. The full method is on our Methodology page.