Recreational therapists
SOC Code: 29-1125
Recreational therapists carries a 26% AI exposure score (Medium automation risk), with a median annual wage of $60,280 and +3.3% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 16,100 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 26% AI exposure, Recreational therapists sits 11 points below the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 17% of them. Most of its core tasks still require human judgment.
Career outlook score
63/100
Recreational therapists, weighted across 3 of 3 tracked dimensions
A weighted composite of median wage, projected growth, and AI-automation security (inverted exposure), each benchmarked against every other tracked occupation. It describes this occupation's standing across those three dimensions, not a guarantee of future outcomes.
- Median wage C- $60,280
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth C +3.3%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) A- 26% exposure
Lower O*NET task-automability scores lower risk; this dimension scores security, not exposure
Home health and personal care aides is #1 of 832 occupations by employment (4.3M, AI exposure rank #392 at 35%) vs. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks #1 by AI task exposure (95%, employment rank #17 at 1.6M).
Automation-risk inventory
Exclusive cut of 832 occupations by PlainWorkforce automation-risk band. Orthogonal to the continuous AI-exposure distribution chart below and to this occupation's single risk badge, this is the corpus band mix, with Recreational therapists in the Medium band.
Credential × growth standing
Bachelor's band with mid-pack BLS pace
Recreational therapists shares the Bachelor's gate with 178 peer occupations and lands in Average (378 of 832). Neither the rarest nor the most crowded growth shelf - use wage and AI desks on this page for the differentiator.
Where Recreational therapists sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Recreational therapists sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
26% Among the lowest lower than 83% of 832 occupations
Occupations, banded by AI-exposure score
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more occupations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor) · BLS 2024–2034
Source: O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor); AI-exposure scores are PlainWorkforce's analysis. As of BLS 2024–2034.
Recreational therapists vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Recreational therapists is marked in rose; the top-left corner is the most future-proof.
Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 (growth) and O*NET (AI-exposure analysis by PlainWorkforce).
Employment Projections
Where This Score Comes From
Recreational therapists's Medium automation-risk tier is computed from O*NET Database 30.0 task-level analysis, where each documented task the occupation performs is evaluated against current generative AI, robotic process automation, and machine-learning capabilities. A score below 40% reflects tasks anchored in physical dexterity, unstructured environments, or high-touch human interaction that current AI cannot reliably replicate.
The employment, wage, and education figures above come from a second, separate federal source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, matched to the O*NET task data by Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 29-1125) code, with the wage figure cross-validated against the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 survey. BLS figures are presented exactly as published, with no adjustment on our part; the SOC-code match is what lets Recreational therapists be compared directly against every other tracked occupation on the same basis, not just roles that happen to share a job title.
For career planners, this profile should be read alongside the task, skill, and knowledge breakdowns below and the list of employers whose workforce composition includes Recreational therapists. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Instruct patient in activities and techniques, such as sports, dance, music, art, or relaxation techniques, designed to meet their specific physical or psychological needs.
- 2. Conduct therapy sessions to improve patients' mental and physical well-being.
- 3. Plan, organize, direct, and participate in treatment programs and activities to facilitate patients' rehabilitation, help them integrate into the community, and prevent further medical problems.
- 4. Observe, analyze, and record patients' participation, reactions, and progress during treatment sessions, modifying treatment programs as needed.
- 5. Develop treatment plan to meet needs of patient, based on needs assessment, patient interests, and objectives of therapy.
- 6. Obtain information from medical records, medical staff, family members and the patients, themselves, to assess patients' capabilities, needs and interests.
- 7. Confer with members of treatment team to plan and evaluate therapy programs.
- 8. Counsel and encourage patients to develop leisure activities.
- 9. Encourage clients with special needs and circumstances to acquire new skills and get involved in health-promoting leisure activities, such as sports, games, arts and crafts, and gardening.
- 10. Prepare and submit reports and charts to treatment team to reflect patients' reactions and evidence of progress or regression.
Key Skills Required
- Service Orientation
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Social Perceptiveness
- Coordination
- Reading Comprehension
- Writing
- Critical Thinking
- Instructing
- Complex Problem Solving
Knowledge Areas
- Psychology
- Therapy and Counseling
- Customer and Personal Service
- Education and Training
- English Language
- Sociology and Anthropology
- Administration and Management
- Medicine and Dentistry
- Public Safety and Security
- Administrative
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Recreational therapists?
Recreational therapists has an AI exposure score of 26%, indicating a medium level of automation risk. The majority of tasks in this role require human judgment, creativity, or physical presence that AI cannot easily replicate.
What is the job outlook for Recreational therapists?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Recreational therapists is projected to grow by 3.3% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 16,100 workers.
What skills are needed for Recreational therapists?
Key skills for Recreational therapists include Service Orientation, Active Listening, Speaking, and others. Typical entry-level education is Bachelor's degree.
How much do Recreational therapists earn?
The median annual wage for Recreational therapists is $60,280, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024). Actual earnings vary by location, experience, industry, and employer. The BLS publishes detailed wage percentiles by region in its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program.
What education is required for Recreational therapists?
The typical entry-level education for Recreational therapists is Bachelor's degree. Employers generally expect None of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves None. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ Recreational therapists?
Recreational therapists roles exist across many industries and employers. Workforce composition is estimated from BLS industry-occupation employment distributions matched to SEC-registered public companies.
AI Exposure Rating
Medium automation risk based on 10 analyzed tasks. Most tasks require human judgment and are resistant to automation.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for Recreational therapists: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (26% here).
- Agricultural sciences teachers, postsecondary · AI exposure 26%
- Architectural and engineering managers · AI exposure 26%
- Art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary · AI exposure 26%
- Athletic trainers · AI exposure 26%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (+3.3% here).
- Audio and video technicians · growth +3.3%
- Chemical equipment operators and tenders · growth +3.3%
- Credit counselors · growth +3.3%
- General internal medicine physicians · growth +3.3%
Peers are nearest-neighbor matches on published BLS + O*NET metrics among occupations with ≥10,000 workers in 2024; corpus ranks above sort the full tracked set.
Related Occupations
Showing 6 of 45 occupations with a comparable automation-risk profile.
What to do with this
Use Recreational therapists' numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Recreational therapists side by side against another occupation on wage, growth, and AI exposure. Workforce comparison tool
- Understand how the AI exposure score above is actually calculated before treating it as a verdict. Reading AI exposure scores
- See the full ranked list of occupations with the lowest automation exposure nationwide. Safest occupations from AI
AI exposure scores estimate task automatability from O*NET data; they are not a certainty of job loss, and BLS growth projections are estimates, not guarantees.
Data sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2024–2034 and O*NET Database 30.0. Employment figures are rounded. Wage data from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics (OES).