How to hire psychiatrists

Job description template

Copy it, fill in the brackets, and remove anything that does not fit your job. Keep only must-haves you would really turn someone away for.

[Job title] at [Company name]
[City, State] · [Full-time / Part-time] · [Pay range]

About the role
[Two or three sentences about your team, the work and why it matters.]

What you will do
• Advise or inform guardians, relatives, or significant others of patients' conditions or treatment.
• Analyze and evaluate patient data or test findings to diagnose nature or extent of mental disorder.
• Collaborate with physicians, psychologists, social workers, psychiatric nurses, or other professionals to discuss treatment plans and progress.
• Counsel outpatients or other patients during office visits.
• Design individualized care plans, using a variety of treatments.
• Examine or conduct laboratory or diagnostic tests on patients to provide information on general physical condition or mental disorder.
• Gather and maintain patient information and records, including social or medical history obtained from patients, relatives, or other professionals.
• Prescribe, direct, or administer psychotherapeutic treatments or medications to treat mental, emotional, or behavioral disorders.

What you bring
• [Required license, certification or years of experience, if any]
• [Education, only if you truly need it. Typical to start in this job: Doctoral or professional degree]
• Strong active listening, critical thinking, speaking, monitoring, reading comprehension and writing skills
• Working knowledge of medicine and dentistry, therapy and counseling, psychology and biology
• [Anything else you would really turn someone away for]

Pay and benefits
[Pay range]. For reference, the U.S. median for this job is $135.51 an hour ($281,870 a year).
[Benefits, schedule and anything else candidates should know.]

How to apply
[Apply on JAI Bot. Every applicant hears back.]

Copy the template Check your finished job post

Interview questions for psychiatrists

Ask every candidate the same questions, in the same order, and write down what they say. Questions about past work show what someone has actually done.

1. Tell me about a time you had to advise or inform guardians, relatives, or significant others of patients' conditions or treatment. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
2. Tell me about a time you had to analyze and evaluate patient data or test findings to diagnose nature or extent of mental disorder. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
3. Tell me about a time you had to collaborate with physicians, psychologists, social workers, psychiatric nurses, or other professionals to discuss treatment plans and progress. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
4. Tell me about a time you had to counsel outpatients or other patients during office visits. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
5. Tell me about a time you had to understand a request or problem that was explained poorly. How did you make sure you got it right?
6. Describe a decision at work where the obvious answer was wrong. How did you work out the better choice?
7. Explain something technical from your last job as you would to a new coworker.
8. Why this job, and why now? What would make you stay here for the long term?

Good answers name a real situation, what the person did themselves and what happened. Avoid questions about age, family plans, religion, health, national origin or anything else unrelated to the job.

What psychiatrists do

• Advise or inform guardians, relatives, or significant others of patients' conditions or treatment.
• Analyze and evaluate patient data or test findings to diagnose nature or extent of mental disorder.
• Collaborate with physicians, psychologists, social workers, psychiatric nurses, or other professionals to discuss treatment plans and progress.
• Counsel outpatients or other patients during office visits.
• Design individualized care plans, using a variety of treatments.
• Examine or conduct laboratory or diagnostic tests on patients to provide information on general physical condition or mental disorder.
• Gather and maintain patient information and records, including social or medical history obtained from patients, relatives, or other professionals.
• Prescribe, direct, or administer psychotherapeutic treatments or medications to treat mental, emotional, or behavioral disorders.

Skills that matter most

Active ListeningCritical ThinkingSpeakingMonitoringReading ComprehensionWritingMedicine and DentistryTherapy and CounselingPsychologyBiology

Education, experience and outlook for psychiatrists

• Typical education to start: Doctoral or professional degree (BLS)
• Related work experience most have: 4 to 6 years (O*NET)
• Training on the job: Internship/residency (BLS)
• Job outlook: +7.2% over ten years, faster than average · about 900 openings a year (BLS)

What to pay psychiatrists

Pay depends a lot on where the job is. Highest and lowest median yearly pay by state:

See psychiatrists pay in every state

Related hiring guides

• Pediatricians, General
• Neurologists
• Registered Nurses
• Family Medicine Physicians
• General Internal Medicine Physicians
• Pediatric Surgeons
• Psychologists, All Other
• Clinical and Counseling Psychologists
• Emergency Medicine Physicians
• Nurse Practitioners

Job duties and skills: O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license; O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. JAI Bot has modified this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. Pay: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, May 2025. Interview questions and the job description template: JAI Bot, based on the duties and skills above.