Office and Administrative Support · Holland code CSE

Eligibility Interviewers, Government Programs

Determine eligibility of persons applying to receive assistance from government programs and agency resources, such as welfare, unemployment benefits, social security, and public housing.

Also called: Eligibility Specialist, Eligibility Worker, Social Welfare Examiner (SWEX), Workforce Services Representative (WSR), Benefits Program Tech (Benefits Program Technician), Business and Employment Specialist, Case Manager, Eligibility Examiner.

O*NET 43-4061.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $54,210; Middle half earn $45,910 to $63,610. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Most common education: High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED); 26% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 3 of 5; Medium preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

Compute and authorize amounts of assistance for programs, such as grants, monetary payments, and food stamps.
Keep records of assigned cases, and prepare required reports.
Compile, record, and evaluate personal and financial data to verify completeness and accuracy, and to determine eligibility status.
Interview and investigate applicants for public assistance to gather information pertinent to their applications.
Interview benefits recipients at specified intervals to certify their eligibility for continuing benefits.
Interpret and explain information such as eligibility requirements, application details, payment methods, and applicants' legal rights.
Initiate procedures to grant, modify, deny, or terminate assistance, or refer applicants to other agencies for assistance.
Check with employers or other references to verify answers and obtain further information.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Speaking4.3 / 5
Active Listening4.0 / 5
Reading Comprehension3.9 / 5
Writing3.8 / 5
Critical Thinking3.5 / 5
Active Learning3.1 / 5

Knowledge areas

Customer and Personal Service4.9 / 5
English Language4.4 / 5
Administration and Management3.8 / 5
Administrative3.8 / 5
Personnel and Human Resources3.5 / 5
Education and Training3.4 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic0
Investigative24
Artistic0
Social58
Enterprising49
Conventional89

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

social security administrator · DE Beauftragter für die soziale Sicherheit/Beauftragte für die soziale Sicherheit · FR administrateur sécurité sociale/administratrice sécurité sociale
social service consultant · DE Berater im Bereich Sozialwesen/Beraterin im Bereich Sozialwesen · FR consultant en action sociale/consultante en action sociale
benefits advice worker · DE Sozialfürsorger/Sozialfürsorgerin · FR conseiller en économie sociale et familiale/conseillère en économie sociale et familiale
migrant social worker · DE Sozialarbeiter im Bereich Migration/Sozialarbeiterin im Bereich Migration · FR médiateur social auprès des populations « migrants »/médiatrice sociale auprès des populations « migrants »
immigration officer · DE Grenzschutzbeamter/Grenzschutzbeamtin · FR policier aux frontières/policière aux frontières
tax compliance officer · DE Finanzbeamter für Steuererhebung/Finanzbeamtin für Steuererhebung · FR contrôleur des impôts/contrôleuse des impôts

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Social workers (2461)139,800 employed
Probation officers (2462)11,900 employed
Youth work professionals (2464)10,200 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Technicians and associate professionals”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Technicians and associate professionals, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€50,992
Austria	€46,986
Germany	€44,473
Netherlands	€42,448
Ireland	€41,613
Sweden	€41,155
Italy	€34,882
France	€34,816
Spain	€29,757
Portugal	€18,080
Poland	€12,108

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the higher third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of +1.23. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (43-4061).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

Take the career interests test