Taking a look into: A career in ABA

When first exploring the field of ABA, some of us lack knowledge of what ABA is or the significance it holds in our families’ lives. To be honest, I had never heard of ABA before beginning my career and was initially, simply looking for a job to fill up my time between my college classes. Little did I know how much of an impact ABA would have on my life when I began with BTL in ABA! The field of ABA is full of possibilities, growth, and lifelong learning. If you are finding yourself interested in a career in ABA, keep reading to learn about the different options available for you!

First things first, what is ABA?

ABA is short for Applied Behavior Analysis. It is a scientific and evidence based method in the quest to understand human behavior and promote positive behavioral growth. Collectively as BCBAs (Board Certified Behavior Analyst), BCaBAs (Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analyst), and RBTs (Registered Behavior Technician), we work as a group to increase socially significant behaviors and decrease those behaviors that inhibit or interferes with an individual’s life.

In other words, we get to spend our days with amazing kiddos and adults and help them to learn new behaviors and skills needed to grow within their communities and world at large!

If you want a further description of the practices of ABA, check out our post ABA Overview

Ask yourself these questions:

Do you enjoy working with children, teens, and adults?

Is problem solving and figuring out the “why’s” and “how’s” fun for you?

How about a flexible schedule?

Do you want to do work that is meaningful to yourself and others?

Enjoy doing something different every day?

If you answered “yes” to most of these questions, then you may want to keep reading about a career in ABA! Since you might be interested in the field of ABA, it is important to understand the different paths you may take. Here at BTL we have different positions that help us work as a team to create each behavior change program!

OUR BTL TEAM

The RBT

The RBT or the Registered Behavior Technician are our front line, enthusiastic and compassionate team members. They are the players on our team that keep the behavior change game going! We would not be able to have our 1:1 model of care without RBTs. A Registered Behavior Technician works 1:1 with our patients and implements programs which result in behavioral growth. An RBT’s day consists of different sessions with individuals on the Autism Spectrum, or other developmental delays. During these sessions, an RBT may find themselves playing a game of UNO to work on social skills, working through table work tasks, playing blocks to help their learner increase their daily language, pushing a cart alongside out in the community to teach functional shopping skills, or any number of activities or settings! The RBT is responsible for:

Collecting Data
Implementing programs written by a consultant
Monitoring the learner’s progress and helping the learner grow within their written program
Creating a positive learning environment for the learner
Having meaningful and intentional fun WITH our learners!

The PM

Our PMs are our Program Managers. A program manager is an RBT that has seasoned experience within ABA and is ready to take on additional roles with their RBT status. Think of this position as your team captain. They are there to help the team run as smoothly as possible. A program manager completes the same duties as an RBT as well as assumes additional responsibilities on a patient’s treatment team. With oversight from the patient’s consultant, a PM may be helping to:

develop new targets and goals to work on
train novel RBTs on a program
help create program materials as instructed by their consultant
cultivate their clinical skill set towards becoming a consultant in the future

The BCaBA

Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analyst’s are working collaboratively with the team to develop a positive behavior change program. In other words, think of the BCaBA as a coordinator. Our BCaBA’s bring so much to the table when it comes to assessing, administering, directing, and developing a patient’s treatment needs, team and training. Our BCaBA’s are under the direct supervision of a BCBA. You can find a BCaBA:

working directly with patients
completing assessments to identify a learner’s skill set
assisting in writing different programs for patients
reviewing and analyzing data
assisting with behavior intervention strategies
assessing our team’s delivery of care to ensure it is impacting each patient in a positive, intentional way!

The BCBA

Our BCBA’s are our Board Certified Behavior Analysts. The BCBA is the person responsible for assessing, administering, directing, and coordinating all aspects of a patient’s treatment needs, team and training. Think of the BCBA as the “playmaker”. The BCBA is observing sessions, analyzing data, completing research, and working with the entire team. As a result, they’re finding opportunities to increase socially significant behaviors and decrease those behaviors that may inhibit an individual in their lives. Our BCBAs work to use the applications and scientific practices of ABA to understand human behavior and guide a behavior change program. A BCBA’s duties include:

working directly with patients
researching, choosing and completing assessments to identify a learner’s skill set
designing and establishing different programs for patients
observing sessions, reviewing, and analyzing data
creating behavior intervention strategies
ensuring our compassionate care model is being achieved with each patient’s best interest at heart!

Regardless of the different “labels” with each position, BTL goes beyond each label to create a team for every individualized treatment plan. Just as any other team works, no team is successful without its players, captains, and coaching staff!

If you are interested in being a part of Team BTL, let us know! You can find an application at https://www.btlautism.com/career-opportunities/ or contact us for more information!