Social work and counselling

How to become a probation officer

Official title: Probation officer

Also called: Parole officer, Community corrections officer, Corrections officer, Parole board member, Periodic detention officer, Probation worker

Probation officers supervise offenders serving community sentences. They help people released from prison to find work and education opportunities and other support.

Main tasks

Help people released from prison re-enter society
Find educational and work opportunities for people
Supervise offenders doing community service
Monitor people’s health and behaviour
Counsel people with substance abuse issues
Arrange physical and mental health support services
Collect client information
Maintain records

How to become one

You need to do training to become a probation officer and a qualification may be useful. You usually need NCEA Level 3 to do the study or training for this job. Required: a driver licence; to pass a police check. Other requirements: a relevant tertiary qualification in psychology studies, society and culture studies, human society, human welfare or similar area.

See the full Tahatū profile

Ways in

Apprenticeship: Apprenticeship in community client care. TEC links this job to study in human welfare. New Zealand apprenticeship (NZQA level 4). Qualifications: NZ Cert in Health and Wellbeing, NZ Cert in Health and Wellbeing (Social and Community Services). Usually 1 to 1.5 years. Graduates of these qualifications earn a median $61,000 a year one year after study; 80% are employed one year after (TEC, from Stats NZ IDI data).
Certificates and diplomas: Advanced certificates and diplomas in other human society. TEC links this job to study in human society. Qualifications: NZ Dip in Psychology, Cert in Arts, Dip in Arts. Usually 9 months to 1 year. Graduates of these qualifications earn a median $46,000 a year one year after study and $54,000 five years after; 56% are employed one year after (TEC, from Stats NZ IDI data).; Advanced certificates and diplomas in other human welfare and services. TEC links this job to study in human welfare. Qualifications: NZ Dip in Health and Wellbeing (Practice/Applied Practice), NZ Dip in Whānau Ora, NZ Dip in Health and Wellbeing (Applied Practice). Usually 1 year. Graduates of these qualifications earn a median $59,000 a year one year after study; 81% are employed one year after (TEC, from Stats NZ IDI data).; Advanced certificates and diplomas in other society and culture. TEC links this job to study in other society and culture studies. Qualifications: Dip in Global Studies. Usually 1 year. Graduates of these qualifications earn a median $49,000 a year one year after study; 64% are employed one year after (TEC, from Stats NZ IDI data).; Advanced certificates and diplomas in psychology. TEC links this job to study in psychology studies. Qualifications: NZ Dip in Psychology. Usually 6 months to 1 year. Graduates of these qualifications earn a median $45,000 a year one year after study and $49,000 five years after; 44% are employed one year after (TEC, from Stats NZ IDI data).

Pay · Past change · AI and this job

Most common pay: $68,746 to $77,521 a year (median $73,134), a TEC estimate before tax.
Lower: $64,359 a year · Upper: $81,909 a year
TEC's pay figures are estimates only. TEC says they must not be used to set pay, in pay negotiations or in visa applications.
Change in the number of people doing this job between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses: Increase (TEC). This is past change, not a forecast.
People employed in the group Welfare Support Workers: 18,930 at the 2018 Census and 25,956 at the 2023 Census (+37.1%). Past change, not a forecast.
Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Who does this work

About 1,400 people did this job at the 2023 Census (TEC).
In the group Welfare Support Workers, 70% of workers are female (sex at birth, 2023 Census).
Where people in the group Welfare Support Workers work (2023 Census): Auckland 24.6%, Canterbury 14.9%, and Waikato 11%.

Questions people ask

How do I become a probation officer?

How much does a probation officer earn in New Zealand?

The Tertiary Education Commission estimates median pay at $73,134 a year, before tax. Most common pay is $68,746 to $77,521 a year.

Has the number of people working as a probation officer grown in New Zealand?

It has grown: TEC records an increase in the number of people doing this job between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses. This is past change, not a forecast.

Will AI change the work of a probation officer?

Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

Tertiary Education Commission (Tahatu Career Navigator): Tahatu career ideas: descriptions, tasks, pay estimates, people employed, employment change 2018 to 2023, entry requirements, registration, interest scores (Site scrape 2026-10 (816 career ideas, sitemap lastmod 2026-10-01)), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
Stats NZ (via Figure.NZ): Census totals by topic for individuals 2013, 2018, 2023 (CEN23_TBT_004): employed by occupation, ANZSCO V1.3, summed to unit group (2023 Census (CEN23_TBT_004)), CC BY 4.0 (Stats NZ), CC BY 3.0 NZ (Figure.NZ), retrieved 4 October 2026
Stats NZ (via Figure.NZ): Census 2023: employed by regional council, occupation (ANZSCO V1.3 unit group) and sex at birth (2023 Census), CC BY 4.0 (Stats NZ), CC BY 3.0 NZ (Figure.NZ), retrieved 4 October 2026
International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026

This content is sourced from the Tertiary Education Commission through the Tahatū Career Navigator website (www.tahatu.govt.nz) and used under the CC BY 4.0 licence. All or some of the information has been modified by Peernovo. TEC has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications. TEC will not be held accountable for any errors within this content.

Qualification information from NZQA, used under CC BY 3.0 NZ.

This work is based on/includes Stats NZ's data which are licensed by Stats NZ for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence. Census data via Figure.NZ.

Includes information from O*NET OnLine 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. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

Sources: Tertiary Education Commission, Tahatū Career Navigator (career ideas, pay estimates, entry requirements and study options, CC BY 4.0, modified by Peernovo); Stats NZ, 2023 Census (via Figure.NZ) and the National Occupation List (CC BY 4.0); NZQA qualification information (CC BY 3.0 NZ); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Links between career ideas and ANZSCO groups, degree fields and broad job groups are Peernovo's.

These results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.

Graduate outcomes: these results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.

Updated 4 October 2026