Follow Your Heart to a Caring Career

Find your fit in health care employment that makes a real difference in the lives of others

Begin an in-demand career path with great growth potential and no training beyond high school required to start in many positions.

Meet employers who want to hire you now! Search "CaringCareerMN" in our statewide listing of job fairs and other hiring events.

Employers pay for your initial training in many cases – and they may also pay for future training to help you grow in your career and earn more money.
Many employers welcome employees who are learning English. Plus, you do not need experience working in health care to start many entry-level positions – and many skills you earned in other fields transfer to health care. You can start working right away.
Talk with employers to see how they can work with you on child care, transportation, scheduling, language training and more – employers want to work with you.

Read about fellow Minnesotans who have followed their heart to a Caring Career.

Start making a difference in the lives of others today – find your fit in a Caring Career!

There are many types of Caring Careers

View the many job opportunities below where you can support children and adults with disabilities, older adults or people with mental health care needs. The downloadable resources below are available in multiple languages. All of this content is brought to you by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) along with the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) and workforce development professionals statewide.

Supporting people in their homes and in their communities

These caring professionals support people in their own homes and help them be a part of their local communities, and sometimes provide respite for family or friend caregivers. This type of work is available through businesses and nonprofits, and in other situations many people work directly for the person who needs care. You might enjoy this work if you prefer to work one on one with a person you can get to know well. While there are many titles for these jobs, some common examples are Direct Support Professionals, Personal Care Aides, Home Health Aides, Early Intervention Providers, Personal Care Assistants, Positive Support Services Specialists, Individualized Home Support (IHS) Specialist and more.

Download an informational sheet about what Direct Support Professionals do, and how to become one - available in multiple languages

Download an informational sheet about what Personal Care Aides do, and how to become one - available in multiple languages

Download an informational sheet about supporting a person in an individual home or in the community

To apply for jobs like this:

Talk with staff at a CareerForce near you about employment opportunities
Search thousands of Minnesota job postings that are updated nightly here on CareerForceMN.com
View current job postings in Minnesota for Direct Support Professionals - only 500 postings are displayed, but there are more openings - you can narrow the search based on your home location and change the search focus by using other keywords, using other similar job titles for Direct Support Professionals listed above
Find a match with someone looking for care at DirectSupportConnect.com
Search for open positions on the ARRM job board

Supporting people in group homes and in their communities

These caring professionals support people in group homes managed by licensed service providers, and help people be a part of their local communities. You might be well suited for this work if you enjoy working with small groups, coordinating activities and helping people maintain warm and inviting homes. While there are many titles for these jobs, some common examples are Direct Support Professionals, Positive Support Services Specialists, Individualized Home Support (IHS) Specialists, Resident Care Assistants and more.

Download an informational sheet about what Direct Support Professionals do, and how to become one - available in multiple languages

Download an informational sheet about supporting a person or people in a group home

To apply for jobs like this:

Talk with staff at a CareerForce near you about employment opportunities
Search thousands of Minnesota job postings that are updated nightly here on CareerForceMN.com
View current job postings in Minnesota for Group Home Care and Support Staff - only 500 postings are displayed, but there are more openings - you can narrow the search based on your home location and change the search focus by using other keywords, using other similar job titles for Direct Support Professionals listed above
Search for open positions on the ARRM job board

Caring for people in assisted living, nursing homes and other facilities

These caring professionals support people in larger settings where many people needing support live together. You might enjoy this work if you prefer working with many different people and having a supervisor or colleague on-site to ask questions. Some of the professionals supporting these facilities are Nursing Assistants, Dietary Aides, Housekeeping Aides, Activities Aides, Trained Medication Assistants (TMA), Certified Nursing Assistants (CNAs) and more.

Download an informational sheet about what Nursing Assistants do, and how to become one - available in multiple languages.

Find out about free Nursing Assistant training.

To apply for jobs like this:

Talk with staff at a CareerForce near you about employment opportunities
Search for open positions on the Care Providers of Minnesota job board
Search for open positions on the LeadingAge Minnesota job board

Supporting people working in the community

These caring professionals support people with finding and sustaining employment in their communities. You might be well suited for this work if you enjoy meeting new people and working together to come up with creative employment solutions. While there are many titles for these jobs, some common examples are Employment Support Professional, Job Developer, Employment Specialist or Consultant, Job Coach, Job Trainer, School-To-Work Transition Services Provider, Employment Support Professional, Enrichment Specialist and more.

Download an informational sheet about what Employment Support Professionals do, and how to become one - available in multiple languages

To apply for jobs like this:

Talk with staff at a CareerForce near you about employment opportunities
Search thousands of Minnesota job postings that are updated nightly here on CareerForceMN.com
View current job postings in Minnesota for Employment Support Professional positions - only 500 postings are displayed, but there are more openings - you can narrow the search based on your home location and change the search focus by using other keywords, using other similar job titles for Employment Support Professional listed above

Supporting people in mental health care settings

These caring professionals support people who are being treated and recovering from mental illness and substance use disorders in a variety of clinical and community-based settings. You might be well suited for this work if you have skill in listening to people and coming up with creative solutions to support quality of life. Some of the common job titles for these settings include Behavioral Health Technician, Direct Support Professional, Youth Care Professional, Behavioral Modification Assistant, Human Services Technician, Chemical Dependency Program Assistant, Security Counselor, Recreation Program Therapist, Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), Human Service Support Specialist, Forensic Support Specialist, Psychiatric Technician and more.

Download an informational sheet about what Psychiatric or Behavioral Health Technicians do, and how to become one - available in multiple languages

To apply for jobs like this:

Talk with staff at a CareerForce near you about employment opportunities
Search thousands of Minnesota job postings that are updated nightly here on CareerForceMN.com
View current job postings in Minnesota for Behavioral Health positions - only 500 postings are displayed, but there are more openings - you can narrow the search based on your home location and change the search focus by using other keywords, using other similar job titles for Psychiatric or Behavioral Health Technicians listed above

Supporting people at day programs

These caring professionals support people in the community or at facilities during daytime hours. Some programs will include remote support options starting July 2023. Employees working for these programs help adults with disabilities develop and maintain life skills, participate in community life, and engage in activities they enjoy. You might be well suited for this work if you enjoy teaching, sharing with others and activity planning.

Download an informational sheet about what Day Program Professionals do, and how to become one - available in multiple languages

To apply for jobs like this:

Talk with staff at a CareerForce near you about employment opportunities
Search thousands of Minnesota job postings that are updated nightly here on CareerForceMN.com
View current job postings in Minnesota for Day Programs Staff - only 500 postings are displayed, but there are more openings - you can narrow the search based on your home location and change the search focus by using other keywords, using other similar job titles for Day Program Professionals listed above

Sharing a home with someone with a disability through Life Sharing

Life sharing is a relationship-based living arrangement that carefully matches an adult age 18 or older who has a disability with an individual or family who will share their life and experiences and support the person using person-centered practices. The life-sharing host is paid.

Download an informational sheet about Life Sharing

Learn more about Life Sharing opportunities in Minnesota

Resources to help promote Caring Careers

Add job fairs and other hiring events to our calendar - find Caring Career focused events by searching "CaringCareerMN"
Event flyer templates - download templates to promote Caring Career job fairs, career exploration events and more
Follow Your Heart to a Caring Career social media and other graphics - please use this hashtag #CaringCareerMN if you post related to this campaign so that CareerForceMN, DEED and others can find and share your posts!
Follow Your Heart to a Caring Career 8.5x11 flyer - for you to print and post, posting locations could include local libraries, community centers, schools or other locations in your area - available in Amharic, Dari, English, Karen, Oromo, Pashto, Somali, Spanish, Ukrainian and Vietnamese, just like all the occupational information handouts
Follow Your Heart to a Caring Career 11x17 poster - for you to print and post, posting locations could include local libraries, community centers, schools or other locations in your area
Caring Career Pathways informational handout -for you to print and share with career explorers and job seekers
Follow Your Heart to a Caring Career employer resources - campaign information for home-, community- and facility-based care provider employers; includes information on how to engage with and leverage this campaign