behavioral therapist

aba therapist

clinical supervisor

The Portia Learning Centre

My first year working at the Kanata location was enjoyable. I had minimal experience with children on the spectrum, but a relevant education and plenty of experience working with kids. Working at Portia I learned to multitask, work under stressful conditions, take initiative, and get out of my comfort zone. Most of these were done with minimal support from management. Success rates of working at Portia seems to be largely dependent on having trained, reliable senior staff. Without this, you have too many unexperienced individuals working with clients that need staff who are trained and can respond appropriately to a variety of situations. Turnover rate is huge and it takes about 4-6 months to feel comfortable and confident in your abilities unless you have prior relevant experience. 

Management in general is toxic, and I became aware of this in my 2nd and 3rd year of working at Portia. They make large claims that often prove to be untrue, especially when it comes to support. When you have an issue or even offer suggestions for improvement, they refute the problems you're presenting them with. There is favouritism towards staff from management and the backbone of the centre is really held together by the senior staff, typically lead therapists. It took about 4 years to finally come to terms with the fact that they were not going to change their ways to create a more positive environment. They ask staff to be acceptive of constructive criticism and feedback (which is crucial as an IT), but refuse to accept constructive feedback themselves. 

The job itself is rewarding and the kids and fellow ITs are wonderful. However, the job will require you to do a lot of intensive and challenging work with little to no support from management and few breaks. Hourly pay is measly and here are additionally some large COVID concerns, so be weary of that too. 

Not a good long term career: they pay awful, they do not appreciate their staff (I was at kanata for 2 years and got treated like bottom of the barrel) , they pay new staff as much as long time staff. It is so cliquey there! Management clearly pick favourites and it is so hard to get any kind of raise or promotion unless you are one of the favourites. The staff members gossip amongst each other and quite frankly they do poor therapy so I just feel bad the parents are paying so much just to pay for people to gossip instead of do their job. 

The benefits: the kids! That’s the only reason to there. You can get a good reference for a resume or a masters application, and it does look good on a resume. As long as you keep your head down, just focus on the kids and ignore all of the cliques it can be a good job. For me I got to work, did my job and went home/ I had no interest in making friends with anyone because they were all toxic and just wanted to gossip. Also you only get a half hour lunch… like talk about burnout!! Seriously they have no comprehension of why so many people quit all the time. We do not get 15 minute breaks and I constantly was burntout, I hated going to work, and I was just overall depressed when I worked there. So happy I’m out my life is way better now. 

Hopefully management at kanata sees this so that they can change things… it could be good but the staff and environment is so toxic!!!!

The Portia Learning Centre was instrumental in my development of ABA skills, afforded me many opportunities to grow in the field. The clients you work with will enrich your life in amazing ways, seeing them gain skills makes the job worthwhile. The Clinical Supervisor and Senior therapists work incredibly hard to make great programs that put the well-being of clients at the forefront, looking not just at filling in skills in an assessment but looking at teaching skills that will make the biggest impact for the clients life and family. 
The therapists are the hardest working people you will ever encounter, they deeply care about the students they teach and are open to development and learning everyday. 
It is very much true that you will get out of the job what you put into it. If you’re ready, willing and excited to learn and grow Portia will encourage that in you by allowing you more and more opportunities to advance. 
The culture in the workplace is one of teamwork, coworkers are friendly and always willing to jump in and lend a hand. Management is always open to questions and does their best to accommodate both work and personal needs. 
My time spent at Portia was incredibly fulfilling and I was lucky to be able to learn from so many intelligent, strong and influential women.

Everyone who works at Portia love the kids, the environment and coworkers. The work is truly rewarding, they are for the most part very organized. Compared to other similar industries it was refreshing to have work-life balance and mental health be given priority. Staff always get breaks and support if facing a challenging moment. If you have a background in child psych; autism; etc there is great training to become a therapist. For those hired without the education or experience it is a big challenge and it's noticeable in the work. Most of their phenomenal therapists however, can't and won't stay because the pay is insulting (the idea that therapists that assist the most vulnerable get paid as if they work in retail). Anyone who progresses must obtain a Masters Degree. It's really the biggest maybe only downside and it's sadly across the industry.

While working at The Portia Learning Centre I learned just how challenging it was working one on one with children with autism spectrum disorder. The hardest part of the job for me personally was never giving up even when faced with challenges. The most enjoyable part of the job was knowing I was making a difference in the lives of the children I was working with and also their families. The Portia Learning Centre is a good place to work; it is both professional and fun even though incredibly challenging at times.

Turnover at Portia is enormous. Most employees are very young and in a transitional period but also working with kids can really drain you mentally and physically. Management is very accomodating. Job advancement is slow and not that rewarding. The energy at the centre is good everybody loves and wants the best for the kiddos but people are also very exhausted ahah.

You learn a lot which is nice and they take time with the first 2 weeks of training. Unfortunately it isn’t the best place to work if you don’t like being talked down to. Most of the mangers are genuine but most time they’ll just put you with whoever in therapy even if you don’t have the experience with that particular child. Most reviews say the kanata location is gossipy and cliquey which I didn’t see much of but there are a few people who don’t know how to give constructive criticism or handle things in a professional matter. Overall the ITs are lovely and understanding. 

Working at Portia is a good place to start your career and gain insight on other related fields. However, it is not a place where you could grow. It felt like they wanted me to be an instructor therapist forever, and they showed little interest in promoting me or those who management didn’t favour. Management picked favourites, so it was hard to get any kind of raise or promotion unless you were one of their favourites.

Most people in this work place environment are young individuals, which is nice. However, it could sometimes be toxic because of the gossiping. 

The wages aren't competitive, but it's a great place to go and get training from if you have little experience in the field. The staff are very supportive and are willing to help you learn anything you inquire about. The management on the other hand is not supportive of mental health needs or letting staff know that are appreciated in any way. The senior therapists are the most supportive out of all management and they truly care about seeing you succeed. Very high turn over rate which can be hard on the children that are supported there.

Overral working there is a learning experience, but if you are not mentally nor emotionally prepared for a challenge, I wouldn't to into this work field . The kids you work with are great, you create a wonderful bond with them but its not always roses and peaches which is expected. The management team needs a lot of work done that was really the only downfall that I did not like.

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Behavioral therapist 3 salaries reported	$21.00 per hour
Aba therapist 3 salaries reported	$22.33 per hour
Clinical supervisor 1 salary reported	$75,000 per year

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