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The Many Faces of Counseling

If you consider yourself to be a good listener and perceptive thinker, you may want to put your talents to good use by becoming a counselor. Earning your counseling degree will give you the necessary skills to apply psychological, developmental, and mental health principles that will enable you to affect behavioral, cognitive, and/or systemic changes in individuals who need your assistance. With these skills you will be able to work in a wide variety of settings including schools, private mental health facilities, hospitals, rehabilitation centers, and more.

When you’ve earned your degree in counseling, you will be prepared to help those with depression, anxiety, emotional or mental disorders, substance abuse, relationships, eating disorders, job stress, aging issues, the death of a loved one, self-esteem issues, and a wide variety of other afflictions; who and how you help will depend upon the specialty you choose in this field.

Education

Most states will require you to have a master’s degree to become a licensed professional counselor. Because each state’s requirements are different, it’s important to find out as much as you can prior to beginning a degree program. You want to be sure the program you choose will best help you reach your career goals.

If you plan to attend graduate school, you must first earn your bachelor’s degree. Often students will choose an undergraduate major that is related to the field of counseling: education, psychology, sociology, or social work are among popular choices.

Consider which counseling specialization you would like to go into when choosing a graduate school to be sure it offers the courses you need. It’s always helpful as well to seek out those who are already employed in the field you would like to be in; ask them which courses and extracurricular activities would help you prepare for employment in the same field.

Career Options

When you earn your degree in counseling, you will have a wide variety of career opportunities available to you; some of these include:

School Counselor: school counselors perform a variety of functions. At the elementary school level, a counselor often works with parents and teachers to evaluate a student’s weaknesses, strengths, and special needs. At the high school level, a counselor will help students with everything from behavioral issues to self-esteem to college and career planning.

School counselors are likely to earn an annual salary of approximately $50,000 depending on location and experience.

Mental Health Counselor: mental health counselors work with other mental health professionals – psychologists, psychiatrists, school counselors, social workers – to help individuals or groups with myriad issues.

Mental health counselors make an average of $35,000 annually depending on location and experience.

Rehabilitation Counselor: rehabilitation counselors work in a variety of settings helping to rehabilitate individuals personally, socially, and vocationally due to physical disability or a behavioral disorder.

Rehabilitation counselors make an annual salary of $30,000 on average; this amount depends on location and experience.

Some of the other career choices in this field are: vocational/career counselor, substance abuse or behavioral disorder counselor, marriage and family counselor, and counseling psychologist.