Counseling Jobs and Careers

Where will I work?

Ultimately, where you work in your counseling career will depend on the type of counseling job you want to pursue. One option is to work as a career counselor in schools and universities or as a private consultant for people already in the workforce.

Another place you may work is in a hospital or clinic if you decide to specialize in mental health or rehabilitation. Some jobs in counseling, like social and community service managers help groups of people within a community. These are generally office jobs but you may need to interact with the public depending on the type of work you are involved in.

Generally speaking, you will be able to choose among a variety of work environments, including your own practice, if you choose a career in counseling. There is the possibility that you can telecommute if your job requires research and reporting instead of patient contact.

How long does it take to find a job?

The amount of time it takes to find a job will greatly depend on the field of counseling you plan on going into. The projections vary depending on the age of the students with whom you will work. If you work with elementary school children, the growth will only be 8% in the next 10 years. However, if you work with university students, it may be much easier to find a job since those careers are expected to grow by 34% over the same period.

Other jobs in counseling, like mental health counselors and marriage and family therapists, are predicted to grow at a higher rate than school and career counselors. These careers have a very positive growth outlook of 37% growth for the next 10 years. If you are interested in these jobs, you will certainly spend less time looking for work.

Online degrees from accredited programs are becoming more acceptable in the field of counseling. While getting an initial job depends on your educational credentials and experience, maintaining a career and advancing in this field will be up to you. One way to add extra weight to an online degree is to research some certification programs.

How have careers changed over the years?

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, jobs in counseling are on the rise. The growth of counseling careers is a result of many different factors, which include changes in cultural traditions and even court decisions about the legal limits of certain behaviors.

Counselors, like teachers, have found employment in an array of fields. Many schools in the past only employed guidance counselors, but today career counselors are more commonly used by elementary schools, high schools and are very popular in universities.

As counseling fields become much more specialized, a greater number of career opportunities continue to develop. Changes in cultural trends have created a high demand for counselors that specialize in different areas, such as family counseling and alcohol abuse counselors.

The most important thing you can do while reviewing the careers in counseling that are available to you is to consider what interests you the most. That will be the field where you can offer value to others and also enjoy your work.

What are the top employers?

In addition to working in private practices for individuals or groups, counselors are hired by schools and universities, hospitals, the social services sector, medical laboratories, financial institutions and court systems.

Depending on your counseling specialty, there are a number of top employers for each profession. The Gateway Foundation, Montefiore Medical Center, Daytop Village, CRC Healthgroup Corporation and Samaritan Village are all top employers for substance abuse counselors.

Some of the top employers of mental health counselors are the Community Mental Health Center, South Carolina Department of Mental Health, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and New Horizons.

The top admissions counselor employers include online universities, like University of Phoenix and Keiser College, as well as Walsh University in Ohio and Education Management Corporation. The District of Columbia Public School Districts is 1 of the top employers of school counselors, but most large cities will also employ counselors.

Some employers may be less receptive to students coming from online programs since counseling is a field that deals with human interaction. But once you get the job, your work ethic and performance is what really matters.