What Are the Common Types of Counseling Careers?

April 5 2023 - Are you interested in taking up a career in counseling after graduation? Or perhaps you want to switch your field of focus. Either way, there are a lot of jobs you can try in the industry.

You can find counseling careers in different locations and for varying specialties. It could be in hospitals, rehabilitation centers, schools, or even private companies.

Before you decide what to take, it helps to know the common careers under the field. So, here's a look into popular counseling jobs and what they're all about.

Academic Counselor

You probably already encountered an academic or school counselor at least once in your life. It's one of the most common counseling jobs available.

These professionals guide students through their years in school. It includes helping them overcome different challenges, developing better habits, and preventing harmful problems.

While they also give career advice, school counselors usually help students identify their interests to determine what career they can take. There's a different type of profession for full-on advice and suggestions.

Family Therapist

If you have good interpersonal communication and aspire to bring people together, you can be a family therapist! With this profession, you will help families and couples face and solve problems within their relationships.

Note that it's a lot more than just giving them advice on what to do. It also includes teaching them to communicate and understand each other better.

A family therapist can also guide families experiencing other internal issues like divorce, family loss, and more.

Mental Health Therapist

People tend to feel overwhelmed by the things that happen to them. These days, mental health has become a priority among many. That includes everything from family to companies.

Becoming a counselor for mental health is a big responsibility since it involves helping people who are vulnerable. And so, taking this career path requires you to be trained in various mental health fields. It's also best to be a licensed professional for this job.

Mental health therapists deal with patients who encounter problems such as trauma, depression, phobia, and more. That means they are vital in helping these people get back up.

In some cases, they are also in charge of identifying how they can cope. It could be through other forms of therapy or by directing them to psychologists.

Rehabilitation Counselor

Compared to mental health therapists, a rehabilitation counselor focuses on working with people who have physical and emotional issues. It includes those with severe trauma, grief, and more.

A rehabilitation counselor usually evaluates their patients to decide what therapy and care they need. Inside of providing them guidance through conversation, they help patients with treatment.

You can find these counselors in different settings, like agencies, health facilities, prison centers, and the like.

Children's Therapist

Therapy for families and individuals differs from children's therapy. A children's therapist focuses on helping youth, from toddlers to teens. They usually cover a broad range of issues, including physical, mental, and social aspects.

The main goal of being a children's therapist is to assess the underlying problems among them. Then from there, teach them how to manage those thoughts and emotions.

Younger patients find it harder to find solutions to mental problems. And so, children's therapists often focus their practice on understanding how kids process their experiences.

Residential Counselor

When choosing a career related to counseling, you can also find one in residential homes. If you get a counseling career there, you will be responsible for programs to help these people recover or relieve distress.

That also means guiding them and being available as much as possible in case anything comes up. One of the requirements for this usually includes having a degree in social work as well as psychology.

Grief Counselor

There are also counseling careers to help people who go through severe levels of grief. Grief counselors help people work their way through the five stages and guide them until they feel comfortable again.

Most cases where people go through grief counseling include those with severe trauma, experiences of tragedy, and more.

Being a grief counselor means you will help these people process their emotions and teach them how to carry those feelings.

Career Counselor

As mentioned, there are counselors who specialize in giving career advice beyond school counselors. They assist clients in finding a job by evaluating their experience and skills.

At the same time, they can help you determine if you qualify for a field or career you want to take up. In some cases, they also teach you about interviews and other skills you can use once you start a job search!

Behavioral Therapist

Compared to mental health therapists, a behavioral therapist focuses on recognizing and understanding a patient's patterns. Through that, they can assess whether patients need treatment or therapy.

A behavioral therapist looks at more than just how a person acts, but also how they think and perceive things. These professionals use a wide range of techniques and strategies, depending on the patient's severity.

Treatment for it can range from meditation to personal reflection.

Substance Abuse Counselor

Although there are rehabilitation counselors, there are counseling jobs that focus specifically on those who suffer from substance abuse. It includes those who have addictions to alcohol, drugs, and others.

A substance abuse counselor works with patients to help them recover and learn to let go of the addiction. It can involve several strategies, like group sessions, crisis management, and others.

Have a look at this if you want to delve deeper into how they work. It's also good to note that you may need a state license for it.

Learn About Counseling Careers Right Here!

Becoming a counselor is no easy job, especially because you carry heavy responsibilities. While there are many counseling careers to choose from, your choice will depend on your passion rather than their perks.

So, what do you think? Check out the rest of our website to learn more.

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