What do Career Counselors do for a Living?
Job Descriptions December 5, 2015In this article, you will learn the educational background for a career counselor, the skills that they acquire while in college, their duties and some of the steps one has to fulfill before joining this profession.
Overview of Career Counselors Job Duties
A career counselor helps people who have difficulties finding a job, people who can’t balance their work and family issues as well as those who find it hard to deal with stress found in some jobs.
Having a master’s degree in counseling is an important accomplishment to have if you are planning on being serious with this profession. However, in case you have a bachelor’s degree, you can still get a job as a career counselor.
In some cases, people just pursue certificate programs then gain experience by working with already practicing career counselors. Since you do not know what kind of employers you will get out there, it is important that you acquire some good educational training plus a license before looking for a job.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Education Information
•Education details: Master’s degree in most cases, although either a bachelor’s degree or high school diploma can do
•Additional requirements: Experience, especially if you don’t have a degree or acquire a license.
•Estimated job growth rate (2012 – 2022): 12% for most counselors.
•Average salary in 2013: $53,000 for educational, guidance and vocational school counselor.
Job Description
The average day for a career counselor involves collecting work details from clients, including work history, interests and skills, then coming up with the best careers that would suit such a client. In other words, a career counselor helps people pursue careers that bests suit them, especially if the careers pay well and are marketable.
Sometimes, career counselors may help people who just lost their jobs to get better jobs or help those people who feel unhappy in their current job positions.
Salary outlook
In May 2013, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated that the average pay for a career counselor was $53,600 while the career was likely to grow at fair rate of 12% up to the year 2022.
Work duties
To get a client, most career counselors will give presentations about their services through various platforms such as websites. Once they get a client, the career counselor examines work records, does an interview to the client to determine their interests in life, their dislikes and other relevant information that may help them know what careers to suggest to the client.
A career counselor can also evaluate schools’ education programs, assesses the cost of books, tuition fees, class schedules and then help their client know what course to choose, its costs and possible adjustments they would have to make in life in order to complete the course program.
Additionally, a career counselor can also help a person set goals in life, teach them how to best land an interview that will lead to getting employed and sometimes they may have to keep client records such as resumes and cover letters.
