What is a Mental Health Counselor?
Mental health counselors are skilled professionals who treat a wide range of presenting concerns including anxiety, depression, relationship problems, and substance use.
Common tasks for a mental health counselor include:
- Evaluating clients’ mental and physical health and assessing readiness for treatment
- Developing and overseeing treatment goals and plans with clients
- Helping clients with the skills and behaviors needed to face issues
- Referring clients to resources and services, such as support groups
- Conducting outreach programs to help people identify signs of destructive behavior
Many mental health counselors work with a variety of individuals, families, couples, and groups. However, some counselors specialize within populations like children, college students, or the elderly. Common work environments include mental health centers, hospitals, prisons, and private practice.
Techniques and approaches utilized are based on the situation as well as the mental health counselor’s background and preferences. One common example is cognitive behavior therapy (CBT). It is used to treat illnesses such as anxiety, eating disorders, personality disorders, and substance abuse. For instance, CBT may be used in the treatment of specific phobia, which is an anxiety disorder involving a fear of something like flying, heights, or animals. CBT for specific phobia would involve strategies to view and cope with the feared object or situation. A major focus would be exploring alternative beliefs about fears (cognitively), and exposure therapy would try to gradually change the client’s response to the feared object or situation (behaviorally).
Career Growth
Nearly one in five adults in the United States is diagnosed with a mental illness, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. This statistic is one of the factors contributing to a projected increase to the employment rate of mental health counselors of 19 percent by 2033. Other factors include people continuing to seek mental health counseling services and state governments turning to treatment and counseling services for individuals suffering from substance use disorder instead of jail time, as well as the ongoing need for mental health counselors to work with military veterans.
As of 2016, nearly 140,000 mental health counselors were employed in the United States.
Mental Health Counselor Salary Potential
The annual mean wage for mental health counselors is $53,710, according to the BLS.
Education Required
All states require mental health counselors to have a master’s degree and 2,000 to 4,000 hours of supervised clinical experience. The degrees accepted vary by state but are typically in mental health counseling or psychology. Counselors must pass a state-issued exam and complete continuing education annually.
The Department of Counseling and Psychology at Rivier University offers degree programs and licensure for prospective therapists, counselors, and psychologists. Degrees are offered at the undergraduate, professional studies, graduate, and doctoral levels. Supporting the critical need for behavioral health professionals, the Department of Counseling and Psychology engages students at all academic levels. A focus on experiential learning is evident in coursework, as well as internship and practicum opportunities. These experiences enable students to connect theory with practice in real-world settings.
Once you earn your degree, you’ll be able to immediately pursue roles such as social service case manager, residential counselor, youth rehabilitation counselor, group care worker, site support specialist, research assistant, and behavior interventionist. You’ll also be prepared to enter graduate study to pursue roles like mental health counselor, marriage and family therapist, and psychologist.