Although there are professions that are easier to link back to counseling, there are others that are not so obvious. Among some are counselor educator, member of clergy, paraprofessionals, pupil personnel worker, and social worker. Counselor educators are professors in graduate school departments that train counselors. Social workers and members of the clergy also use counseling techniques. Many professionals in the human resources development departments of large corporations also perform duties similar to those of counselors, although they tend to have more administrative responsibilities.
COUNSELOR EDUCATOR
Counselor educators instruct and train future counselors, usually in graduate school counselor education programs. Their duties and the degree of their specialization vary greatly, depending on the size and emphasis of the program with which they are associated. As university professors, they are responsible for designing courses, lecturing, assigning research projects, and evaluating the progress of students. Many conduct original research. They also supervise prospective counselors during practicums and internships. Counselor educators often combine their professorial duties with a counseling practice, either in association with the school's counseling center or in private.
There are about twice as many part-time counselor educators, as full-time. Universities are the major employers. A counselor education program may have a single full-time faculty member and a couple of part-time teachers; large programs employ twenty or more instructors and professors. A Ph.D. in counseling or a related field is generally required for these positions. Among the specialties within the field are school, rehabilitation, and marriage and family therapy. Almost 90 percent of all counselor educators do in fact have doctorates. Those with only a master's degree are most likely to be part-time instructors or graduate students completing their doctoral programs.
The average salary of a counselor educator is $55,410—with the lowest ten percent earning less than $32,660 and the highest ten percent earning more than $91,960.
Besides the usual fringe benefits, professors may be granted sabbaticals by their schools in order to pursue research projects.
College teachers usually begin their careers as either instructors or assistant professors, later advancing to the ranks of associate and full professor. Advancement often hinges on publication or other evidence of a growing reputation in a person's field.
Faculty members of counselor education programs—especially the largest ones are the best sources of information about the nature of the work and the current and projected job market in this field.
MEMBER OF THE CLERGY
Many members of the clergy-ministers, priests, and rabbis devote much of their time to counseling activities. Although counseling may become the primary duty of many clerics, they usually follow this vocation for other reasons. The decision to enter the clergy should be based on one's religious convictions.
Some counselor education programs in universities have programs in pastoral counseling.
Members of the clergy who wish to receive training in counseling can also contact the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education. It accredits and publishes a directory of supervisors and training centers in hospitals, other health care institutions, and prisons.
PARAPROFESSIONAL
The term paraprofessional usually refers to a job that does not require a college degree. Medicine now employs many paraprofessionals in a variety of technical occupations. No comparable growth has occurred in counseling, where the term is used loosely of workers who take over some of the non-counseling functions in an office, such as updating a referral directory. Paraprofessionals in counseling are likely to have entered the field as clerical workers and then taken on more responsibility as they gained experience.
Rehabilitation has seen some growth in employment of people with less than a counselor's training. These individuals are usually college graduates, however, often having attended an undergraduate program in rehabilitation services. Although they may be referred to as paraprofessionals, they would be classified as professionals by most of the organizations that collect employment data.
PUPIL PERSONNEL WORKER
These professionals visit the homes of students who have not been attending school. They speak to the child's parents or guardians, seeking to learn the reason for the student's absence. Reasons can include fear of school, a lack of proper clothing or nutrition, or other problems. The pupil personnel worker seeks a solution, which can require referral to other agencies, such as the social services department. Counseling during the course of several visits may be necessary before the problem is resolved. If there are pockets of truancy within a building or neighborhood, the pupil personnel worker may contact other agencies of the government, such as the recreation department, to set up tutorial or other educational programs outside the school. Other job titles for these workers are attendance workers, truant officers, and visiting teachers.
Employment figures for this occupation are not collected. Employment could easily exceed ten thousand, however, since one worker would be needed for every two thousand to four thousand students. Detailed salary information is not available either. Salaries for these workers are certainly somewhat higher than those of teachers, however, and are often supplemented by a travel allowance. Employment is usually year-round.
These are not entry-level positions. The typical pupil personnel worker has several years experience within a school system as a teacher, administrator, or counselor in addition to specialized training, such as a master's degree in guidance. Recruitment is usually conducted within the school system. All states certify these workers.
SOCIAL WORKER
Social workers, who are much more numerous than counselors, provide counseling for individuals, families, and groups. Among their other duties are the administration of aid programs and the referral of clients to other agencies for some services, such as job training or day care. The speedy identification of a client's needs and the implementation of a plan to supply essential food, shelter, clothing, and medical attention probably account for more of the average social worker's time than does counseling. Individual social workers, however, may be primarily concerned with counseling.
Social workers may specialize in particular fields. About half of all social workers are in just three categories: mental health, child/youth, and medical/health. Those working in mental health frequently work in a community mental health clinic or outpatient psychiatric clinic, helping patients adjust to their conditions. Child welfare workers counsel children; advise and consult with parents, teachers, and others; arrange for homemaker services; and start legal action to protect neglected or abused children. Medical social workers help patients and their families plan for discharges and work to coordinate the services of the many different agencies that provide help to people in need.
The standard educational requirement is a bachelor's degree in social work, psychology, or sociology. Clinical social workers must have a master’s degree, 2 years of post-master’s experience in a supervised clinical setting, and to be licensed in the state in which they practice.
The median salary for social workers is $47,980—with the lowest ten percent earning less than $29,560 and the highest ten percent earning more than $79,740. They vary widely by setting, experience, and duties. Social workers receive the usual fringe benefits.
The major employers are departments of human resources, social services, mental health, housing, education, and correction. Many private organizations also provide social services and employ social workers, including community service organizations, religious communities, and large corporations. Furthermore, social workers, like counselors, are increasingly entering private practice.
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