Counselors help their clients in a wide variety of areas depending on their specialty and specific job duties. For example, this might include providing mental health therapy for an individual working as a psychiatrist, career advancement advice for a person working as a career counselor, and addiction counseling for someone working as a rehabilitation counselor. As you might imagine, a career in counseling is in high demand with an expected growth of nearly 20% over the next decade.
The requirements needed to work as a counselor depends on the type of counseling and the licensing board of each individual state. Generally, receiving a master’s degree or doctoral degree, successfully completing an internship, and then passing a licensing exam are necessary in order to practice counseling. It is a rewarding field with a bright future for people interested in helping others outside of the typical hospital setting.