Online M.Ed. in Counseling and Development: Career Outlook

By graduation, you'll have mastered the high standards of excellence set by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) in developing a professional identity that allows you to work ethically and effectively with those in need of mental health services. This includes:

  • Applying the Multicultural Counseling Competencies when working with clients
  • Using human growth and development theories as they apply to the counseling process
  • Differentiating among career assessments to inform client needs and growth
  • Demonstrating foundational counseling skills that are informed by theory
  • Assessing the implementation of group counseling procedures
  • Integrating basic concepts of qualitative and quantitative assessment into practice
  • Designing a research methodology that will be used to inform their practice

Careers in Mental Health Are in Demand

As a licensed counselor, you'll have the rewarding experience of helping others overcome their challenges in mental health to develop into their best selves. Counseling positions have many career titles, some of which expect to see up to 18% growth between 2022 and 2032.1

School and Career Counselor

School counselors can work with P-12 students to help them develop academic skills. They also work with students to improve critical skills that lead to personal, social, and emotional growth so they can fit in better with peers and society. To accomplish this, they'll take a number of steps like:

  • Analyzing data to find factors that may negatively affect their school performance such as missing too much school, not turning in homework, or experiencing recent trauma at home such as a death or divorce.
  • Using aptitude tests and personal interviews to evaluate their abilities and interests. 
  • Collaborating with a student's core support group — typically a student's family and teachers — to help them set and accomplish their own goals for school, career, and social needs.

School counselors will work with students one-on-one and within small groups of kids with similar needs to help them develop skills that support learning and growth.

In 2022, these positions offered a median salary of $60,140 per year and they expect to see an average growth rate of 5% from 2022 through 2032.1 

Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors

From 2022 through 2032, these counseling careers are expected to grow by 18%.2  This group of professionals helps people with a range of issues that span from depression and anxiety to family counseling. To help people improve their lives and overcome the mental health challenges they face, they:

  • Evaluate clients’ problematic behavior and their mental and physical health to assess whether they're ready for treatment.
  • Help clients develop treatment goals and implementation plans and share them with their personal support group.
  • Help clients develop the necessary skills and adopt behaviors to recover from their addiction or modify the way they act.
  • Teach clients how to identify the behaviors and situations that interfere with their goals.

Counselors can also work with a client's family members to teach them about the issues their loved one is facing and help them develop support strategies, especially as the client is discharged from counseling. In the community, counselors can also create and conduct outreach programs to help people identify destructive behaviors and the steps they can take afterward. 

In 2022, these positions offered a median salary of $49,710 per year.2

More Counseling Careers to Consider 

A career dedicated to counseling in mental health offers a range of career titles and practice settings. Consider your passions carefully, and you can apply your area of mental health expertise to work in community agencies, hospitals and other healthcare organizations, schools, colleges and universities, and assisted living facilities.

  • Clinical social worker: $55,350 per year3
  • College counseling and career planning: $60,140 per year1
  • Marriage and family therapist: $56,570 per year4

Excel in Your New Role

Gain the knowledge you need to advance your counseling career with the online Master of Education in Counseling and Development from Winthrop University. Contact a program manager toll-free at 833/257-1704 to learn more, or request more information today.

Sources

  1. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "School and Career Counselors and Advisors." Retrieved Feb. 1, 2024, from https://www.bls.gov/ooh/community-and-social-service/school-and-career-counselors.htm.
  2. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors." Retrieved Feb. 1, 2024, from https://www.bls.gov/ooh/community-and-social-service/substance-abuse-behavioral-disorder-and-mental-health-counselors.htm.
  3. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Clinical Social Worker." Retrieved Feb. 1, 2024, from https://www.bls.gov/ooh/community-and-social-service/social-workers.htm.
  4. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Marriage and Family Therapists." Retrieved Feb. 1, 2024, from https://www.bls.gov/ooh/community-and-social-service/marriage-and-family-therapists.htm.