Mental Health Counselors: Job Description
Counsel and advise individuals and groups to promote optimum mental and emotional health, with an emphasis on prevention. May help individuals deal with a broad range of mental health issues, such as those associated with addictions and substance abuse; family, parenting, and marital problems; stress management; self-esteem; or aging.
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What Do Mental Health Counselors Take On?
The day-to-day responsibilities of mental health counselors span:
- Maintain confidentiality of records relating to clients' treatment.
- Encourage clients to express their feelings and discuss what is happening in their lives, helping them to develop insight into themselves or their relationships.
- Counsel clients or patients, individually or in group sessions, to assist in overcoming dependencies, adjusting to life, or making changes.
- Perform crisis interventions to help ensure the safety of the patients and others.
- Fill out and maintain client-related paperwork, including federal- and state-mandated forms, client diagnostic records, and progress notes.
- Assess patients for risk of suicide attempts.
- Perform crisis interventions with clients.
- Guide clients in the development of skills or strategies for dealing with their problems.
Skills and Knowledge
Successful mental health counselors rely on a mix of skills and domain knowledge.
Key Skills
These are the skills that matter most in this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Core Knowledge
Types of Mental Health Counselors Jobs
This career also goes by job titles like:
- BSS (Behavior Support Specialist)
- Behavior Analyst
- Behavioral Health Clinician
- Behavioral Health Consultant
- Behavioral Health Counselor
- Behavioral Health Therapist
- Bereavement Counselor
- Case Manager
Job Outlook
There are about 240,276 mental health counselors working in the United States today. This occupation is expected to grow by +2.8% over the projection horizon.
Mental Health Counselors Pay
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $72,983 |
| Hourly median | $35.09 |
| 10th percentile | $45,038 |
| 25th percentile | $59,010 |
| 75th percentile | $86,956 |
| 90th percentile | $100,929 |
Wages vary widely based on experience, location, and industry.
Tech Stack
- Data base user interface and query software: Microsoft Access (hot technology)
- Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel (hot technology)
- Office suite software: Microsoft Office software (hot technology)
- Electronic mail software: Microsoft Outlook (hot technology)
- Presentation software: Microsoft PowerPoint (hot technology)
- Word processing software: Microsoft Word (hot technology)
- Enterprise resource planning ERP software: Oracle PeopleSoft (hot technology)
The Day-to-Day Environment
The on-the-job environment of mental health counselors reflects the following characteristics:
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams
- Spend Time Sitting
- Contact With Others
- Freedom to Make Decisions
Getting Started in This Career
Most mental health counselors positions require a doctoral or professional degree as the typical entry-level education. This career aligns with Extensive Preparation Needed (Job Zone 5), indicating the level of preparation typically expected.
Related Careers
Similar Occupations
- Clinical and Counseling Psychologists (Primary-Short)
- Substance Abuse and Behavioral Disorder Counselors (Primary-Long)
- Marriage and Family Therapists (Primary-Short)
- Rehabilitation Counselors (Primary-Short)
- Child, Family, and School Social Workers (Primary-Long)
- Healthcare Social Workers (Primary-Short)
- Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers (Primary-Short)
- Health Education Specialists (Supplemental)
Where to Study
Future mental health counselors typically earn programs in:
Health Professions and Related Programs
5 programs across 1 majors
Psychology
1 programs across 1 majors
About the Data
Data on this page comes from the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 21-1014.00 (Mental Health Counselors).
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