Counselors are professionals that work in many different community settings, offering counseling and support for many different areas. Some counselors may work exclusively with children, while others may work primarily with couples therapy. Other counselors may work with mental health disorders and addiction, while others still may work with professional and career counseling for adults and young professionals. Counseling has become a large part of American society, as having a professional offer support and advice on serious life issues can be of great benefit.

Generally speaking, counselors are required to obtain a master’s degree to become a licensed counselor. These professionals typically work in their own offices, offering confidentiality to their patients. This confidentiality allows their patients to confidently voice their real feelings, issues, and problems, and helps counselors do their job the way it was meant to be done: with complete honesty.

An individual deciding to become a counselor has many different options. As mentioned before, counselors work in many different fields to meet the many different emotional, professional, social, and mental health needs that people deal with on a daily basis. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were about 665,500 counselor jobs in 2008. The majority of counselors work as educational, vocational, and school counselors. The rest of counselors were distributed among the following fields, in order from highest employment to lowest employment: rehabilitation counselors, mental health counselors, substance abuse and behavioral disorder counselors, and other counselor.

The employment outlook for this career is generally positive. Individuals deciding to become a counselor will likely find many job opportunities, as the growth for the job is faster than the average for all other occupations. However, certain fields are projected to grow faster than others:

• growth is found in the employment of substance abuse and behavioral disorder counselors. This growth is a result of society’s increased knowledge about the significance of addiction, and that the treatment for addiction is treatment programs, not jail time.

• growth of educational, vocational, and school counselors is also expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations. This is due to the increased focus on career and professional counseling, as well as the state requirement for all schools to have school or guidance counselors.

• the largest growth is found in mental health counseling. This is likely due to insurance companies recommending counselors as a replacement for expensive psychologists and psychiatrists.

• growth for rehabilitation counselors are also expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations, likely due to the increase of the elderly population, as the elderly are more likely to become disabled, or injured.

• growth for marriage and family therapists are also experiencing a faster growth an average, likely due to the recognition of the professional world of the occupation. Family counseling and marriage counseling are becoming more popular as help for family or marital problems.

Becoming a counselor allows you to help others directly by hearing their problems and coming up with resolutions for them. Few jobs are as rewarding as a career in counseling; its attractiveness only bolstered by the positive job outlook for counseling jobs in the future.