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counseling degrees

counseling degrees questions and answers

More information about counseling degrees at Education News.

Q: Does it matter if I have only a Master degree in Counseling Psychology but not a Bachelor in Psychology also?
Let's say I graduate with Bachelor in Physics and decide to shift to Counseling Psychology and earn a Master degree in Counseling Psychology. Does it make any difference from the fact if I were to also have the Bachelor in Psychology? I mean do employers make any difference? Am I less prepared than a full rate graduate in my specific domain (ex. Counseling)? Is there any extra stuff I should do? Thanks for any help.

A: You can actually enter a Masters program in Psychology even though you did not have an AB/BS Psychology degree. However, you would have to make it up by taking the following courses: general psychology, fundamental statistics, and an introduction to psychological research course. If you are entering Counseling Psychology at the graduate level, you will be taking up advanced personality theories, appraisal techniques, abnormal psychology, and therapy/counseling courses. At the undergraduate level, you will be introduced to personality theories and psychological testing/assessment. Also, you get to sample different areas of psychology. Thus, being an "insider" can help. When it comes to employment, however, it's your actual skill and having good references that ultimately matters. As an "outsider", you have to do additional reading and find a good place to practice.

Q: Can a get a masters degree in counseling with a Bachelors degree in Sociology?
I want to be a school councilor and have a BA in Sociology. Can I get a Masters in Counseling? Also, where are some good schools or online schools to do it through? And have any of you done this?

A: Yeah you can. Just apply. ss

Q: How do I know if a career in Counseling Psychology is for me?
The idea really interests me. This is what I want: I want a low profile (no-management) high paying job or mid paying job in which I will be able to help others. I have a bachelors degree and I want to make a Masters degree in Counseling Psychology. But is it really for me?

A: Working in any mental health field is hard. If you have a Bachelor degree, I would suggest working in the field for awhile in another postion, besides a counseling role. You should also examine your own values and compare them to the job. The hardest thing for me working in this field is that I have to relize that people aren't always going to take (or even listen to) my advice. I've had to learn to not take that personally and let it go. I've also had to work on my self-care skills- it's easy to get burned out. Even though it's easy for the stress and responsibility to wear you down, it can be really rewarding too. I work with a man who never speaks or participates in groups. The day he walked by my office and said "Hi, Sam. How are you?" I cried.

Q: How is the job market and salary range in counseling and psychotherapy?
I want to get back to college and get my master degree In counseling and psychotherapy ,does anybody know how the job market is and what is the salary range?

A: Employment for counselors is expected to grow much faster than the average for all occupations through 2016. However, job growth will vary by location and occupational specialty. Job prospects should be good due to growth and the need to replace people leaving the field. Overall employment of counselors is expected to increase by 21 percent between 2006 and 2016, which is much faster than the average for all occupations. However, growth is expected to vary by specialty. Employment of substance abuse and behavioral disorder counselors is expected to grow 34 percent, which is much faster than the average for all occupations. As society becomes more knowledgeable about addiction, it is increasingly common for people to seek treatment. Furthermore, drug offenders are increasingly being sent to treatment programs rather than jail. Employment for educational, vocational and school counselors is expected to grow 13 percent, which is about as fast as the average for all occupations. Demand for vocational or career counselors should grow as multiple job and career changes become common and as workers become increasingly aware of counseling services. In addition, State and local governments will employ growing numbers of counselors to assist beneficiaries of welfare programs who exhaust their eligibility and must find jobs. Other opportunities for employment of counselors will arise in private job-training centers that provide training and other services to laid-off workers and others seeking to acquire new skills or careers. Demand for school counselors may increase due in large part to increases in student enrollments at postsecondary schools and colleges and as more States require elementary schools to employ counselors. Expansion of the responsibilities of school counselors should also lead to increases in their employment. For example, counselors are becoming more involved in crisis and preventive counseling, helping students deal with issues ranging from drug and alcohol abuse to death and suicide. Although schools and governments realize the value of counselors in helping their students to achieve academic success, budget constraints at every school level will dampen job growth of school counselors. Federal grants and subsidies may help to offset tight budgets and allow the reduction in student-to-counselor ratios to continue. Employment of mental health counselors is expected to grow by 30 percent, which is much faster than the average for all occupations. Mental health counselors will be needed to staff statewide networks that are being established to improve services for children and adolescents with serious emotional disturbances and for their families. Under managed care systems, insurance companies are increasingly providing for reimbursement of counselors as a less costly alternative to psychiatrists and psychologists. Jobs for rehabilitation counselors are expected to grow by 23 percent, which is much faster than the average for all occupations. The number of people who will need rehabilitation counseling is expected to grow as advances in medical technology allow more people to survive injury or illness and live independently again. In addition, legislation requiring equal employment rights for people with disabilities will spur demand for counselors, who not only help these people make a transition to the workforce but also help companies to comply with the law. Marriage and family therapists will experience growth of 30 percent, which is much faster than the average for all occupations. This is due in part to an increased recognition of the field. It is more common for people to seek help for their marital and family problems than it was in the past. Job prospects. Job prospects vary greatly based on the occupational specialty. Prospects for rehabilitation counselors are excellent because many people are leaving the field or retiring. Furthermore, opportunities are very good in substance abuse and behavioral disorder counseling because relatively low wages and long hours make recruiting new entrants difficult. For school counselors, job prospects should be good because many people are leaving the occupation to retire; however, opportunities may be more favorable in rural and urban areas, rather than the suburbs, because it is often difficult to recruit people to these areas. Median annual earnings of wage and salary educational, vocational, and school counselors in May 2006 were $47,530. The middle 50 percent earned between $36,120 and $60,990. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $27,240, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $75,920. School counselors can earn additional income working summers in the school system or in other jobs. Median annual earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of educational, vocational, and school counselors were as follows: [it cut off my answer just go to the website]

Q: If I Get a Degree in Guidance Counseling - Will I Be in that One Position For The Rest of My Career?
I have a bachelors degree in business and am thinking about getting a Masters Degree in Guidance Counseling. What else will I be able to do other than just working in the school system?

A: You can still be a business women with two degrees you know. pays alot more, you can also work on being a psychologist or a therapist i suppose.

Q: what courses should i be taking if i am wanting to be a counseling psychologist?
basically what the question asks. i am hoping to go to college to get a degree in counseling psychology but i'm not sure what courses i should be taking. because there is so many, like should i take sociology courses? i'm a senior in high school and i'm going to be getting those basic courses out of the way next year at community college, but i just want to be prepared with this knowledge when i start to enroll at a 4yr. college.

A: Remember to take a stat class and psychology research methods class too. Your also need to know what college for your masters too :<)

Q: What classes are needed to get a masters degree in counseling?
Or in anthropology if you know?

A: Interesting difference in majors. Have you started college yet? I did my undergrad work in Social Work and all transferred into my Masters program. I had obviously many counseling classes, both group and individual. I took many substance abuse classes and received a certificate in Women's Studies, which helped me be able to focus mainly working with women. Oh also many many mental health classes. But it depends on if you want to be a general counselor or specialize in a certain area. Feel free to IM or email me, after reading my profile God Bless Reggie

Q: what are some good graduate schools for counseling psychology?
I want to get a master degree in counseling psychology what school would u recommend?

A: I would recommend any program that also has a Ph D program in counseling psychology. There are 70 of them approved by the APA and they can be found listed at http://www.apa.org/ed/accreditation/counspsy.html Good Luck!!!

Q: What counseling theory would you use for the daughter in the film, "White Oldeander"?
I am taking a comprhensive exam for my degree in counseling and I have to watch the movie, "white oleander" and counsel the daughter in the movie. I need theories on what would be the best way to counsel her as well as any information about the falicies of the foster system as described in the movie. Any help would be appreciated!

A: Great question! The daughter in "White Oleander" is sent to live with several foster 'families' in the film after her mother is arrested and then convicted of murder. The child has been victimized by her mother by being the mother's confidante, as well as being taken to the murder scene...yet, the daughter worshipped the mother, as children so often do when their parents treat them abusely. I would use cognitive and behaviorial therapy with this young girl to help her realize that she does have a locus of control and that she can use it to her advantage. (Although, in the end of the film, she does remove herself physically from her mother's influence, so she is already on the right track.) As far as fallacies about the foster care system are concerned, I can agree that the illustrations in the film were somewhat overblown and dramatic, but, after all, film is usually an inflation of reality. However, I would not say that the film presented fallacies about foster care. When the daughter is first taken from her home, the case worker is as sympathetic as possible while still following the confines of the social system. When the daughter is placed for the first time in the so-called "Christian" home, she is inundated by her foster mother's immersion in organized religion, albeit a total hypocrisy on the part of the foster mother. Could this happen? Of course it could, and I feel certain that it does occur, all too often. Additionally, the daughter develops romantic feelings for her foster care mother's boyfriend, who is the only person who has truly been kind to her. Again, this is normal behavior for a girl who has experienced what the daughter has had to endure. At the second foster home, the daughter is immersed in "need" masqueraded as "love" by her second foster care mother. The two have a lot of fun together and I think this is the first time the girl has felt that she could actually relax and trust another female. Alas, tricked again! Devastated when her second foster care mother commits suicide, the daughter goes into a home for children. When the daughter has some say about where she goes next, she chooses the most unlikely woman to be her third foster care "mother" - another exploiter of girls very similar to her biological mother. At that point in her life, even though she has special feelings for a boy who also resides at the children's home, it is evident that she feels she deserves no more than the errant third foster mother. "White Oleander" is a sad movie that fairly accurately depicts the foster care system. Why would you be asked to analyze the movie for fallacies in a film that is almost directly on target concerning the issue? Good luck on your exam! Pasha

Q: What counseling jobs are there for people w/o psych degrees, just a lot of comprehension and life experience?
It's probably easy, but it sure takes years. How can you tell if someone is gifted for helping people emotionally? I once talked to a counselor with a ph. d. in psych but he sounded like he was talking to me from the moon. Who cares if you understand Freud when you can't read people.

A: It is doubtful that life experience will get you a counseling job, else everyone would be counselors.

Q: Is there such a thing as a BACHELORS in Counseling Psychology?
I keep seeing job announcements with "Bachelor’s degree in Counseling Psychology." Is there such a thing as a BA or BS in counseling?

A: I have a BA with a major in Psychology. "Counseling" isn't really a major.

Q: Does anybody have a masters in counseling psychology? If so ,what jobs can you get?
I am thinking about going back to school to pursue a masters degree in counseling psychology. Does anybody know what career path I could take with this degree?

A: You can become a school counselor, or a counseler for a clinic. You might also be able to become a talk-therapist.

Q: Does anyone know the process of getting a masters degree in counseling?
Is it really worth it?

A: It depends on where you want to go, and what you want to specialize in in counseling. Most schools require a GRE score of 1000 combined, and a lot want a psych undergraduate degree, plus 3 professional letters of rec. It's not normally needed to have any previous counseling experience, because you will get that in grad school. Try going to the library and browsing through their books that list grad schools or if you go to college set up an appointment with an advisor. Godd luck!

Q: Graduate Degree in Marriage and Family Counseling ?
I am interested in pursuing a graduate degree in marriage and family counseling. I have been looking for schools online and I can't seem to find any prestigious schools with that program. Does anybody know of any good schools, particularly on the east coast that have this program or a program similar to this. If you know of any that are not on the east coast you can suggest those too, my first choices are just on the east coast. thanks!

A: i starred your question and was hoping for an answer too....i want to be a therapist too. i'm going to go to my local school's undergrad psychology department to find out the pre-requistes. it doesn't matter where you go, just get the degree. the experience. continue to show empathy and develop good patient rapport and you'll do fine.

Q: Do I need a license to open my own depression/anxiety counseling service?
Or have an advanced degree in counseling? I have lived through this and defeated it so I know how to solve it. What do I need to do...

A: Good for you to have lived through depression and feel confident enough to advise others. That's a wonderful beginning to what might be a very fulfilling life vocation and work. However, the answer to your first question --- about license - is "yes" ... to your second question - about needing an advanced degree - is "yes" ... to your third question - about what to do - is as follows. Actually, you've begun --- by acknowledging that your personal experience can be an asset. The next step is to get professionally qualified to turn that personal experience into something that will be recognized and accepted by peers in the profession and that will be respected by prospective clients. So, that means further education in the specific area of counselling and accreditation. After (or while you're in that educational process), begin to research how to go about creating a Business Plan - and create one. Get your resume professionally prepared/edited; research financial options (it costs money to get started --- business cards, marketing your services, renting space, insurance , furniture for your counselling area etc.) That Business Plan should involve 'networking' too --- giving yourself time to get to know others in the field in your area, getting their advice, contacting physicians and asking for referrals etc. The Business Plan needs to have a TimeLine ... like "when do I realistically expect I'll accomplish A and B and C and X and Y and Z" - and it would be great if you had a mentor --- someone who would check in with you to see if you're on your TimeLine. So realistically when might this all be able to start earning you money? Two to five years after you've received your accreditation and opening your counselling practice. In the initial time period, it's a slow time getting clients, paying for rent and furniture and advertising and can seem as if it'll never take off the ground. But, if you are good as a counsellor --- patient, a good listener (this is crucial), have lots of resources you can offer clients (not just 'advice') --- word will spread and before you know it, you will have a sound business and not only feel fulfilled in your chosen vocation but will be enriching the lives of your clients. Good luck and blessings to you and those you may journey with through the depths of their depression and anxiety attacks.