How to Become a Career Guidance Counselor

Career guidance counselors carefully evaluate students' skills, interests and personalities in order to provide suggestions for career options. Increasing numbers of adults who are between jobs or considering career changes also use career counselors employed by public and private employment agencies.

Difficulty:

Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Career Counseling
• Computers

1. Consult your college's guidance counselor about which courses or majors will best prepare you for a career as a career guidance counselor. An undergraduate degree in psychology is an excellent choice; you do not need to have a degree in career counseling, per se.

2. Visit the Graduate School Programs Web site (see gradschools.com). Choose a graduate school that offers a master's degree counseling program accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP).

3. Get ready for supervised clinical experience as a requirement of your master's degree.

4. Be aware that you will need your state's school counseling certification if you want to work in a school.

5. Check with your state's employment service office to see if school counselors must also have teaching certificates and teaching experience prior to receiving a counseling certificate.

6. Consider working toward a specialty certification in career counseling. This is especially valuable if you will be working in a private practice. Visit the National Board for Certified Counselors Web site (see nbcc.org) for further information.

Tips & Warnings

• You need to have excellent listening skills and a love of talking to people to be successful in this career.