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This question is about therapist.
LCSW vs Therapist
LCSW is a licensed clinical social worker who helps clients by focusing on their overall social and socioeconomic circumstances, while a therapist is a mental health professional who helps others using mental health treatments and emotional healing.
The path to becoming a therapist also involves graduating with a master's degree and passing an exam for state certification. Not all therapists, however, are licensed.
All LCSW professionals are licensed social workers who have met specific requirements such as completing an accredited social worker master's program, a certain number of clinical hours, passing the ASWB exams (Association of Social Work Boards), and applying for a state license.
An LCSW credential allows you to work as a social worker and provide all services associated with your scope of practice free of supervision. The term therapist, conversely, serves as an umbrella term for all professions within the area of psychotherapy.
To practice therapy, however, most states require a license, which requires passing an exam administered by their state. Consistent with LCSW, therapists are also required to have a master's degree, sometimes also in social work.
LCSW vs. therapist is a tough comparison when looking at salary and job prospects. The two have some overlap in terms of what they can do and the kind of patients they treat, but with very different paths to licensure and different job duties. The national median for an LCSW is $57,283 a year, while the national median for a therapist is $71,859 per year.
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