Career guidance counselor vs academic counselor

The differences between career guidance counselors and academic counselors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a career guidance counselor has an average salary of $54,429, which is higher than the $47,454 average annual salary of an academic counselor.

The top three skills for a career guidance counselor include PSAT, K-12 and GED. The most important skills for an academic counselor are financial aid, academic support, and student services.

Career guidance counselor vs academic counselor overview

	Career Guidance Counselor	Academic Counselor
Yearly salary	$54,429	$47,454
Hourly rate	$26.17	$22.81
Growth rate	10%	10%
Number of jobs	29,185	39,084
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 54%	Bachelor's Degree, 66%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	-	-

Career guidance counselor vs academic counselor salary

Career guidance counselors and academic counselors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Career Guidance Counselor	Academic Counselor
Average salary	$54,429	$47,454
Salary range	Between $31,000 And $94,000	Between $35,000 And $63,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	Virginia
Best paying company	-	California College of the Arts
Best paying industry	-	Non Profits

Differences between career guidance counselor and academic counselor education

There are a few differences between a career guidance counselor and an academic counselor in terms of educational background:

	Career Guidance Counselor	Academic Counselor
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 54%	Bachelor's Degree, 66%
Most common major	Psychology	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Career guidance counselor vs academic counselor demographics

Here are the differences between career guidance counselors' and academic counselors' demographics:

	Career Guidance Counselor	Academic Counselor
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 36.6% Female, 63.4%	Male, 35.4% Female, 64.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 3.7% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 3.7% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between career guidance counselor and academic counselor duties and responsibilities

Career guidance counselor example responsibilities.

Utilize Salesforce to manage advertising programs for business owners.
Shadow middle school guidance counselor during student counseling sessions, individualize education program (IEP) meetings, and staff meetings
Participate in weekly student services/crisis team meetings and regular IEP meetings.
Remain non-denominational, open, flexible and ecumenical in service to patients while also providing additional resources from local spiritual communities.
Provide behavior modification and social skills training to children and adolescents with ADHD and other behavioral and emotional disorders.

Academic counselor example responsibilities.

Utilize Salesforce to manage advertising programs for business owners.
Remain non-denominational, open, flexible and ecumenical in service to patients while also providing additional resources from local spiritual communities.
Test PeopleSoft upgrades and provide suggestions.
Tutor introductory biology, chemistry, psychology and remedial mathematics.
Guide older students in navigating PeopleSoft application to access portal for online registrations.
Navigate the college process through the CUNY, SUNY, and common application.

Career guidance counselor vs academic counselor skills

Common career guidance counselor skills

PSAT, 37%
K-12, 32%
GED, 32%

Common academic counselor skills

Financial Aid, 9%
Academic Support, 8%
Student Services, 8%
Professional Development, 6%
Student Athletes, 5%
Academic Advisement, 5%

Career Guidance Counselor vs. similar jobs

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Career Guidance Counselor
Career Guidance Counselor vs Academic Counselor

Updated January 8, 2025

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