Clinical supervisor vs mental health therapist

The differences between clinical supervisors and mental health therapists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a clinical supervisor and a mental health therapist. Additionally, a clinical supervisor has an average salary of $61,615, which is higher than the $50,259 average annual salary of a mental health therapist.

The top three skills for a clinical supervisor include patients, social work and autism. The most important skills for a mental health therapist are social work, patients, and mental health.

Clinical supervisor vs mental health therapist overview

	Clinical Supervisor	Mental Health Therapist
Yearly salary	$61,615	$50,259
Hourly rate	$29.62	$24.16
Growth rate	9%	9%
Number of jobs	71,220	114,386
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 43%	Master's Degree, 49%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	4	4

What does a clinical supervisor do?

A clinical supervisor is responsible for managing a healthcare facility's daily operations, including the medical procedures and treatments of the medical professionals and practitioners. Clinical supervisors work with other healthcare professionals to optimize treatments, assess patients' health conditions, and administer medications. They also enforce strict sanitary and hygienic procedures for strict compliance of the staff. A clinical supervisor must have excellent knowledge of the medical industry to discuss recommendations and evaluate work procedures to provide the patients' highest quality services.

What does a mental health therapist do?

The job of mental health therapists is to guide individuals, groups, couples, and families with problems that are impacting their well-being and mental health. Their duties and responsibilities include encouraging clients to talk about their experiences, examining issues that may affect mental health such as substance abuse and bullying, and assisting clients in defining their goals and action plans. Mental health therapists are also responsible for developing therapeutic processes, referring clients to other services or resources like psychologists, and helping them adjust to life changes.

Clinical supervisor vs mental health therapist salary

Clinical supervisors and mental health therapists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Clinical Supervisor	Mental Health Therapist
Average salary	$61,615	$50,259
Salary range	Between $43,000 And $88,000	Between $35,000 And $70,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	California	Connecticut
Best paying company	Apple	Tykes And Teens
Best paying industry	Education	Non Profits

Differences between clinical supervisor and mental health therapist education

There are a few differences between a clinical supervisor and a mental health therapist in terms of educational background:

	Clinical Supervisor	Mental Health Therapist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 43%	Master's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Nursing	Social Work
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	California State University - Long Beach

Clinical supervisor vs mental health therapist demographics

Here are the differences between clinical supervisors' and mental health therapists' demographics:

	Clinical Supervisor	Mental Health Therapist
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 24.2% Female, 75.8%	Male, 23.3% Female, 76.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 3.1% White, 74.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 3.1% White, 74.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	15%	15%

Differences between clinical supervisor and mental health therapist duties and responsibilities

Clinical supervisor example responsibilities.

Manage the clinical reimbursement coordinators traveling schedule to ensure that facilities have adequate MDS coverage.
Record patients' medical history, vital statistics, or information such as test results in EMR system.
Assist with implementation of OSHA, emergency preparedness, infection control and regulatory compliance for the medical clinic.
Participate in training on various topics such as HIPAA compliance, treatment planning, co-occurring disorders and crisis management.
Pick to be part of a group that work to establish the insurance information house in the EMR system.
Provide annual OSHA require health education, maintain the OSHA log and submit the final annual summary to company management.

Mental health therapist example responsibilities.

Create and lead PTSD group for women, depression and stress management groups for men and women.
Collaborate with patients to develop individualize treatment plans and evaluate plans periodically to monitor progress towards achieving identify goals and objectives.
Provide clinical supervision for MFT intern and participate in peer to peer reviews.
Receive training in diagnoses, physical restraints and CPR.
Care for children with autism and document daily data collection.
Utilize therapy techniques from various modalities including EMDR, TF-CBT, and DBT

Clinical supervisor vs mental health therapist skills

Common clinical supervisor skills

Patients, 17%
Social Work, 8%
Autism, 7%
Applied Behavior Analysis, 6%
ABA, 5%
Clinical Supervision, 4%

Common mental health therapist skills

Social Work, 35%
Patients, 10%
Mental Health, 6%
Group Therapy Sessions, 5%
Mental Health Issues, 3%
Community Resources, 3%

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Clinical Supervisor vs Mental Health Therapist

Updated January 8, 2025

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