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Family intervention specialist vs counselor

The differences between family intervention specialists and counselors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a family intervention specialist has an average salary of $42,045, which is higher than the $36,225 average annual salary of a counselor.

The top three skills for a family intervention specialist include social work, family therapy and at-risk youth. The most important skills for a counselor are patients, crisis intervention, and substance abuse.

Family intervention specialist vs counselor overview

Family Intervention SpecialistCounselor
Yearly salary$42,045$36,225
Hourly rate$20.21$17.42
Growth rate9%10%
Number of jobs76,99077,536
Job satisfaction-2
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 62%Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Average age4244
Years of experience4-

What does a family intervention specialist do?

A family intervention specialist provides family-centered care by visiting children and youth with alcohol addiction, substance abuse, and mental or behavioral health disorders. Typical duties include providing assessment and counseling using evidence-based practices, coordinating with treatment providers to implement services for children and their families. Additionally, as a family intervention specialist, you will be responsible for maintaining up-to-date and accurate reporting, clinical charts, and billing records.

What does a counselor do?

Often, counselors are known to be the go-to person in times we are in need of emotional and psychological support. They help people to manage and overcome the issues which affect their mental health and well-being. Counselors face different kind of situations which may involve trauma, addiction, disabilities, abuse, suicide, anger management, career, and even personal relationships. They provide care, counseling, rehabilitation, and support services. Every counseling requires collaborative effort both from the counselor and client to become effective.

Family intervention specialist vs counselor salary

Family intervention specialists and counselors have different pay scales, as shown below.

Family Intervention SpecialistCounselor
Average salary$42,045$36,225
Salary rangeBetween $35,000 And $49,000Between $19,000 And $67,000
Highest paying City--
Highest paying state-California
Best paying company--
Best paying industry-Education

Differences between family intervention specialist and counselor education

There are a few differences between a family intervention specialist and a counselor in terms of educational background:

Family Intervention SpecialistCounselor
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 62%Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Most common majorPsychologyPsychology
Most common collegeHunter College of the City University of New YorkUniversity of Pennsylvania

Family intervention specialist vs counselor demographics

Here are the differences between family intervention specialists' and counselors' demographics:

Family Intervention SpecialistCounselor
Average age4244
Gender ratioMale, 22.4% Female, 77.6%Male, 38.5% Female, 61.5%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 13.4% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 2.7% White, 63.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%Black or African American, 15.6% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 3.5% White, 63.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%
LGBT Percentage10%9%

Differences between family intervention specialist and counselor duties and responsibilities

Family intervention specialist example responsibilities.

  • Help children/youth in state custody achieve permanency whether through reintegration, adoption or custodianship.
  • Provide information and support to transitioning foster youth during assessment, case planning or other permanency and transition-relate activities.
  • case file review and Medicaid authorizations.
  • Attend school meetings, including disciplinary meetings, IEP meetings, and conferences for clients.
  • Complete risk assessments and develop comprehensive intervention plans to address safety, communication, and problem solving abilities.

Counselor example responsibilities.

  • Maintain a safe program through ongoing CPI training.
  • Utilize de-escalation skills (CPI) when necessary.
  • Instill confidence, improve all components of writing and reading, and study strategies.
  • Arrange ESL tutoring and perform as liaison between students, parents, and school administrators.
  • Advise students into their major field of study, and assisting them with choosing the correct curriculum.
  • Operate a full service litigation office that evolve from general litigation to criminal litigation to federal criminal trials.
  • Show more

Family intervention specialist vs counselor skills

Common family intervention specialist skills
  • Social Work, 28%
  • Family Therapy, 13%
  • at-Risk Youth, 7%
  • On-Call Availability, 5%
  • Child Welfare, 5%
  • Villages, 5%
Common counselor skills
  • Patients, 13%
  • Crisis Intervention, 12%
  • Substance Abuse, 12%
  • Social Work, 10%
  • Community Resources, 4%
  • CPR, 4%

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