How To Become a Group Counselor
Summary. We reviewed real candidate profiles to learn the best path to become a group counselor. We'll guide you through the education, experiences, and skills hiring managers look for in a group counselor.
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Most companies require a group counselor to have a bachelor's degree degree in a related field, such as psychology or criminal justice.
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It's important to have relevant work experience, with typical job requirements ranging from 2-4 years in related fields.
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Common job titles before becoming a group counselor include internship, counselor, and volunteer.
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Hiring managers expect a group counselor to have soft skills such as communication skills, emotional skills, and organizational skills.
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Once you have all the required skills and experience, it takes an average of 3-6 months of job training to become a group counselor.
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Getting a certification as a Pastoral Counseling Certification will help you to earn more as a group counselor.
We've found that 60.6% of group counselors have earned a bachelor's degree. Furthermore, 14.7% earned their master's degrees before becoming a group counselor. While it's true that most group counselors have a college degree, it's generally possible to become one with only a high school degree. In fact, one out of every eight group counselors did not spend the extra money to attend college.
The group counselors who went onto college to earn a more in-depth education generally studied psychology and criminal justice, while a small population of group counselors studied social work and human services.
How to become a Group Counselor in 5 steps:
- Step 1: Explore group counselor education
- Step 2: Develop group counselor skills
- Step 3: Complete relevent training/internship
- Step 4: Research group counselor duties
- Step 5: Prepare your resume
Key Steps To Become a Group Counselor
Explore Group Counselor Education
If you're interested in becoming a group counselor, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 60.6% of group counselors have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 14.7% of group counselors have master's degrees. Even though most group counselors have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become a group counselor. When we researched the most common majors for a group counselor, we found that they most commonly have psychology, criminal justice and social work.
Group Counselor Major Percentages Psychology 29.70% Criminal Justice 10.00% Social Work 7.20% Human Services 5.20% Other Degrees 47.90% Develop Group Counselor Skills
It'll be a good idea to develop group counselor skills before applying for a job. Here are some skills commonly requested in group counselor job descriptions:
Skills Percentages Mental Health 22.58% Patients 21.11% Crisis Intervention 8.42% Social Work 7.94% Rehabilitation 7.15% Complete Relevent Training/Internship
Group counselors spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. During this time, new group counselors learn the skills and techniques required for their specific job and employer. The chart below shows how much time it takes to gain competency as a group counselor based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real group counselor resumes.
Average Amount Of Time At Training
Research Group Counselor Duties
When you decide to become a group counselor, It's important to know what duties and responsibilities are required for this position. Some common responsibilities are a part of most group counselor jobs. Here is a list of the main duties that define the role:
- Administer first aid and CPR when need.
- Develop leadership skills while training younger counselors.
- Execute leadership skills by planning and facilitating activities.
- Work towards empowering juveniles and their families to support a positive lifestyle by providing strength base intensive intervention and rehabilitation services.
- Provide behavior modification and social skills training to children and adolescents with ADHD and other behavioral and emotional disorders.
Prepare Your Resume
Finally, when you already have checked the skills and responsibilities for this role, you can start creating your resume. Everything that goes into creating a perfect resume can take hours, days, or even weeks. No worries, we created a resume builder to make this process as easy as possible with tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and a summary.
Choose From 10+ Customizable Group Counselor Resume templates
Build a professional Group Counselor resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Group Counselor resume.Apply For a Group Counselor Job
Group Counselor Jobs
