Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between intake counselors and program counselors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an intake counselor and a program counselor. Additionally, an intake counselor has an average salary of $44,574, which is higher than the $43,820 average annual salary of a program counselor.
The top three skills for an intake counselor include social work, patients and crisis intervention. The most important skills for a program counselor are developmental disabilities, patients, and community integration.
| Intake Counselor | Program Counselor | |
| Yearly salary | $44,574 | $43,820 |
| Hourly rate | $21.43 | $21.07 |
| Growth rate | 12% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 77,050 | 133,491 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
An intake counselor is responsible for monitoring patients with mental disability and substance abuse cases, administering treatment plans according to their medical histories and current needs. Intake counselors diagnose patients' conditions through psychological tests and regular counseling. They also coordinate with the patients' family members, as well as other health professionals, to assess the patients' treatment needs. An intake counselor may also handle the payment for treatment plans and reaching out to the insurance provider upon discussing the patient's case.
A Program Counselor is an essential part of a school's faculty. It's the counselor's responsibility to ensure that students are benefiting from the school's educational curriculum. This person is also tasked to help students resolve issues and problems that may hinder any educational progress. They are also part of the disciplinary team intended to instill good morals, ethics, and decency in students. The Program Counselor is one of the teacher or professor who has expertise or has a high educational degree in a particular subject or field.
Intake counselors and program counselors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Intake Counselor | Program Counselor | |
| Average salary | $44,574 | $43,820 |
| Salary range | Between $32,000 And $60,000 | Between $33,000 And $58,000 |
| Highest paying City | Scottsdale, AZ | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | Washington | New York |
| Best paying company | HonorHealth | Russell Sage College |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | Health Care |
There are a few differences between an intake counselor and a program counselor in terms of educational background:
| Intake Counselor | Program Counselor | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | California State University - Long Beach | California State University - Long Beach |
Here are the differences between intake counselors' and program counselors' demographics:
| Intake Counselor | Program Counselor | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 25.5% Female, 74.5% | Male, 35.9% Female, 64.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 5.9% Hispanic or Latino, 12.2% Asian, 3.2% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 5.9% Hispanic or Latino, 12.2% Asian, 3.2% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 15% | 15% |