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The differences between licensed professional counselors and counselors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a licensed professional counselor has an average salary of $94,675, which is higher than the $36,225 average annual salary of a counselor.
The top three skills for a licensed professional counselor include patients, social work and LPC. The most important skills for a counselor are patients, crisis intervention, and substance abuse.
| Licensed Professional Counselor | Counselor | |
| Yearly salary | $94,675 | $36,225 |
| Hourly rate | $45.52 | $17.42 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 153,612 | 77,536 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 2 |
| Most common degree | Master's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Average age | 41 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | - |
A licensed professional counselor is a healthcare professional who specializes in providing therapy and counseling to patients with emotional and mental health issues. They listen to their patients and utilize various techniques to address concerns and help through the healing procedures. Their duties entail conducting interviews and evaluations, performing research and assessments, studying the patients' medical histories, providing consultations, and developing treatment plans that suit every patients' needs. Additionally, a licensed professional counselor monitors and records their patients' progress, adjusting treatments and medications as necessary.
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.
Licensed professional counselors and counselors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Licensed Professional Counselor | Counselor | |
| Average salary | $94,675 | $36,225 |
| Salary range | Between $73,000 And $122,000 | Between $19,000 And $67,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | - |
| Highest paying state | New York | California |
| Best paying company | Bloomberg | - |
| Best paying industry | Real Estate | Education |
There are a few differences between a licensed professional counselor and a counselor in terms of educational background:
| Licensed Professional Counselor | Counselor | |
| Most common degree | Master's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between licensed professional counselors' and counselors' demographics:
| Licensed Professional Counselor | Counselor | |
| Average age | 41 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 28.8% Female, 71.2% | Male, 38.5% Female, 61.5% |
| 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, 15.6% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 3.5% White, 63.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 15% | 9% |