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The differences between mental health consultants and therapists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a therapist has an average salary of $55,943, which is higher than the $51,006 average annual salary of a mental health consultant.
The top three skills for a mental health consultant include healthcare, substance abuse and patients. The most important skills for a therapist are social work, patients, and group therapy sessions.
| Mental Health Consultant | Therapist | |
| Yearly salary | $51,006 | $55,943 |
| Hourly rate | $24.52 | $26.90 |
| Growth rate | 9% | 17% |
| Number of jobs | 127,233 | 159,770 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 53% | Bachelor's Degree, 47% |
| Average age | 45 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 4 | - |
A mental health consultant is responsible for providing counseling and emotional support to manage a client's issue and control behaviors. Mental health consultants must have excellent communication and listening skills to understand and assess the client's situation and evaluate the level of their emotional and psychological distress. They also need to monitor progress on the client's state and use different psychotherapy methods and treatment plans. A mental health consultant should also reach out to other health professionals to ask assistance for any recovery options as needed.
A therapist is responsible for improving the patients' health conditions by evaluating their needs and providing physical and mental support. Therapists are licensed, medical professionals who specialize in different areas to perform treatments and bring relief to patients. Some of their duties include diagnosing patient's problems, performing counseling services, monitoring medication progress, customizing therapy activities for pain management, and consulting other health professionals as needed. Therapists must have extensive knowledge with the medical industry to detect patients' conditions easily and provide effective medications.
Mental health consultants and therapists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Mental Health Consultant | Therapist | |
| Average salary | $51,006 | $55,943 |
| Salary range | Between $34,000 And $75,000 | Between $39,000 And $80,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Guidehouse | Childhelp |
| Best paying industry | Government | Government |
There are a few differences between a mental health consultant and a therapist in terms of educational background:
| Mental Health Consultant | Therapist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 53% | Bachelor's Degree, 47% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | California State University - Long Beach |
Here are the differences between mental health consultants' and therapists' demographics:
| Mental Health Consultant | Therapist | |
| Average age | 45 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 29.3% Female, 70.7% | Male, 24.4% Female, 75.6% |
| 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, 4.0% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 11.3% White, 72.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 15% | 12% |