What does a mental health counselor do?
A mental health counselor is responsible for helping patients deal with their emotional and mental disorders by developing treatment plans and conducting regular counseling to track the patient's progress and condition. Mental health counselors encourage active communication from their patients, provide coping strategies for triggering situations, seek advice from other health care professionals, and guide patients on doing other activities that would help them relax. A mental health counselor must have excellent knowledge of the mental health disciplines to assist patients in their healthy lifestyle development.
Mental health counselor responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real mental health counselor resumes:
- Provide clinical consultation to consumers and clients regarding manage care services and other benefits available to them through their EAP programs.
- Conduct group check-in and co-lead group psychotherapy sessions to help clients identify and manage problems associate with psychiatric conditions.
- Certify in CPI (crisis intervention technique).
- Assist with crisis intervention, (CPI) maintains treatment activities.
- Provide mental health assessment and evaluation of detainees refer by facility staff or identify by pre-screening (booking or nursing).
- Assess for special needs during booking process.
- Work on casual basis as back-up for full-time MHP.
- Job responsibilities are congruent with most MHP job descriptions.
- Train new staff in current unit policies, procedures, and culture of compassion.
- Focuse on dual diagnois group of adults with both a psychosis and drug/alcohol addiction.
- Collaborate with all relevant systems and key participants within each system to ensure their buy-in and cooperation throughout MST treatment.
- Engage in a high level of supervision, training and clinical consultation, all conduct in accordance with MST specifications.
- Admit and provide care for a wide range of patients diagnose with depression, bipolar disorder, PTSD, and schizophrenia.
- Work in their homes to help modify behaviors (anger management, separation anxiety ,) autism are often also diagnose.
- Conduct telephonic counseling with EAP clients
Mental health counselor skills and personality traits
We calculated that 17% of Mental Health Counselors are proficient in Social Work, Patients, and Crisis Intervention. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Emotional skills, and Problem-solving skills.
We break down the percentage of Mental Health Counselors that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Social Work, 17%
Collaborated with a multidisciplinary team of social workers, psychiatric nurses, and psychiatrists to ensure delivery of exemplary clinical services.
- Patients, 16%
Provided individual counseling of adult, adolescent and child patients and facilitated group discussions related to cognitive and life-coping skills topics.
- Crisis Intervention, 9%
Develop bio/psycho/social assessments, provide diagnostic evaluation and triage services, render crisis intervention and stabilization services and advocate for clients.
- Patient Care, 6%
Suggested solutions for positive change including assisting Veterans with scheduling and coordinating outpatient care prior to discharge.
- Mental Health Issues, 5%
Administered psycho-social Assessments, motivational interviews and consultation to clients with mental health issues, developmental and psychological issues.
- Rehabilitation, 4%
Counseled adolescents at Residential Drug/Alcohol Rehabilitation and long-term Psychiatric Facility
"social work," "patients," and "crisis intervention" are among the most common skills that mental health counselors use at work. You can find even more mental health counselor responsibilities below, including:
Communication skills. The most essential soft skill for a mental health counselor to carry out their responsibilities is communication skills. This skill is important for the role because "clients talk to social workers about challenges in their lives." Additionally, a mental health counselor resume shows how their duties depend on communication skills: "demonstrated effective written and oral communication skills individual therapy facilitated group sessions adhere to agency policies and core competencies"
Problem-solving skills. mental health counselors are also known for problem-solving skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to mental health counselor responsibilities, because "social workers must analyze their clients’ complex situations and develop practical solutions." A mental health counselor resume example shows how problem-solving skills is used in the workplace: "conducted group and individual counseling for empowerment and support offered youth problem-solving skills completed mental health assessments"
Interpersonal skills. A big part of what mental health counselors do relies on "interpersonal skills." You can see how essential it is to mental health counselor responsibilities because "social workers must be able to work with different groups of people." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical mental health counselor tasks: "counseled residents on coping skills, anger management and interpersonal relationships. "
Organizational skills. Another common skill required for mental health counselor responsibilities is "organizational skills." This skill comes up in the duties of mental health counselors all the time, as "social workers must help and manage multiple clients, often assisting with their paperwork or documenting their treatment." An excerpt from a real mental health counselor resume shows how this skill is central to what a mental health counselor does: "participated regularly in organizational meetings for advocacy of victims of domestic violence in the japanese community in new england area. "
Compassion. Lastly, "compassion" is an important element of what a mental health counselor does. Mental health counselor responsibilities require this skill because "social workers often work with people who are in stressful and difficult situations." This resume example highlights how mental health counselor duties rely on this skill: "provide care and compassion to residents with traumatic brain injuries and varying levels of mental illness. "
The three companies that hire the most mental health counselors are:
- Central City Concern510 mental health counselors jobs
- Thriveworks346 mental health counselors jobs
- Discovery Behavioral Health101 mental health counselors jobs
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Compare different mental health counselors
Mental health counselor vs. Counselor internship
When it comes to Counselor Internship, among the primary responsibilities is to assist in dealing with various activities such as preparing and verifying necessary documentation, observing consultations and outreach programs, guide clients and help develop multiple helpful strategies, and provide assessments. Furthermore, one can conduct counseling and consultation only under supervision. It is also essential to track the information gathered and coordinate with assigned personnel to adhere to the company's regulations and policies.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, mental health counselor responsibilities require skills like "social work," "patients," "patient care," and "rehabilitation." Meanwhile a typical counselor internship has skills in areas such as "intake interviews," "mental illness," "individual therapy sessions," and "lpc." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Counselor interns really shine in the finance industry with an average salary of $51,629. Comparatively, mental health counselors tend to make the most money in the health care industry with an average salary of $52,181.The education levels that counselor interns earn slightly differ from mental health counselors. In particular, counselor interns are 11.1% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a mental health counselor. Additionally, they're 0.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Mental health counselor vs. Alcohol and drug counselor
A drug & alcohol counselor treats addicts in either one-on-one or group settings. They help by educating and developing possible treatment plans for patients to support them in coping with their addictive personalities. A drug and alcohol counselor will evaluate to determine the progress has been successfully made towards recovery. They help patients better understand and overcome their addictions. Counselors help through offering support, rehabilitation, and guidance by using various techniques. Drug & alcohol counselors seek to help an addict find the source of their addiction.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that mental health counselor responsibilities requires skills like "patient care," "cpr," "mental health," and "therapeutic environment." But an alcohol and drug counselor might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "substance abuse treatment," "treatment services," "asam," and "drug abuse."
Alcohol and drug counselors may earn a lower salary than mental health counselors, but alcohol and drug counselors earn the most pay in the professional industry with an average salary of $44,333. On the other hand, mental health counselors receive higher pay in the health care industry, where they earn an average salary of $52,181.In general, alcohol and drug counselors achieve lower levels of education than mental health counselors. They're 8.5% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for mental health counselors in the next 3-5 years?
Virginia Schwindt
MSW Field Director/Associate Professor, Union University
Mental health counselor vs. Crisis counselor
A crisis counselor is responsible for providing assistance and emotional support to clients under crises or mental health emergencies caused by stress, trauma, grief, and other factors. Most crisis counselors work at clinics or counseling centers, and there are instances where they can be at schools and organizations. Aside from diagnosing and providing specific treatments, a crisis counselor must also build rapport with clients, helping them feel comfortable every step of the way, and serving as a positive influence in their journey to recovery.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from mental health counselor resumes include skills like "patient care," "rehabilitation," "cpr," and "family therapy," whereas a crisis counselor is more likely to list skills in "mental health crisis," "social services," "suicide prevention," and "mental illness. "
Crisis counselors typically earn lower educational levels compared to mental health counselors. Specifically, they're 7.6% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.6% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Mental health counselor vs. Group counselor
A group counselor provides counseling services primarily in a group setting, aiming to provide clients with a supportive and healthy environment where they can work on different issues and reach personal goals. They typically conduct research and assessments, establish program objectives and guidelines, arrange various activities, and facilitate positive interactions to support one another. Additionally, a group counselor has the duty to implement policies and standards, create treatment plans, and optimize strategies to ensure clients receive optimal support and services.
Types of mental health counselor
Updated January 8, 2025
