Outpatient physical therapist vs licensed professional counselor

The differences between outpatient physical therapists and licensed professional 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 $66,359 average annual salary of an outpatient physical therapist.

The top three skills for an outpatient physical therapist include patients, physical therapy and rehabilitation. The most important skills for a licensed professional counselor are patients, social work, and LPC.

Outpatient physical therapist vs licensed professional counselor overview

	Outpatient Physical Therapist	Licensed Professional Counselor
Yearly salary	$66,359	$94,675
Hourly rate	$31.90	$45.52
Growth rate	17%	6%
Number of jobs	119,973	153,612
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Master's Degree, 49%	Master's Degree, 48%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	-	4

What does an outpatient physical therapist do?

An outpatient physical therapist specializes in diagnosing and treating a patient's movement dysfunction often caused by an illness or injury. Their responsibilities revolve around studying a patient's medical history, performing initial assessments, crafting a specific care and treatment plan, and discussing the extent of treatments with patients and their families. An outpatient physical therapist may also provide advice to families or guardians on how to assist and care for patients at home, prescribe medication, and perform follow-up consultations.

What does a licensed professional counselor do?

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.

Outpatient physical therapist vs licensed professional counselor salary

Outpatient physical therapists and licensed professional counselors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Outpatient Physical Therapist	Licensed Professional Counselor
Average salary	$66,359	$94,675
Salary range	Between $40,000 And $108,000	Between $73,000 And $122,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	New York, NY
Highest paying state	California	New York
Best paying company	Accountable Healthcare Holdings Corp.	Bloomberg
Best paying industry	Non Profits	Real Estate

Differences between outpatient physical therapist and licensed professional counselor education

There are a few differences between an outpatient physical therapist and a licensed professional counselor in terms of educational background:

	Outpatient Physical Therapist	Licensed Professional Counselor
Most common degree	Master's Degree, 49%	Master's Degree, 48%
Most common major	Social Work	Psychology
Most common college	Boston University	Northwestern University

Outpatient physical therapist vs licensed professional counselor demographics

Here are the differences between outpatient physical therapists' and licensed professional counselors' demographics:

	Outpatient Physical Therapist	Licensed Professional Counselor
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 24.4% Female, 75.6%	Male, 28.8% Female, 71.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 11.3% White, 72.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	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	12%	15%

Differences between outpatient physical therapist and licensed professional counselor duties and responsibilities

Outpatient physical therapist example responsibilities.

Facilitate development of coping techniques to manage psychiatric symptoms effectively; educate patients on importance of medication management and compliance.
Demonstrate working knowledge of community mental health services identify in the Medicaid guidelines and attain contractual outcomes within designate time frames.
Perform assessments with clients to determine diagnosis and need of services.
Complete intake assessment and formulate diagnosis.
Assist veterans with transportation to interviews.
Provide active case management service for veterans in residential treatment.

Licensed professional counselor example responsibilities.

Conduct group check-in and co-lead group psychotherapy sessions to help clients identify and manage problems associate with psychiatric conditions.
Provide clinical supervision to LPC candidates, contract clinicians and counseling psychology practicum/internship students.
Assign, direct, and provide supervision of screening assessment complete by LPC and LCSW.
Conduct intakes and assessments on new admissions and recommend placement into services base on ASAM criteria.
Coordinate with the patient's family, attending physician, other hospitals and agencies following HIPAA standards.
Specialize in OCD and animal assist psychotherapy.

Outpatient physical therapist vs licensed professional counselor skills

Common outpatient physical therapist skills

Patients, 23%
Physical Therapy, 17%
Rehabilitation, 11%
Patient Care, 10%
Therapy Services, 5%
Social Work, 5%

Common licensed professional counselor skills

Patients, 13%
Social Work, 12%
LPC, 10%
Real Estate, 10%
Individual Therapy, 8%
Crisis Intervention, 6%

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Outpatient Physical Therapist
Outpatient Physical Therapist vs Licensed Professional Counselor

Updated January 8, 2025

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