How To Become A Program Counselor: What It Is and Career Path

What is a program counselor and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted Experts

Juleen Buser Ph.D.,

Christopher Todd Belser Ph.D.

You want to build strong and healthy homes, whether one within a single house or an entire community. As a Program Counselor, you provide counseling, assistance, and guidance to help clients develop daily living skills that improve their mental, physical, or emotional health.

You work with individuals, groups, and communities through programs that treat problems or offer crisis interventions. You help residents follow programs set up as relevant, purposeful, and in tune with their choices.

If you are interested in a career as a program counselor, you need a bachelor's degree in a social science field. You may also need experience, which you can gain through a counseling internship or as a camp counselor or aide. As a Program Counselor, you earn a median yearly salary of $40,000.

What general advice would you give to a Program Counselor?

Juleen Buser Ph.D.

Professor and Director, School Counseling and Coaching Programs, Rider University

Counseling Services (school counseling concentration) and an MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling (we have a CMHC concentration and a Dance Movement Therapy concentration in this program). The general advice I would give to graduates starting positions in the counseling field would be to understand the critical importance of the work of helping professionals. Counselors optimally provide a safe space for clients to discuss their fears, worries, anxieties, joys, traumas, insecurities, accomplishments, etc. This ability to be an empathic, listening, accepting presence will be even more crucial for clients in our current situation.

ScoreProgram CounselorUS Average

Salary

3.4

Avg. Salary $43,820

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

8.4

Growth Rate 10%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

4.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.38%

Asian 3.23%

Black or African American 11.28%

Hispanic or Latino 12.21%

Unknown 5.91%

White 67.00%

Gender

female 64.09%

male 35.91%

Age - 39

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39

Stress Level

8.4

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

9.9

Complexity Level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

7.8

Work Life balance is good

6.4 - fair

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Key steps to become a program counselor

Explore program counselor education requirements

Most common program counselor degrees

Bachelor's

60.2 %

Master's

15.4 %

Associate

12.5 %

Start to develop specific program counselor skills

Skills	Percentages
Developmental Disabilities	11.28%
Patients	11.13%
Community Integration	8.62%
CPR	8.32%
Social Work	8.21%

Complete relevant program counselor training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New program counselors learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a program counselor based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real program counselor resumes.

Research program counselor duties and responsibilities

Lead recreational activities for adolescents with ADHD and other behavior disorders.
Provide education, within hospital setting, to adolescent psychiatric patients regarding substance abuse and dependency issues.
Receive CPR and first aid certifications.
Attend and receive CPR and basic restraint technique certifications.

Prepare your program counselor resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your program counselor resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a program counselor resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Program Counselor Resume templates

Build a professional Program Counselor resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Program Counselor resume.

Apply for program counselor jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a program counselor job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do program counselors rate their job?

-/5

5 Stars

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1 Star

Program Counselor reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Dec 2019

Pros

To help most people out of their respective concern.

Cons

I don't like people perishing, especially the teenagers.

A zippia user wrote a review on Apr 2019