Psychologist vs job counselor

The differences between psychologists and job counselors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a psychologist has an average salary of $97,803, which is higher than the $49,977 average annual salary of a job counselor.

The top three skills for a psychologist include patients, crisis intervention and rehabilitation. The most important skills for a job counselor are training programs, at-risk youth, and substance abuse.

Psychologist vs job counselor overview

	Psychologist	Job Counselor
Yearly salary	$97,803	$49,977
Hourly rate	$47.02	$24.03
Growth rate	6%	10%
Number of jobs	12,516	103,416
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Average age	47	42
Years of experience	-	-

Psychologist vs job counselor salary

Psychologists and job counselors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Psychologist	Job Counselor
Average salary	$97,803	$49,977
Salary range	Between $68,000 And $139,000	Between $26,000 And $95,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	-
Highest paying state	California	-
Best paying company	Sierra Corporation	-
Best paying industry	Health Care	-

Differences between psychologist and job counselor education

There are a few differences between a psychologist and a job counselor in terms of educational background:

	Psychologist	Job Counselor
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Most common major	Psychology	Psychology
Most common college	Northwestern University	University of Pennsylvania

Psychologist vs job counselor demographics

Here are the differences between psychologists' and job counselors' demographics:

	Psychologist	Job Counselor
Average age	47	42
Gender ratio	Male, 35.2% Female, 64.8%	Male, 34.0% Female, 66.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.1% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 10.8% Asian, 4.2% White, 75.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 3.7% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	20%	11%

Differences between psychologist and job counselor duties and responsibilities

Psychologist example responsibilities.

Supervise mental health staff, including the overseeing of the provision of mental health services in a correctional facility.
Provide EMDR therapy for clients with trauma and anxiety.
Perform tests to diagnose autism in children or tests for the detection of autism at an early age.
Provide supervision and mentoring for APA Pre-Doctoral interns.
Supervise clinical activities of doctoral level psychology interns in APA accredit internship program.
Evaluate veterans for psychological disorders that may have resulted secondary to their military service for compensation purposes.

Job counselor example responsibilities.

Work with and case manage families receiving TANF financial benefits and with customers receiving displace worker financial help.
Monitor caseworkers to ensure rehabilitation services are properly coordinate to aid clients in achieving self-sufficiency.
Utilize aforementioned partnerships to assist TANF recipients in obtaining employment which lead to career advancement and case closure.
Addressed domestic violence and substance abuse issues, housing and all community resources relate to successful rehabilitation.
Represent elected officials & county management in civil employment litigation matters and grievance hearings.
Draft EEOC OFCCP, DOL, DFEH and PERB position statements and responses.

Psychologist vs job counselor skills

Common psychologist skills

Patients, 18%
Crisis Intervention, 7%
Rehabilitation, 6%
Mental Illness, 5%
Clinical Supervision, 5%
APA, 4%

Common job counselor skills

Training Programs, 17%
at-Risk Youth, 11%
Substance Abuse, 10%
GED, 10%
Community Resources, 9%
Vocational Training, 8%

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Psychologist vs Job Counselor

Updated January 8, 2025

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