School guidance counselor vs career counselor

The differences between school guidance counselors and career counselors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a school guidance counselor has an average salary of $49,562, which is higher than the $44,870 average annual salary of a career counselor.

The top three skills for a school guidance counselor include crisis intervention, community agencies and professional development. The most important skills for a career counselor are career development, career services, and professional development.

School guidance counselor vs career counselor overview

	School Guidance Counselor	Career Counselor
Yearly salary	$49,562	$44,870
Hourly rate	$23.83	$21.57
Growth rate	10%	10%
Number of jobs	82,545	42,035
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	-	-

What does a school guidance counselor do?

School Guidance Counselors assess students' ability and potential, provide private counseling, and coordinate with fellow professionals on student matters. To help students in realizing their objectives, school guidance counselors evaluate their attributes. Also, they identify behavioral problems and appropriately to remedy the situation. Part of their duties is to cooperate with parents, external partners, and academic staff. To succeed, these guidance counselors must be authentic and accessible with good communication skills and a profound interest in helping students to achieve career and academic goals.

What does a career counselor do?

A career counselor specializes in assisting clients in their career-related decisions. Utilizing their expertise in career development, they typically meet with clients to discuss their short-term and long-term goals, identify their needs and concerns, conduct different aptitude tests and examinations, organize skills assessment procedures, and provide strategies to improve or enhance their skills and abilities. Aside from providing consultations, a career counselor may also assist clients in processing and establishing their resumes, supporting them every step of the way.

School guidance counselor vs career counselor salary

School guidance counselors and career counselors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	School Guidance Counselor	Career Counselor
Average salary	$49,562	$44,870
Salary range	Between $36,000 And $67,000	Between $33,000 And $60,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Los Angeles, CA
Highest paying state	California	New Jersey
Best paying company	Tolleson Union High School District	Columbia University in the City of New York
Best paying industry	Education	Technology

Differences between school guidance counselor and career counselor education

There are a few differences between a school guidance counselor and a career counselor in terms of educational background:

	School Guidance Counselor	Career Counselor
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Most common major	School Counseling	Psychology
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

School guidance counselor vs career counselor demographics

Here are the differences between school guidance counselors' and career counselors' demographics:

	School Guidance Counselor	Career Counselor
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 24.7% Female, 75.3%	Male, 42.4% Female, 57.6%
Race ratio	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%	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	11%	11%

Differences between school guidance counselor and career counselor duties and responsibilities

School guidance counselor example responsibilities.

Participate in IEP's staff meetings, parent meetings and individual student counseling.
Attend and participate in IEP meetings, truancy elimination meetings, children s clinic meetings, and parent meetings.
Remain non-denominational, open, flexible and ecumenical in service to patients while also providing additional resources from local spiritual communities.
Collaborate with peers in leadership capacity at recreational summer camp leading, coordinating and organizing daily activities and weekly field trips.

Career counselor example responsibilities.

Monitor and manage IEP forms and certifications to adhere to program requirements.
Interpret PSAT results with parents and students through education workshop.
Coordinate transitioning veterans with community hiring facilities in the areas of their desire location.
Provide information to individuals on matters pertaining to social security, veterans administration, and uniform service health benefits program.
Provide testing, including TABE, Proveit and Oscar.
Develop new intake orientation and TABE testing process for prospective participants.

School guidance counselor vs career counselor skills

Common school guidance counselor skills

Crisis Intervention, 7%
Community Agencies, 7%
Professional Development, 6%
Financial Aid, 5%
Career Planning, 4%
K-12, 4%

Common career counselor skills

Career Development, 12%
Career Services, 7%
Professional Development, 6%
Career Planning, 5%
Mental Health, 5%
Career Exploration, 5%

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School Guidance Counselor
School Guidance Counselor vs Career Counselor

Updated January 8, 2025

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