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.
School guidance counselor responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real school guidance counselor resumes:
- 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.
School guidance counselor skills and personality traits
We calculated that 7% of School Guidance Counselors are proficient in Crisis Intervention, Community Agencies, and Professional Development. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Compassion, and Interpersonal skills.
We break down the percentage of School Guidance Counselors that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Crisis Intervention, 7%
Provide student crisis intervention as needed and refer students needing intensive diagnosis to specialist and community based organizations.
- Community Agencies, 7%
Provided records for the Disability Determination Division of the Social Security Administration and collateral contact with community agencies.
- Professional Development, 6%
Participate in on-going professional development to stay abreast of relevant psycho-social issues and college/career guidance.
- Financial Aid, 5%
Disseminated materials and information concerning college requirements, college entrance examinations, financial aid, and career trends.
- Career Planning, 4%
Planned various activities and strategies for student career planning, organizing Annual Career Day and Awards Programs.
- K-12, 4%
Followed MSDE guidelines for curriculum/administration for a non-profit, private K-12 school.
Most school guidance counselors use their skills in "crisis intervention," "community agencies," and "professional development" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential school guidance counselor responsibilities here:
Analytical skills. The most essential soft skill for a school guidance counselor to carry out their responsibilities is analytical skills. This skill is important for the role because "school and career counselors and advisors interpret student records, schoolwide data, and assessments to match interests and abilities with potential careers. ." Additionally, a school guidance counselor resume shows how their duties depend on analytical skills: "create statistical reports based on standardized testing data to assist in curriculum decisions. "
Compassion. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling school guidance counselor duties is compassion. The role rewards competence in this skill because "school and career counselors and advisors often work with people who are dealing with stressful and difficult situations, so they must be able to empathize with their clients and students." According to a school guidance counselor resume, here's how school guidance counselors can utilize compassion in their job responsibilities: "provide at-risk youth with therapeutic and compassionate services. "
Interpersonal skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of school guidance counselors is interpersonal skills. This skill is critical to many everyday school guidance counselor duties, as "school and career counselors and advisors must be able to work with people of all backgrounds and personalities." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "develop and teachinterpersonal skillsguidance curriculum including social/emotional, academic, and careereducation. "
Listening skills. school guidance counselor responsibilities often require "listening skills." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "school and career counselors and advisors need to give full attention to students and clients in order to understand their problems." This resume example shows what school guidance counselors do with listening skills on a typical day: "communicated with teachers, parents, and school administration on a daily basis. "
Speaking skills. Another crucial skill for a school guidance counselor to carry out their responsibilities is "speaking skills." A big part of what school guidance counselors relies on this skill, since "school and career counselors and advisors must communicate effectively with clients and students." How this skill relates to school guidance counselor duties can be seen in an example from a school guidance counselor resume snippet: "presented classroom guidance lessons on a variety of topics, to include career development. "
The three companies that hire the most school guidance counselors are:
- Boston Public Schools10 school guidance counselors jobs
- The City University of New York4 school guidance counselors jobs
- K122 school guidance counselors jobs
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Compare different school guidance counselors
School guidance 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, school guidance counselor responsibilities require skills like "professional development," "financial aid," "career planning," and "k-12." Meanwhile a typical counselor internship has skills in areas such as "intake assessments," "substance abuse issues," "mental health issues," and "group therapy sessions." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Counselor interns earn the highest salaries when working in the finance industry, with an average yearly salary of $51,629. On the other hand, school guidance counselors are paid more in the education industry with an average salary of $49,013.counselor interns tend to reach lower levels of education than school guidance counselors. In fact, counselor interns are 25.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.6% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.School guidance counselor vs. Community health counselor
A community health counselor typically provides health and welfare support to the disadvantaged members of a community. Their responsibilities revolve around devising strategies to reach out to community members, coordinating with schools and other institutions, and building positive relationships with the communities that they serve. They may also provide counseling sessions to individuals of all ages, conduct observations and assessments, perform interventions, and identify any signs of abuse or neglect, reporting to the authorities right away. Furthermore, they may refer families or individuals to other social services unit if necessary.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, school guidance counselor responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "professional development," "financial aid," "career planning," and "k-12." Meanwhile, a community health counselor has duties that require skills in areas such as "social work," "behavioral health," "patients," and "rehabilitation." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
On average, community health counselors earn a lower salary than school guidance counselors. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, community health counselors earn the most pay in the health care industry with an average salary of $41,674. Whereas school guidance counselors have higher pay in the education industry, with an average salary of $49,013.community health counselors earn lower levels of education than school guidance counselors in general. They're 21.9% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.6% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for school guidance counselors in the next 3-5 years?
Lesley Casarez Ph.D.
Director, Quality Enhancement Plan Program Coordinator, M.S. Professional School Counseling Associate Professor, Curriculum and Instruction, Angelo State University
School guidance counselor vs. Student support counselor
A student support counselor is responsible for identifying the students' strengths and challenges through one-on-one counseling and establishing solutions to help them overcome difficulties and achieve their educational goals and aspirations. Student support counselors assist the faculty in determining appropriate programs and activities to develop the students' capabilities, especially as a way of preparing them with their career objectives. They also coordinate with the students' families for extended guidance and support for their growth and development.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a school guidance counselor is likely to be skilled in "k-12," "student data," "public schools," and "career development," while a typical student support counselor is skilled in "student support," "support services," "group therapy," and "powerpoint."
Student support counselors earn the highest salary when working in the education industry, where they receive an average salary of $44,149. Comparatively, school guidance counselors have the highest earning potential in the education industry, with an average salary of $49,013.Most student support counselors achieve a lower degree level compared to school guidance counselors. For example, they're 31.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.6% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.School guidance counselor vs. Counselor
Often, counselors are known to be the go-to person in times we are in need of emotional and psychological support. They help people to manage and overcome the issues which affect their mental health and well-being. Counselors face different kind of situations which may involve trauma, addiction, disabilities, abuse, suicide, anger management, career, and even personal relationships. They provide care, counseling, rehabilitation, and support services. Every counseling requires collaborative effort both from the counselor and client to become effective.
Types of school guidance counselor
Updated January 8, 2025
