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The differences between therapeutic support staff and service counselors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a therapeutic support staff and a service counselor. Additionally, a service counselor has an average salary of $35,402, which is higher than the $34,086 average annual salary of a therapeutic support staff.
The top three skills for a therapeutic support staff include autism, social work and rehabilitation. The most important skills for a service counselor are social work, crisis intervention, and patients.
| Therapeutic Support Staff | Service Counselor | |
| Yearly salary | $34,086 | $35,402 |
| Hourly rate | $16.39 | $17.02 |
| Growth rate | 12% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 192,172 | 44,284 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A therapeutic support staff member specializes in providing guidance and counseling to individuals with emotional support needs, mainly children. They are primarily responsible for building rapport with clients while assessing their different conditions and needs. Through this assessment, therapeutic support staff can develop specific treatments in collaboration with mental health practitioners. One may directly work with schools, clinics, and other medical health facilities. Furthermore, it is essential to maintain all clients' records and monitor their progress, regularly updating the assigned physician or caseworker.
Service counselors provide guidance to couples, individuals, groups, and families who are going through issues that influence their well-being and mental health. They comprehensively approach their clients by utilizing a "wellness" model that focuses on and motivate the client's potentials. Their duties include inspiring clients to talk about their emotions and experiences, helping them determine their action plans and goals, as well as designing therapeutic methods. Also, they may refer their clients to other services or psychologists.
Therapeutic support staff and service counselors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Therapeutic Support Staff | Service Counselor | |
| Average salary | $34,086 | $35,402 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $42,000 | Between $24,000 And $51,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Urban Honolulu, HI |
| Highest paying state | - | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | - | |
| Best paying industry | - | Education |
There are a few differences between a therapeutic support staff and a service counselor in terms of educational background:
| Therapeutic Support Staff | Service Counselor | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | California State University - Long Beach | SUNY at Binghamton |
Here are the differences between therapeutic support staff' and service counselors' demographics:
| Therapeutic Support Staff | Service Counselor | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 25.4% Female, 74.6% | Male, 33.3% Female, 66.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 5.5% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.9% | Black or African American, 12.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 19.7% Asian, 7.1% White, 54.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |