Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between treatment specialists and youth counselors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a treatment specialist and a youth counselor. Additionally, a treatment specialist has an average salary of $53,673, which is higher than the $36,754 average annual salary of a youth counselor.
The top three skills for a treatment specialist include social work, mental health and rehabilitation. The most important skills for a youth counselor are direct care, mental health, and crisis intervention.
| Treatment Specialist | Youth Counselor | |
| Yearly salary | $53,673 | $36,754 |
| Hourly rate | $25.80 | $17.67 |
| Growth rate | - | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 67,604 | 78,461 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 58% |
| Average age | 44 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
The duties of a treatment specialist depend on their line of work or industry of employment. In the medical industry, a treatment specialist is primarily responsible for developing treatments according to the needs and conditions of a patient. They gather and analyze a patient's medical history and records, conduct extensive tests and examinations, coordinate with other medical experts, and discuss the extent of treatments to patients. Furthermore, a treatment specialist must maintain an active communication line with staff for a smooth and efficient workflow.
A Youth Counselor's role is to provide guidance and interact with children or teenagers in need of care and counseling. The duty of a Youth Counselor is diverse, and it highly depends on the organization or employer. However, the responsibilities mostly revolve around establishing rapport with the youngster while trying to work on their issues, ensuring their welfare by monitoring their emotional and physical state, coordinating with families or other facilities, suggesting treatments, and performing crisis intervention if necessary.
Treatment specialists and youth counselors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Treatment Specialist | Youth Counselor | |
| Average salary | $53,673 | $36,754 |
| Salary range | Between $34,000 And $82,000 | Between $27,000 And $49,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | San Jose, CA |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | California |
| Best paying company | Delaware State Government | New York State Restaurant Association |
| Best paying industry | Non Profits | Professional |
There are a few differences between a treatment specialist and a youth counselor in terms of educational background:
| Treatment Specialist | Youth Counselor | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 58% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | California State University - Long Beach | California State University - Long Beach |
Here are the differences between treatment specialists' and youth counselors' demographics:
| Treatment Specialist | Youth Counselor | |
| Average age | 44 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 37.5% Female, 62.5% | Male, 43.8% Female, 56.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.2% Unknown, 2.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.8% Asian, 2.1% White, 67.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 5.9% Hispanic or Latino, 12.2% Asian, 3.2% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 15% |