How To Become A Veterans Rehabilitation Counselor: What It Is and Career Path

What is a veterans rehabilitation counselor and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Dr. Meredith Bertrand

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a veterans rehabilitation counselor. For example, did you know that they make an average of $21.63 an hour? That's $44,984 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 11% and produce 9,800 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a veterans rehabilitation counselor?

Dr. Meredith Bertrand

Chair of Education; Associate Professor of Education, Elms College

History is ever-changing, and teachers must clarify how current events are just as much a part of the study of history as any other socio-political period or event. If you are not comparing the civil rights movement of today to the ongoing civil rights movements of the past, and if you are not supporting the campaign against oppression and institutional racism upon which our nation was built, then you are doing continuous harm to those who need you to act and disrupt the cycle. History teachers better be ready to be activists, not just teachers, or else you are perpetuating the status quo.

ScoreVeterans Rehabilitation CounselorUS Average

Salary

3.5

Avg. Salary $44,984

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.4

Growth rate 11%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.6

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.66%

Asian 2.90%

Black or African American 13.69%

Hispanic or Latino 10.79%

Unknown 4.56%

White 66.39%

Gender

female 41.77%

male 58.23%

Age - 45

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 45

Stress level

7.4

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.0

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

7.6

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a veterans rehabilitation counselor

Explore veterans rehabilitation counselor education requirements

Most common veterans rehabilitation counselor degrees

Bachelor's

48.5 %

Master's

25.8 %

Associate

7.6 %

Start to develop specific veterans rehabilitation counselor skills

Skills	Percentages
Crisis Intervention	52.44%
Rehabilitation	22.21%
Financial Assistance	16.77%
Student Veterans	8.58%

Complete relevant veterans rehabilitation counselor training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New veterans rehabilitation counselors learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a veterans rehabilitation counselor based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real veterans rehabilitation counselor resumes.

Research veterans rehabilitation counselor duties and responsibilities

Collaborate with institutions of higher learning and local organizations to help assign veterans achieve independent living and academic success.
Complete RSA vocational rehabilitation referrals to various community partner agencies.
Provide vocational career counseling, including aptitude and interest testing, transferable skills analysis.
Provide group and individual counseling to patients receiving medication assist therapy through comprehensive recovery-orient and trauma inform treatment planning and implementation.

Apply for veterans rehabilitation counselor jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a veterans rehabilitation counselor job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams