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The differences between work counselors and program counselors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a work counselor, becoming a program counselor takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a work counselor has an average salary of $55,384, which is higher than the $43,820 average annual salary of a program counselor.
The top three skills for a work counselor include social work, discharge planning and substance abuse. The most important skills for a program counselor are developmental disabilities, patients, and community integration.
| Work Counselor | Program Counselor | |
| Yearly salary | $55,384 | $43,820 |
| Hourly rate | $26.63 | $21.07 |
| Growth rate | 11% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 77,184 | 133,491 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Average age | 45 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 4 |
A work counselor's responsibility is to know the employee's problems including stress, workplace depression, declining productivity, and anxiety, and help solve them by resolving negative patterns, rehabilitation, and prevention to improve quality of life. Such purpose is to reduce sickness absence and pressure. Part of their helping profession is to respect the employees' privacy by sharing information and opinions on resources that the client needs since they are not tasked to disclose information and give advice.
A Program Counselor is an essential part of a school's faculty. It's the counselor's responsibility to ensure that students are benefiting from the school's educational curriculum. This person is also tasked to help students resolve issues and problems that may hinder any educational progress. They are also part of the disciplinary team intended to instill good morals, ethics, and decency in students. The Program Counselor is one of the teacher or professor who has expertise or has a high educational degree in a particular subject or field.
Work counselors and program counselors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Work Counselor | Program Counselor | |
| Average salary | $55,384 | $43,820 |
| Salary range | Between $46,000 And $66,000 | Between $33,000 And $58,000 |
| Highest paying City | Chicago, IL | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | New York |
| Best paying company | The Travelers Companies | Russell Sage College |
| Best paying industry | Hospitality | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a work counselor and a program counselor in terms of educational background:
| Work Counselor | Program Counselor | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Most common major | Social Work | Psychology |
| Most common college | Columbia University in the City of New York | California State University - Long Beach |
Here are the differences between work counselors' and program counselors' demographics:
| Work Counselor | Program Counselor | |
| Average age | 45 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 37.0% Female, 63.0% | Male, 35.9% Female, 64.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 13.7% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 10.8% Asian, 2.9% White, 66.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.7% | 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 | 21% | 15% |