Counseling and social services occupations provide support and may offer mental, socio-emotional, career, academic, community or financial help to those in need. These careers require a desire to work with people and excellent communication skills. A wide variety of organizations and institutions hire those in the counseling and social services professions including hospitals, non-profits, government, private sector and educational intuitions. You can build the skills needed to pursue a counseling or social services career through hands-on experience beyond the classroom. It is best to find a career that will fit your own unique interests, skills and values.
Some possible job titles include:
- Career Counselor
- Clinical Counselor
- Marriage and Family Therapist
- School Counselor
- School Psychologist
- Corrections Counselor
- Licensed Clinical Social Worker
- Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Therapist
- Substance Abuse Counselor
Areas of Interest
The Occupational Outlook Handbook provides detailed information about career options in community and social services and counseling and clinical psychology. Be sure to check out the “Similar Occupations” tab on each page to explore related fields.
Related fields
If you have an interest in counseling and social services careers, you might also be interested in exploring careers in: health and medicine, education and teaching, government, international and nonprofit.
Professional Associations
Joining professional associations related to the industry you are interested in provides access to professionals in the field, and networking opportunities which can lead to potential jobs and internships. Many national associations have state and local chapters you can join. Involvement in associations can also provide you insider updates on industry trends and best practices. One of the best ways to identify relevant associations is to search for them online, but we have provided some resources below to get you started. Please note that this is not an exhaustive list.
- American Counseling Association
- California Association of School Counselors
- California Association of School Social Workers
- California Associations of Licensed Professional Clinical Counselors
- California Career Development Association
- California Consortium of Addiction Programs and Professionals
- California Society for Clinical Social Work
- National Association of Social Workers
- Sacramento Public Relations Association
- Sacramento Valley Chapter California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists
Visit the ICC and Meet with an Advisor
For further guidance narrowing down your career interests, you can schedule an advising appointment. Our advising page has a list of all ICC advisors or you can review the list of undergraduate advisors below:
