In today’s complex world, the demand for professionals trained in mental health is increasing. Over the last twenty years, many people have come to see the relevance of mental health services in their everyday lives, and it is generally considered wise for everyone to seek the services of a counselor at some point. For those seeking a degree in mental health, the opportunities are greater than ever.
Here are 50 career options available to those who earn a mental health degree.
#1 Art Therapist
Use art and creativity to treat and explore a number of therapeutic avenues with patients.
#2 Dramatherapist
If you’ve got a flare for the theatrical, drama therapy is a growing field of mental health which makes use of role playing to help patients gain new perspective on relationships.
#3 Psychiatric Nurse
Work with mental health care populations in clinical settings with the training to administer medications and monitor symptoms.
#4 Certified Sex Therapist
Work with couples and individuals seeking help with sexual dysfunction.
#5 Licensed Behavior Analyst
Apply behavioral science to analyze patients in a number of settings from clinical to institutional.
#6 Licensed Professional Counselor
Offer a higher degree of expertise to patients with the training that a licensed professional counselor and work in any number of settings.
#7 Mental Health Professional
Mental health professionals can serve in a wide range of roles, from contributing to corporate culture, to behavioral interventions and counseling.
#8 Psychiatrist
Offer traditional counseling with the added training and authority to prescribe medications in cases where the patient’s needs go beyond ‘the talking cure.’
#9 Psychologist
Run your own counseling practice and counsel patients one on one, or work with larger agencies assisting HR departments and more.
#10 School Counselor
Work with school age children from elementary to high school to serve their academic needs, diagnose learning disorders, and offer important insights to young people.
#11 Social Worker
Work with a huge range of populations or focus on one as you work to coordinate important services to those in need.
#12 Resource Worker
Work with families in need in various or specialized circumstances to help them to agree on needed services for adults and children.
#13 Peer Support Worker
Assist people your own age to articulate their needs and goals. This profession has been called a more professional version of a life coach.
#14 Grief and Bereavement Therapist
Assist those who have lost loved ones to cope via counseling and providing direction in finding necessary resources.
#15 Psychotherapist
Use a range of psychological techniques to help patients overcome psychiatric illnesses, like depression, post-traumatic stress, bipolar spectrum conditions, addictions, and obsessions.
#16 Pastoral Counselor
Combine the expertise of a mental health expert with the spiritual touch of a religious counselor to offer therapy to those with strong religious sensibilities.
#17 Chaplain
Serve in a number of settings be they military, corporate, or institutional as a representative of a religious faith.
#18 Child Therapist
Work exclusively with children with mental health needs and their families after the trauma of an assault, bereavement, or other difficulty.
#19 Marriage Counselor
Work with married couples to iron out their differences in a healthy way and learn to communicate in a productive, loving and non-judgmental fashion.
#20 Group Therapist
Guide groups of people with similar issues to talk through their experiences and to benefit from the support of people who understand a difficult common issue.
#21 Grief Counselor
In addition to the death of a loved one, the loss of a job, a marriage, or other serious loss can be a major source of emotional distress. Offer your expertise as you counsel these patients.
#22 Internet Therapist
Often done at a discount to in-person counseling- an Internet Therapist offers therapy via telecommunication for a safer and more convenient session.
#23 Guidance Counselor
Help young people and those experiencing life changes to make the best choices for their future careers or other professional and life choices.
#24 Addiction Treatment
Work with those suffering from a substance abuse dependency.
#25 Military Psychology
Counselors with knowledge of the issues facing military service men and women can be especially well suited to counsel active and veteran service members.
#26 Developmental Counselor
Working primarily with children and youths on a variety of issues from academic to nutrition and mental and emotional needs, these professionals provide important guidance for their patients.
#27 Consumer Psychology
Help advertising agencies develop more effective ad campaigns by providing them with strategic advice about the shopping behavior of consumers.
#28 Geriatric Counseling
Aging can be a difficult process to cope with. You will help seniors deal with the major life changes, fears, and traumas that come with the later years of life.
#29 Hospice Counselor
Counsel families and the terminally ill as they struggle to cope with the impending loss of their loved one and discuss end of life care options.
#30 Clinical Psychology
Work in a psychiatric setting to diagnose and treat the mentally ill within an institutional setting.
#31 Media Psychology
Work with advertisers and media firms to optimize messaging techniques to better reach populations with more attractive programming.
#32 Industrial Psychology
Provide guidance for upper corporate management as they work to create more productive and healthy industrial and business environments for employees and customers.
#33 Psychometrician
Practice the science of learning and psychological measurement to study the validity and reliability of an exams and language tests.
#34 Social Gerontologist
Serve in the field of aging changes over the lifespan of your clients. Provide services to universities, hospitals, nursing homes and more.
#35 Transpersonal Psychologist
Integrate the spiritual aspects of the human experience within the fabric of modern psychology.
#36 Air force Psychologist
Counsel Air force personnel with a combination of expertise in that branch of the military and mental health training.
#37 Navy Psychologist
Counsel Navy personnel with a combination of expertise in that branch of the military and mental health training.
#38 Marines Psychologist
Counsel Marines personnel with a combination of expertise in that branch of the military and mental health training.
#39 Army Psychologist
Counsel Army personnel with a combination of expertise in that branch of the military and mental health training.
#40 Biogerontologist
Offer counseling services with the added insights into the biology of aging to help patients make optimal health and life choices as they age.
#41 Clinical Psychiatrist
Work in an institutional setting to diagnose and treat the mentally ill with the authority to prescribe and administer psychiatric medications.
#42 Cognitive Neuroscientist
Enter the exciting academic field of the scientific study of biological processes that underlie cognition.
#43 Community Psychologist
Engage in the study of how people relate to communities and the correlative effect of communities on people.
#44 Educational Psychologist
Observe and evaluate the behavioral, emotional, social and educational needs of children aged 5 to 19.
#45 Engineering Psychologist
Focuses on enhancing the capabilities of workers by improving their work environments.
#46 Environmental Psychologist
Examine the interrelationship between environments and the behavior of those who live in those environments.
#47 Forensic Psychologist
Work in many areas of the criminal justice system to shed light on the motivations of criminals and criminal suspects.
#48 Health Psychologist
Work to create programs for the promotion of better emotional stability for those who are critically or terminally ill and their families.
#49 Neuropsychologist
Study and apply the fundamentals of psychology with a focus on developing theories and models based on a neurological framework.
#50 Rehabilitation Psychologist
Focus on the treatment of individuals coping with disabilities that make everyday life difficult.
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