Meghan3 asked this question on 4/17/2000:

Hi CeeBee, and I'm a high school student. When I finish off high school and college, I plan on pursuing the career as a counselor. Any advice you can give to me about the different demands that's needed, skills you must have, and simply anything would be a great deal of help to me. Thank you for your time.

Candace

CeeBee gave this response on 4/17/2000:

Hi, Meghan3/Candace --

Well, my mind is swirling with thoughts on what to tell you and how to say it...

Since you are in high school, I guess I will start with education. The broader the education you get (now and in college), the better off you will be. A broad education will allow you to relate well to any client who comes your way, from little kids to elderly people. Since you will need at least a graduate (master's) degree, use your time in high school and undergrad college to take a variety of classes. (I know a counselor who took mostly college electives in the field of psychology and got a bachelor's in psych. He actually is a pretty boring person!) BUT be sure to take enough psych classes such as Abnormal Psych, Theories of Personality, Ed. Psych etc. so you won't have to spend time in grad school picking up undergrad classes you missed. Once you get to grad school, the courses will be focused on psychology -- history, theories, human development, research and stats, and so on. There may be a track to follow, such as if you want to specialize in aging issues, or the program may allow you to take whatever courses you want. You will be talking with advisors over the years, so they should be able to answer questions about various courses and about any specializing you might want to do.

I didn't follow a track in grad school, and I also was able to add courses from the MBA program (e.g., Corporate Culture), the public health program, and the organizational behavior program to really round out my counselor education. (It was amazing to discover how much psychology is part of the business world!) So by the time I received my master's degree, and already knowing the education and library fields, I felt like I was ready for anything!

I hope you are still with me and haven't dozed off...

Another thing you should consider doing is find ways to interact with people of all kinds -- as a volunteer at a shelter for the homeless or abused women, volunteering at a library, tutoring or reading to kids in the neighborhood or at a school, visiting residents of a nursing home or retirement home -- because the more different types (ages, races, religious groups, ethnic groups) of people you interact with, the better and more open/accepting will be your counseling style someday.

Counseling demands good listening skills, having a supportive and helpful attitude toward other people, detachment (at least to some extent -- after all, if your client is crying hysterically, you will have to be the calm, reasonable one with the kleenex box), kindness, open-mindedness (so you will be able to see all sides of the situation), and willingness to allow your clients to make their own decisions (a counselor shouldn't tell clients what to do). I'm sure there are more counselor qualities, but those are the ones I can think of right off the top of my head and that have helped me be a good counselor.

There are books written about how to be a counselor/psychotherapist. The best ones have been written by a psychologist named Jeffrey Kottler. I strongly suggest you read his books to get a good idea of what you will be doing.

I hope this all helps. Please holler if I can answer other questions about counseling or clients.

Best wishes for a successful career, CeeBee

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