Career as Child Counsellor

What:  It is very important to understand what child counselling is, it is an assessment of maladaptive behaviour, patterns and social-emotional functioning in children, adolescents, and young adults. In addition, the prevention and treatment of conditions in the individual, family and community, in order to develop, maintain, and promote emotional, social, behavioural, and interpersonal well-being within the context of daily living. It’s something very important in this age of nuclear families and working parents when children are forced to remain inside their own cocoon no matter their wings are developing or not.

A child counsellor provides counselling on a variety of problems and disorders, such as relationship issues, depression due to amity issues, exam-related anxiety and learning difficulties such as dyslexia. She/he can also provide career guidance.

A senior school counsellor, with an MA degree in psychology and a PG diploma in guidance and counselling, can draw about 25,000 a month. On average, a PGT-scale counsellor with a PG degree and three years’ experience can earn about Rs 25,000 to 35,000 a month in a big school. In a private hospital, a fresh clinical psychologist with an MPhil degree can make about Rs 30,000 a month.

How: The basic traits one needs to have for being a child counsellor is to be supportive and non-judgemental. The counselling relationship is very private and personal, and each child will respond differently. Therefore, you need to be reasonable and adaptive. However, other skills like excellent Communication skills, especially listening Interpersonal skills, Empathy, Open mindedness, Ability to win trust to establish rapport with the client Sensitive and non-intrusive can be icing on the cake.

Where: Though you may opt for any subject combination at the plus-two level to be eligible for a Bachelor’s in psychology, it is considered preferable to take science (physics, chemistry, biology) with psychology. (Some schools offer psychology in senior school.) After that do your graduation and Masters is in psychology and/or a PG diploma in guidance and counselling. For better career prospects, you may do MPhil/PhD.

Institutions: (See Below)