According to the American Counseling Association (ACA) 2024 survey report, the demand for counseling services has grown to 45 percent after the Covid-19 pandemic. The average hourly salary for a full-time counselor is $61, and for a part-time counselor, it is 53$. Moreover, regarding counseling interns in Virginia, the annual salary is $63,773 on average as per the data until Nov 18, 2024 (ZipRecruiter, 2024). The interesting change is also seen in the method of service delivery in the counseling profession. The trend shows that counselors, especially in private practice, are increasingly choosing telehealth services over in-person sessions (American Counseling Association, 2024).

Similarly, regarding the challenges within the profession, the major challenges counselors face in practice are insufficient pay and burnout (American Counseling Association, 2024). Counselors are taking a second job to meet their financial needs. However, it makes them more susceptible to burnout. Other challenges counselors face are student loan debt and licensure requirements in different states. It was surprising to see that the average loan debt of a counselor is $79,434, which is higher than their yearly average pay (American Counseling Association, 2024).

Furthermore, the projected demand for counselors in 2025 is increasing, mostly for school counselors and secondly for counselors in clinical settings, according to the 2024 survey report. The future of counseling is positive with the Mental Health Access Improvement Act and the implementation of the Counselors Compact.

References

American Counseling Association. (2024). Counseling Workforce survey. https://www.counseling.org

Salary: Mental health therapist in Virginia (Nov, 2024). (n.d.). https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Mental-Health-Therapist-Salary–in-Virginia