A Master’s degree in counseling is undertaken by college graduates. They undertake it to widen their career opportunities. Graduates with this degree can specialize in areas such as child counseling, marriage and family counseling. Master of counseling graduates holds various professional positions. The following are examples of some of the positions held: marriage and family counselors, rehabilitation counselors, counseling psychologists, substance abuse counselors, vocational counselors, school counselors, and mental health counselors, and so on. This paper will endeavor to look at the master of the professional position of counseling graduates hold. In addition, the paper will look at the setting in which they hold the positions.
In a family setting, we have marriage counselors. They help people to solve sensitive issues within the family setting. They use non-medical psychotherapy methods. They engage in premarital counseling, talk to couples planning to get married and give them advice about marriage. They also tell them how to avoid conflicts and how to solve those that may arise in their marriage. They are also involved in conflict resolutions. When marriage partners are in a conflict the counselors help them to resolve their problems amicably by offering them advice. This advice is very important as it may stop the spouses from contemplating divorce. The marriage counselors also engage in divorce mediation. Sexual counseling services are also offered by marriage counselors as well as spouse abuse counseling (Majors in Counseling, 2009, Marriage and Family Counselor, para.1).
Family therapists work with families. They are trained to work with families. However, they also work with individuals. Family therapists work in various settings. The highest number works in private practice. Others work in standard hospitals or in hospitals that cater to the mentally ill. Some family therapists are not only counselors but also teach and supervise other graduates learning family therapy. Moreover, other family therapists work in the public health system and they have the responsibility of providing counseling to families that have low incomes. They are also given the responsibility to shape public policy (Christensen, 2009, para. 3).
Family therapists can offer their services to different people. The name family therapist does not limit them to work in family settings only. They can offer their counseling services to an individual or a group of people. When working in a family setting, the therapist may choose to carry out therapy sessions with all the family members present. They may also opt to work with the parents first and bring in the rest of the family members later after establishing the problem in the family. Family therapists work with troubled couples. They may choose to carry out separate therapy sessions or work with the couple together (Christensen, 2009, para. 2, 3, 4).
Child counseling is very important. However, many people believe that children are carefree and have no use for counseling. Children go through many emotions in a family setting. Sometimes they have to deal with divorce, moving, or even the death of a relative. This change may cause the children a lot of emotional stress and the services of a counselor may be sought.
Child counselors help children in diverse ways. They may work with children in a family setting to help them come to terms with their emotions. They also work with children in a school setting. In this setting, the counselors work with children and they provide a safe environment for the children to speak freely (Karuppaswamy & Walls, 2006, para.1, 2). Children tell about the abuse they experience at home or school. Sex abuse and neglect are the most reported types of abuse (Jill, 2009, para.3). On the other child, counselors may work with children in a camp setting during school holidays.
Graduate counselors are very important in contemporary society. They help many people cope with stress experienced in life. They enable individuals and families to stick together in times of crisis. This is important as it helps many families to remain stable and this helps the individuals within families to be stable.
References
Christensen, E. T. (2009). What Does a Family Therapist Do?
Guide to Counseling Majors in Counseling. (2009).
Jill, B. K. (2009). School Counselors and Child Abuse Reporting: A National Survey. Web.
Karuppaswamy, N. & Walls, M. A. (2006). Does the Child Need Counseling? Web.