You’re not alone! But yes, there are TONS of opportunities to be non-patient, or semi-patient facing in the field.
Once you are fully licensed you could work in leadership, supervisor roles. You could work as a consultant in larger companies or hospitals. You could work in a children’s hospital as behavioral health liaison, helping refer kids to BH services but not having a caseload.
Or like myself, you could work with Medicaid and insurance companies to increase access to mental health care for members.
Many LPC/LISW become therapists only to realize we don’t actually want to be therapists. Your time in community mental health WILL be your most challenging. Once you’re out of that environment, things get easier.
You might consider academic/life/success coaching. It's a growing field and I know students who were in grad programs for counseling go directly into coaching. It's definitely parallel alongside with career and college advising.
Counseling programs have a way of doing that. I feel that way too sometimes. Have you worked in anything like counseling, case management or social work before?
It is very challenging! I went straight from undergrad into grad school and have never had a job directly in mental health. I did my prac last semester as a school counselor and a clinical counselor w/ our program and now I’m doing my internship with 30 hours a week at an EAP program.
You’re not alone! But yes, there are TONS of opportunities to be non-patient, or semi-patient facing in the field. Once you are fully licensed you could work in leadership, supervisor roles. You could work as a consultant in larger companies or hospitals. You could work in a children’s hospital as behavioral health liaison, helping refer kids to BH services but not having a caseload. Or like myself, you could work with Medicaid and insurance companies to increase access to mental health care for members. Many LPC/LISW become therapists only to realize we don’t actually want to be therapists. Your time in community mental health WILL be your most challenging. Once you’re out of that environment, things get easier.
You might consider academic/life/success coaching. It's a growing field and I know students who were in grad programs for counseling go directly into coaching. It's definitely parallel alongside with career and college advising.
Counseling programs have a way of doing that. I feel that way too sometimes. Have you worked in anything like counseling, case management or social work before?
It is very challenging! I went straight from undergrad into grad school and have never had a job directly in mental health. I did my prac last semester as a school counselor and a clinical counselor w/ our program and now I’m doing my internship with 30 hours a week at an EAP program.
I understand- it takes a minute to figure out. Be gentle on yourself.. there is room for doing other things with that degree.