Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors: Salary, Job Outlook & How to Become One (2026 Parent Guide)
Community and Social Service · SOC 21-1012 · O*NET 21-1012.00
Advise and assist students and provide educational and vocational guidance services.
Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors fall under the Community and Social Service category in the U.S. occupational classification. Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors earn a median salary of $65,140 per year, ranking in the top 38% of all U.S. occupations. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects +3.5% job growth through 2034, projected to grow at roughly the US average. Entry into this field typically requires a bachelor's degree, with specific licensing or certification depending on the state and employer. For parents whose teenager is exploring this path, the most actionable step is mapping the education requirements to specific colleges and majors before junior year — not waiting until application season.
What parents should know about educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors right now
School and career counselors help students navigate academics, college, careers, and mental health. It is a meaningful path for teens who want to support others and stay close to schools or campuses. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 4 percent employment growth from 2024 to 2034, about as fast as the average for all occupations. The median annual wage for school and career counselors and advisors was $65,140 in May 2024. The path is longer than many parents realize: nearly all states require school counselors to hold a master's degree in school counseling or a related field, plus a state-issued credential (license, certification, or endorsement) that typically requires a supervised practicum or internship and a passing exam, with criminal background checks standard. Some states also prefer or require classroom teaching experience. Demand is being driven by a major mental-health and caseload pressure: the American School Counselor Association recommends a 250-to-1 student-counselor ratio, but the national average for the 2024 to 2025 school year stood at 372 to 1, and a 2025 industry report found that more than 56 percent of counselors carry caseloads of 300 to 400 students. K-12 leaders increasingly cite student mental health as their top safety concern, which is creating sustained demand and new specializations in trauma-informed counseling and college and career advising. Encourage your teen to study psychology, sociology, and human development, and to volunteer as a peer mentor.
What do educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors earn?
The median annual wage for educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors is $65,140. That puts educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors at #312 on the BLS ranked list of all U.S. occupations by median pay. This salary is above the U.S. median for individual workers and reflects a stable, credentialed occupation. Actual pay varies meaningfully by state, employer type, and years of experience — entry-level salaries are typically 30–40% below the median, while top-decile earners often exceed it by 50% or more.
| 10th percentile (entry-level) | $43,580 |
| 25th percentile | $51,690 |
| 50th percentile (median) | $65,140 |
| 75th percentile | $83,490 |
| 90th percentile (top earners) | $105,870 |
| Median hourly wage | $31.32/hr |
Is educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors a growing career?
The 10-year outlook for educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors is +3.5%, projected to grow at roughly the US average. Employment is projected to move from approximately 376K positions in 2024 to 389K in 2034, a net change of 13K. Average growth signals a healthy, resilient occupation that mirrors broader U.S. employment trends. Job availability tends to track regional economic conditions.
What do educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors do every day?
According to O*NET task surveys of working educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors, these are the core responsibilities most professionals perform. This is what your teen would actually be doing in this role.
- 1.Maintain accurate and complete student records as required by laws, district policies, and administrative regulations.
- 2.Counsel students regarding educational issues, such as course and program selection, class scheduling and registration, school adjustment, truancy, study habits, and career planning.
- 3.Provide crisis intervention to students when difficult situations occur at schools.
- 4.Counsel individuals or groups to help them understand and overcome personal, social, or behavioral problems affecting their educational or vocational situations.
- 5.Review transcripts to ensure that students meet graduation or college entrance requirements, and write letters of recommendation.
- 6.Prepare students for later educational experiences by encouraging them to explore learning opportunities and to persevere with challenging tasks.
- 7.Refer students to outside counseling services.
- 8.Refer students to degree programs based on interests, aptitudes, or educational assessments.
Top skills for educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors
O*NET ranks these as the most important skills for this occupation, on a 1–5 importance scale derived from worker surveys.
What education does my child need to become educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisor?
The standard path into educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors begins with a bachelor's degree in a related field, followed by entry-level experience or internships during college. For parents helping a teen prepare, the highest-leverage step before junior year is identifying colleges and programs that feed reliably into this occupation — Solyo's college search lets parents filter by major and admissions data side by side.
Based on O*NET surveys of incumbents — what people in this job actually have, not what employers list as required.
Licensing requirements for educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors
Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors are regulated at the state level in the United States. Practicing without a current license is not legal in most jurisdictions.
Related careers your child might also consider
How parents help teens explore careers like this
Solyo helps parents map a teen's interests to specific careers, then back to the colleges and majors that lead there. Salary, outlook, and education data come from BLS and O*NET — the same sources high school counselors use — but presented for the parent's planning lens, not the student's exploration view.
Common questions parents ask about educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors
What is the median salary for educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors?
The median annual salary for educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors is $65,140 according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
Is educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors a growing career?
BLS projects +3.5% growth for educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors from 2024 through 2034, which is average growth projected to grow at roughly the US average.
What education does my child need to become educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisor?
The typical entry path requires a bachelor's degree, plus any state licensure or certification specific to the role. Programs that align well with this career can be filtered inside Solyo's college search.
What careers are similar to educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors?
Related occupations within the Community and Social Service category share education paths and skill profiles, so they're a useful starting set when a teen is uncertain. The "Related careers" section below lists nearby options.
Salary data sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment Statistics program. Skills, tasks, and education distribution from the O*NET database. Job outlook from the BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 release.