Marriage Counseling

by Joe Taylor Jr.
joe.taylor@careertrainingdirectory.com
Career Training Directory Columnist

With shows like Dr. Phil and Starting Over on daytime television, more couples have warmed up to the idea of marriage counseling. Once considered a last resort, professional counseling has lost its stigma and become an accepted way to deal with marital woes. In an age of fewer marriages and rising divorce rates, counseling professionals are the key to strengthening unsteady marriages.

Earning a counseling degree is the foundation for a career in marriage counseling. An undergraduate degree, which can be completed through an online counseling degree program, involves basic courses in counseling theories, ethics and consultations, and career development.

Many states require a master’s degree for counseling certification. Upper level degrees allow students to focus on marriage counseling training, and many programs prepare students to work in settings that include churches, schools, and private practice. Seminaries often offer religious-based classes for students interested in Christian marriage counseling. Students focusing on marriage counseling will learn how to deal with clients in abusive situations, couples struggling with infidelity and impending divorce, and children caught in their parents’ discord.

Launching Your Marriage Counseling Career

Once you have earned a graduate counseling degree and completed your counseling certification, you’re ready to begin your counseling career. Many states will require you to be supervised by a licensed professional at the beginning of your career, so you may want to work for a counseling agency or group.

Once you have built up a clientele and a gained few years of experience, you may be ready to open your own practice. Whichever route you choose, marriage counseling can be a rewarding career as you help people work out their problems.

Sources:

Bureau of Labor Statistics
Job Profiles
The Tribune (San Luis Obispo)

About the Author

Joe Taylor Jr. coaches musicians, entrepreneurs, and other adults that want to shift their careers. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Communications from Ithaca College.