Clinical and Counseling Psychologists

Assess, diagnose, and treat mental and emotional disorders of individuals through observation, interview, and psychological tests. Help individuals with distress or maladjustment understand their problems through their knowledge of case history, interviews with patients, and theory. Provide individual or group counseling services to assist individuals in achieving more effective personal, social, educational, and vocational development and adjustment. May design behavior modification programs and consult with medical personnel regarding the best treatment for patients.

Most important skills

Reading Comprehension
Social Perceptiveness
Active Listening
Writing
Critical Thinking
Speaking
Active Learning
Monitoring

Key knowledge

Psychology
Therapy and Counseling
English Language
Education and Training
Customer and Personal Service
Sociology and Anthropology
Law and Government
Administration and Management

What the work involves

Collect information about individuals or clients, using interviews, case histories, observational techniques, and other assessment methods.
Counsel individuals, groups, or families to help them understand problems, deal with crisis situations, define goals, and develop realistic action plans.
Document patient information including session notes, progress notes, recommendations, and treatment plans.
Interact with clients to assist them in gaining insight, defining goals, and planning action to achieve effective personal, social, educational, or vocational development and adjustment.
Develop therapeutic and treatment plans based on clients' interests, abilities, or needs.
Identify psychological, emotional, or behavioral issues and diagnose disorders, using information obtained from interviews, tests, records, or reference materials.
Use a variety of treatment methods, such as psychotherapy, hypnosis, behavior modification, stress reduction therapy, psychodrama, or play therapy.
Write reports on clients and maintain required paperwork.

Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Social, Investigative, Conventional.

Qualifications and licensing

Most common education: Post-Doctoral Training (48% of respondents)
Related experience: Over 2 years, up to and including 4 years (40%)
On-the-job training: Over 6 months, up to and including 1 year (24%)
Preparation level: O*NET job zone 5: Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed
Licensing: Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.

Check before planning

Licensing for Clinical and Counseling Psychologists is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.

Limits

Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.

Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0

Work environment

How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).

Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.

Rankings compare typical U.S. occupation-level work conditions; individual jobs and employers vary. Data: O*NET 31.0 Work Context and BLS wages (May 2025).
Condition	Level	Compared with other occupations	Most common answer (O*NET survey)
Contact with others	High	Higher on contact with others than 60% of occupations compared	56% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others”
Dealing with the public	Moderate	Higher on dealing with the public than 51% of occupations compared	36% of surveyed respondents chose “Very important”
Teamwork	Very low	Lower on teamwork than 96% of occupations compared	36% of surveyed respondents chose “Very important”
Freedom to make decisions	Very high	Higher on freedom to make decisions than 89% of occupations compared	68% of surveyed respondents chose “A lot of freedom”
Time pressure	Low	Lower on time pressure than 72% of occupations compared	44% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a week or more but not every day”
Conflict situations	High	Higher on conflict situations than 78% of occupations compared	40% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a month or more but not every week”
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people	Very high	Higher on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 82% of occupations compared	48% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a month or more but not every week”
Consequence of error	High	Higher on consequence of error than 76% of occupations compared	40% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely serious”

Work-pressure profile

Time pressure: low
Conflict situations: high
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: very high
Consequence of error: high

Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.

Full answer distributions