Rehabilitation Counseling Careers

As a rehabilitation counselor, you will likely work with:

• Disabled people, either individually or in groups
• Employers, educating them about the Americans with Disabilities Act
• Placement agencies who refer disabled people to employers

As a vocational rehabilitation counselor, you'll likely work with:

• Disabled people, assisting them in finding gainful employment
• On an individual level, you will counsel people through specific job training and be available for post-employment counseling
• Employment agencies and employers to ensure proper working conditions

Although you can begin a rehabilitation counseling career with a bachelor's degree in human services, most professional rehabilitation counselors hold master's degrees. You can earn an MA in counseling and after your first year of post-graduate employment, become a certified and/or licensed rehabilitation counselor. Check state counseling license requirements.

The median salary for vocational rehabilitation counselors in the U.S. is $60,399, according to a 2011 report by Salary.com, with a comprehensive earnings range between $43,429 and $65,036 per year. Rehabilitation counselors held 111,490 jobs in 2010, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Because of effective equal rights legislation for disabled people, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), job opportunities for rehabilitation counselors are plentiful.