Waters Edge Counseling is proud to serve as a resource for School Counselors. With the school year now in full swing, we’d like to take some time to look at what our School Counselors actually do – and why they are so vital to our children.
A Resource for School Counselors
First of all, you are the world to these kids. You give them space to talk, comfort to be themselves, and you are a safe space for them. We at Waters Edge want to appreciate you and provide you with added resources. Sometimes even counselors need advice or additional support. Let’s take a moment to think about everything that you encounter as a counselor on a daily basis.
A Day in the Life of a School Counselor
As a mother of two girls who have not always had it easy at school, this one really hits home. I rely on school counselors to look out for my kids. Don’t we all? But the reality is that they are looking out for hundreds of children. On a daily basis. I can’t even imagine. And most are parents themselves, so they take on a lot more responsibility than we think about.
What does being a school counselor mean?
We have researched and reviewed so many blogs to help us piece this together. The Princeton Review has given so many wonderful insights.
Few careers are as potentially rewarding—or as frustrating—as that of a guidance counselor, whose job it is to help guide and structure children’s educational and vocational direction as they pass through an unstable and confusing time in their lives.
It can be frustrating because you will have limited power to make students follow your advice. Often you will face students “who don’t want to think about the day after tomorrow,” as one counselor put it.
What do Guidance Counselors Do?
A guidance counselor helps students determine courses of study and possible vocations. Counselors try to understand what motivates each student as well as his or her skills and desires. “When you’re doing things right,” wrote one, “it’s like you’re another parent, except they trust you a little more.”
Individuals who aspire to enter the field should be aware that emotional as well as intellectual demands come with the territory. As most guidance counselors spend over a third of their time in consultations with students and parents, prospective counselors should be comfortable with teenagers and have excellent communication skills.
Another 25 percent of a guidance counselor’s day is spent administering and evaluating tests. Guidance counselors use the results to provide context for existing records of academic performance, teacher evaluations, and a better overall understanding of students’ needs. Some guidance counselors call the continuing education they receive from the students with whom they work. The most interesting feature of the profession. “I learned more from them than from any class in college,” wrote one enthusiastic counselor. “I learned more in the first day.”Not all counselors are as positive as this, but the level of satisfaction guidance counselors recorded was one of the highest of any career in this book.
Of course, people who don’t love the profession usually leave quickly; guidance counselors have one of the highest initial attrition rates of any profession in this book—a staggering 60 percent within the first two years.
Careers that require this degree of emotional commitment can be rough on those individuals who are not prepared to make one on a regular basis.
We are here for added support
We, at Waters Edge, hold online open forums for school counselors in our area. These forums provide a time and space to talk about the issues they are seeing with students, how to approach certain situations, and they allow us to help give some guidance and advice. You do not have to register in advance, just click this LINK to enter the forum on the dates and times below.
This year, our Open Forums for School Counselors are scheduled for:
- August 31st, Wednesday – 9am-10am
- October 26th, Wednesday – 9am-10am
- January 25th, Wednesday – 9am-10am
- March 29th, Wednesday – 9am-10am
The Forums will be conducted through Zoom, and we will be sending out invitations through our e-newsletter as well. Please contact us if you are interested! The Zoom code for all the meetings is 858 7254 7586.
Waters Edge Counseling has multiple therapists who are trained in helping children, adolescents and even college students with the ever-changing world around them. Please contact us via email at [email protected] or give us a call. We are here to help.