COUNSELING AS A PROFESSION:

ITS ROLES, FUNCTIONS, AND COMPETENCIES There are 7 distinct competence areas of counselors
according to McLead (2003):
“Counseling is a profession.” According to Mitchell and Gibson
(2003), Counseling is a helping profession, basically because 1. Interpersonal Skills – it is the ability of the counselor to
counseling is the provision of help or aid to a person who is in listen, communicate; empathize; be present; aware of
a distress situation. A helping profession is composed of nonverbal communication; sensitive to voice quality;
members who are specially trained and licensed to perform a responsive to expressions of emotion; turn taking,
unique service for fellow human beings who need professional structure of time and use of language.
help. Hence, a counselor is a professional who possesses the 2. Personal Beliefs and Attitudes – it is the capacity of a
necessary set of knowledge and skills to deliver the ideal counselor to accept others, belief in potential change,
service to the clients – counselees. awareness of ethical and moral choices and sensitive to
values held by the client and the counselor
Roles and Functions of Counseling himself/herself.
3. Conceptual Ability – it is the ability of the counselor to
1. Individual Assessment – seeks to IDENTIFY the understand and assess the client’s problems; to anticipate
characteristics and potential of every client to promote future problems; to make sense of immediate process in
counselees’ self-understanding and for the counselors to terms of wider conceptual scheme; to remember
know the counselee better. information about the client.
2.Individual Counseling – it is the core activity of the 4. Personal Soundness – it means that counselors must have
counseling process where meaning is found. It is a client- no irrational beliefs that are destructive to counseling
centered process that demand confidentiality. Professional relationships, self-confidence, capacity to tolerate strong
relationship is established between the counselor and the or uncomfortable feelings in relation to clients, secure
counselee. personal boundaries, ability to be a client; must carry no
3.Group counseling and Guidance – Groups are means of social prejudice, ethnocentrism, and authoritarianism.
providing organized and planned assistance to individuals 5. Mastery of Techniques – counselors must have a
for an array of needs. knowledge of when and how to carry out specific
4.Career Assistance – Counselors are called on to provide interventions, ability to assess effectiveness of
career planning and adjustment assistance to clients. interventions, understanding of rationale behind
5.Placement and Follow-up – It is a service of school techniques, possession of sufficiently wide repertoire of
counseling programs with emphasis on educational interventions.
placements in course and programs. 6. Ability to Understand and Work Within Social Systems –
6.Referral – It is the practice of helping clients find needed this refers to the counselor’s capacity to have awareness
expert assistance that the referring counselor cannot of family and work relationships of the client, the impact
provide. of agency on the clients, the capacity to use support
7.Consultation – It is a process of helping a client through a networks and supervision; sensitivity to client from a
third party or helping system to improve its service to its different gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or age
clientele. group.
8.Research – It is a necessary aspect in counseling to advance 7. Openness to Learning and Inquiry – counselors must have
the profession of counseling; it can provide empirically- the ability to be curious about clients’ backgrounds and
based (based on experience) data relevant to the ultimate problems; being open to new knowledge.
goal of implementing effective counseling.
9.Evaluation and Accountability – Evaluation is a means of Areas of Specialization of Counselors
assessing the effectiveness of a counselor’s activities.
Accountability is an outgrowth of demand that schools and The various counseling needs that arise in different settings
other tax-supported institutions be held accountable for define the career opportunities and specializations of
their actions. To be accountable means to own up to the counselors. Meaning, just as there are different specializations
consequences of your actions. Thus, the counselor and the for medical doctors (Cardiologist, Eurologist, OB Gynecologist,
counselee are both accountable in the counseling process. etc.), there are also different fields of specializations for
10. Prevention – This includes promotion of mental health counselors.
through primary prevention using a social-psychological
perspective. 1. Marriage and Family Counseling – refers to establish an
encouraging relationship with a couple or a family and
Competencies of Counselors appreciate the complications in the family system. The
focus of counselors here is on helping couples and families
Competencies are the counselor’s sufficiently possessed discover options and opportunities for effective family
knowledge or skill in order to deliver the services that are living. Counselors do not act as experts here but as
expected from them.
 inquisitive learners who want to discover about the couple
or the family.
2. Child and Adolescent Counseling – it is still a developing Review
area of expertise in the counseling profession. Common
issues being treated here is child abuse, neglect, -What are the 2 characteristics that a member of the helping
child/adolescent depression, and antisocial behavior. It profession must have in order to perform service to a fellow
focuses on helping children and adolescents acquire coping human being who needs professional help?
skills through promotion of resiliency, positive attachment -It seeks to IDENTIFY the characteristics and potential of every
relationship, emotional and intellectual intelligence, and client to promote counselees’ self-understanding and for the
other qualities that promote optional development. counselors to know the counselee better.
3. Group Counseling – it is a dynamic field in the counseling -It is the ability of the counselor to listen, communicate;
profession. It offers the following: opportunities for empathize; be present; aware of nonverbal communication;
members to learn from observing other group members; sensitive to voice quality; responsive to expressions of
can function as helpers and helps; opportunities to emotion; turn taking, structure of time and use of language.
discover that you may have similar concerns; members are -It refers to establish an encouraging relationship with a
encouraged to offer help to others; opportunities to couple or a family and appreciate the complications in the
enhance interpersonal skills. family system.
4. Career Counseling – it is an evolving and challenging field. -It is the core activity of the counseling process where meaning
It aids individuals on decisions and planning concerning is found.
their career. It seeks to have an interplay between theory -It is the capacity of a counselor to accept others and believe
and practice from vocational psychology. in potential change.
5. School Counseling – it refers to the process of reaching out -Common issues being treated here is child abuse, neglect,
to students with concerns on drugs, family and peers, or child/adolescent depression, and antisocial behavior.
gang involvement. School counselors link with relevant -It is the practice of helping clients find needed expert
community agencies and closely coordinates with key assistance that the referring counselor cannot provide.
stakeholders in the school and family. The job requires -It is the ability of the counselor to understand and assess the
sensitivity to individual differences and considers diversity client’s problems.
in enhancing educational perspective. -It offers the following: opportunities for members to learn
6. Mental Health Counseling – it is manifested in the from observing other group members; can function as helpers
challenge posed by its clientele with mental disorders. and helps; opportunities to discover that you may have similar
Mental disorders include serious depression, concerns.
schizophrenia, and substance abuse. Mental health -It means that counselors must have no irrational beliefs that
counselors have to be inventive and creative to address the are destructive to counseling relationships.
client’s needs. The job requires patience, humility, -It seeks to have an interplay between theory and practice
kindness, and compassion. Counselors are required to have from vocational psychology.
skills such as the capacity to determine when to be an -It is a process of helping a client through a third party or
advocate and when to let the client take an initiative, must helping system to improve its service to its clientele.
have a support system to be able to work effectively, apply -It is a means of assessing the effectiveness of a counselor’s
give-and-take approach in establishing support system, activities.
and communication skills.