Job growth and earnings for school counselors

The rate of job growth and earnings for school counselors depends greatly on the country that one is employed in and whether the school is funded publicly or privately. School Counselors working in international schools or "American" schools around the world may find similar work environments and expectations to the USA. School counselor pay varies based on the level of school counselor or school counselor roles, identity, expectations, and legal and certification requirements and expectations of each country. According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook^[75] (OOH) the median salaryfor school counselors in the USA in May 2006 was (USD) $53,750. In Australia, a survey by the Australian Guidance and Counseling Association found that school counselor salary ranged from (AUD) the high 50,000s to the mid 80,000s.

Also, school counselors can earn additional money working summer months in school or agency counseling positions. Among all counseling specialty areas, public elementary, middle and high school counselors are currently (2009) paid the highest salary on average of all counselors. Overall employment for counselors is average, especially in rural and urban areas. Budget cuts, however, have affected placement of public school counselors in Canada, Ireland and the United States in recent years. In the United States, rural areas and urban areas traditionally have been under-served by school counselors in public schools due to both funding shortages and often a lack of best practice models. With the advent of No Child Left Behind legislation in the USA and a mandate for school counselors to be working with data and showing evidence-based practice, school counselors able to show and share results in assisting to close gaps are in the best position to argue for increased school counseling resources and positions for their programs ^[8]. For more specifics, see international external links below.