Online college degrees allow students to work toward their degrees while maintaining the stability of their professional careers. They also negate the need for a campus commute, which saves money on fuel and car care.
Professional school counseling organizations may need to promote their unique counseling skills rather than focus on developing models and standards that encourage counselors to perform duties other personnel are qualified to perform.
Class Time Flexibility
School counselors work with students across a range of academic and personal-social issues. For example, an elementary school counselor might help a student navigate social and emotional issues associated with being bullied, or they might assist a high schooler in making a college decision.
Additionally, a counselor might lead groups to help students with specific challenges, such as grief or depression. Counselors also facilitate and participate in specialized needs assessments to identify stumbling blocks that could inhibit a student’s success and develop strategies for closing those gaps.
Taking advantage of a school counselor degree online can provide you with the flexible scheduling needed to pursue this career. You can take courses from any location and learn with classmates worldwide.
No Commute
School counseling may be your perfect career if you are empathetic, goal-driven, and enjoy working with students.
School counselors help students overcome various obstacles at each grade level to thrive in their learning environments. This includes dealing with peer relationships, academic challenges, adjusting to a new school environment, family and personal issues affecting classroom performance, and more.
School counselors often address these challenges by offering individual and small-group counseling. They are also responsible for conducting needs assessments with teachers, parents/guardians, and students to identify stumbling blocks that could hinder a student’s success in their educational journey.
In addition, school counselors often work to improve the overall culture of a school system by addressing ongoing issues such as bullying, discrimination, and prejudice. They also work to create a welcoming atmosphere that allows students of all backgrounds to succeed.
Collaboration Opportunities
The years students spend in school can be stressful academically and personally. While teachers help with academic concerns, school counselors focus on their students’ emotional and social growth.
For school counseling programs to be successful, the counselors and administrators must collaborate. This collaboration can take on many forms. This can occur through a shared leadership system where administrators and counselors share decision-making on initiatives that affect student success.
In addition to collaboration with administrators, school counselors must work closely with teachers in the classroom. This is especially important for elementary school counselors who need teacher buy-in for classroom lessons on developing academic, career, and personal/social skills. Teachers must also provide out-of-class opportunities for students to meet with school counselors. This allows for developing strong relationships among students and faculty, a key to fostering student success in schools today.
Access to Resources
School counselors’ work can vary greatly depending on the age group they serve. Elementary school counselors focus on emotions and guiding students through developmental changes, while high school counselors often work with students regarding college and career planning.
However, despite these different roles, many schools need help to meet the demand for counseling services. Adding more counselors can help address this issue, but it’s only sometimes possible due to budgetary constraints.
Fortunately, software solutions are helping to ease some of the burden on school counselors. This tool saves significant time building master schedules so students can receive their preferred classes. This means more time for counselors to spend with their students. Using these tools, school counselors can create a productive working partnership and provide the needed student support. This is key for ensuring students thrive in and out of the classroom.
