Maybe you’ve felt called to become a licensed professional counselor in mental health, but you don’t know all the opportunities available to you. Psychotherapy, counseling, and psychiatry are not all the same, so where do you start if you want to enter the field?
Some of the most common terms for treatment and occupations in mental health can be confusing. Many of these words are interchangeable and can vary in connotation from person to person. The following sections help clarify what certain terms, such as counseling vs psychotherapy, mean.
Counseling vs Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy and counseling both use psychological methods to help clients with a mental or emotional disorder.
Some people make a small distinction between the two terms. Counseling is a brief treatment that targets a specific symptom or situation, while psychotherapy is a longer-term treatment that attempts to gain more insight into someone’s problems. However, many people use the terms interchangeably.
One caveat is that counseling can be used in other contexts. For instance, someone may receive career counseling from a licensed professional counselor, or a couple may receive premarital counseling, which changes the meaning of the term. In the context of mental health, however, counseling often refers to psychotherapy or therapy.
Psychiatrist vs Psychologist vs Therapist
These three occupations are among the most common in mental health.
- Psychiatrist: A psychiatrist is a physician who diagnoses, treats, and helps prevent disorders of the brain. They can evaluate a patient’s health, diagnose, and develop a treatment plan. Psychiatrists can prescribe a wide range of drugs and recommend inpatient hospitalization or outpatient treatment. To become a psychiatrist, candidates must complete four years of medical school after receiving a bachelor’s degree. Then they complete a residency program in psychiatry and pursue board certification in the specialty.
- Psychologist: Psychologists study behavior and cognitive, emotional, and social processes. They can conduct research, administer tests, and perform psychotherapy. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) identifies many types of psychologists, such as clinical, forensic, school, and social psychologists. They typically need a doctoral degree in psychology, as well as state licensure to practice.
- Therapist: Therapists help clients with mental or emotional disorders. They accomplish this through the related terms of counseling, therapy, and psychotherapy. The BLS uses “mental health counselors” and “marriage and family therapists” to identify this category of mental health providers. Many therapists’ work is guided by major mental health counseling theories. A master’s degree in psychology, clinical mental health counseling, or a related field is needed for entry into this career, as well as state licensure.
There’s more to the counseling vs psychotherapy distinction than meets the eye. All three of these featured mental health professionals can provide therapy. In most cases, psychiatrists are performing therapy less often than in previous eras. Instead, appointments typically consist of brief consultations with patients and medication management; psychiatrists may refer patients to psychologists or therapists for talk therapy (or psychotherapy).
Psychologists generally have a greater scope of practice than therapists or licensed professional counselors in mental health. The additional training that psychologists receive (most have a Ph.D. or Psy.D.) enables them to administer more tests, including personality, performance, aptitude, intelligence, and other psychological tests. Therapists or mental health counselors are more limited in the tests they can administer, but they have the knowledge and skills to provide high-quality talk therapy.
Becoming a Counselor
As you gain more clarity between counseling vs psychotherapy, perhaps one of the professions mentioned above stands out to you. This might be your time to pursue a new field with confidence!
As you start to investigate programs to equip you for your career, you will find that Grace’s online Christian counseling degree effectively prepares students to become licensed professional counselors. This program is for you if you are serious about creating an impact in a counseling career and are looking to complete your graduate degree online. With a master’s in clinical mental health counseling online, you will be trained to help guide and assist people with their personal troubles. This online Christian counseling degree is also committed to the professional and interpersonal development of the student, which is essential for effective counseling practice.
Learn more about Grace’s master of clinical mental health counseling program. And if you want to learn more about the steps to becoming a counselor, read this blog by program director, Dr. Jill Brue.
Or read how Jonathan Magee chose Grace’s clinical mental health counseling program!
