School or Career Counselor: how teachers make the switch

“School counselors help students develop academic and social skills, while career counselors help people choose employment paths.”

Know this first

  • DegreeBLS: most school counselor jobs need a master's degree in school counseling or a related field.
  • LicenseState credential required for public schools, usually with a supervised internship and an exam. Some states also license career counselors.
From
Teaching
To
School or Career Counselor
U.S. median pay
$64,330
U.S. median, BLS (May 2025)
Job outlook
+3%
BLS, 2025–35
Entry education
Master's degree
Related experience
None
SOC21-1012Source: BLS

Pay varies by state and sector.

Already packed

What carries over from your classroom

  • Knowing how schools, schedules, and graduation requirements work
  • Building trust with students and families
  • Spotting a kid who is struggling before anyone else does

Still to pack

What you’d likely need to add

  • A master's program and a supervised practicum
  • Your state's credential requirements

Test flights

Try it before you quit

Small, low-risk ways to find out if you’d actually like this work.

  1. Shadow your school's counselor for a day during a planning period
  2. Look up your state's school counselor credential page and list every requirement
  3. Ask a counselor how they paid for and scheduled their degree while working

Is this one of your 3 paths?

Answer a few questions about the teaching work you enjoy and your constraints around time, money, and pay. See 3 careers your skills already fit, including ones you’ve probably never heard of.

We’ll email you when it’s ready. No spam.

Other routes from teaching

Data checked September 2026 from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook (SOC 21-1012). Suggestions on this page are our own editorial guidance, not BLS data.