PYCL 631 Required KPI Assignment #2: O*Net Assignment

05/31/2024

Kirstin Hall

Explain the process for how you found and selected the occupation
of your choice:

I searched for a mental health counselor occupation because that is what I plan on pursuing. I
have been seeing counselors since I was 10 years old, due to a traumatic event with my family
resulting in my parents' separation. I didn’t have much interest in counseling until I was in high
school and began seeing a mental health counselor again for depression and social withdrawal. I
decided to study psychology and counseling. More recently I have received a diagnosis of
ADHD and OCD, which has changed how I view my own faults and shortcomings. I am now
even more interested in counseling young adults who may be struggling with navigating
adulthood with unknown neurodivergence. I also received results that aligned with mental health
counseling when using the O*NET profiler (Social, Investigative, and Artistic).

Title of Occupation:

Mental Health Counselor

Tasks:

1) Maintain confidentiality of client treatment records.

2) Encourage and assist clients with expressing their feelings and developing
insight into themselves and their relationships

3) Assess clients for suicide risk

4) Prepare and maintain required documentation (records and reports)

5) Counsel clients (individually or in a group) to assist in overcoming

dependencies, adjusting to life, making changes, and

more.

Technology Skills:

1) Email software

2) ERP (Enterprise resource planning) software

3) Internet browsers

4) Medical software

5) Presentation software

Knowledge:

1) Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior, individual differences,

personality, learning and motivation, research

methods, and assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective

disorders.

2) Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and

procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation

of physical and mental disorders and dysfunctions; as well as career

counseling and guidance.

3) Customer and Personal Service: Knowledge of principles and processes for

providing personal services; including

customer needs assessments, quality standards, and evaluations of

customer satisfaction.

4) English Language: Knowledge of structure and content of the English

language including the meaning and spelling of

words, rules of composition, and grammar.

5) Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for

curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction

for individuals and groups, and ability to measure training efficacy.

Skills:

1) Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and

understanding why they react as they do

2) Active Listening - Giving full attention to what others are saying, taking
time to understand, asking questions as

appropriate, and refraining from interrupting.

3) Speaking - Verbally conveying information effectively

4) Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and
paragraphs in work-related documents.

5) Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people

Abilities:

1) Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand

vocally/verbally delivered information and ideas

2) Oral Expression - The ability to communicate spoken information and

ideas effectively

3) Problem Sensitivity - The ability to recognize when something is wrong or

is likely to go wrong.

4) Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so that others can understand
you

5) Written Comprehension - The ability to understand written information

and ideas.

Work Activities:

1) Assisting and Caring for Others

2) Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships\

3) Getting Information

4) Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates

5) Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work

Detailed Work Activities:

1) Counsels clients or patients regarding personal issues

2) Completes documentation required by programs or regulations

3) Writes reports and/or evaluations

4) Counsels clients or patients with substance abuse issues

5) Teach life skills or strategies to clients or their families

Work Context:

1) Face-to-face discussions

2) Contact with Others

3) Telephone communication

4) Email

5) Indoors, environmentally controlled

Education:

- Master's Degree Required

- Internship Required

Interest Code:

- SIA

- Social - Involves working, communicating, and teaching others. These

occupations often involve helping or providing

service to others.

- Investigative - Involves working with ideas, and requires an extensive

amount of thinking. These occupations can involve

searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.

- Artistic - Involve working with forms, designs, and patterns. They often
require self-expression and the work can be done

without following a clear set of rules.

Work Styles:

1) Concern for Others - The job requires being sensitive to others' needs and
feelings and being understanding and helpful

on the job.

2) Stress Tolerance - The job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly
and effectively with high-stress situations.

3) Integrity - The job requires being honest and ethical.

Work Values:

1) Relationships - Allows employees to provide service to others and work

with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive

environment.
2) Achievement - Results-oriented and allow employees to use their
strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of

accomplishment.

3) Independence - Allows employees to work on their own and make

decisions.

Related Occupations:

1) Clinical and Counseling Psychologist

2) Healthcare Social Workers

3) Marriage and Family Therapists

Wage and Employment Trends:

- Median wages (2023):

$25.82 hourly, $53,710 annual

- State wages:

$25.12 hourly, $52,260 annual

- Employment (2022):

388,200 employees

- Projected growth (2022-2032)

Much faster than average (9% or higher)

- Projected job openings (2022-2032):

42,000

- State trends:

Employment (2020): 16,710 employees; Projected employment (2030):

21,300;

Sources of Additional Information:

1) Addiction and Technology Transfer Center Network

2) American Mental Health Counselors Association

3) American Counseling Association

How could you use this activity to advocate for diverse clients’
career and educational development and employment opportunities
in a global economy?

This resource uses personality and personal preferences to help determine

jobs that are likely to fit the client. This can be extremely helpful when
working with clients who are unsure of what field to pursue, or where to start
to get to a specific role. This resource also includes valuable demographic
information so the client can compare wages and job growth in their area.

How could this activity help you become aware of ethical and
cultural considerations for the client?

This activity helps me to understand that each job has a trained individual
who has interests and skills that align with their role. Even if it may be a role
that I do not align with or understand, there are individuals who enjoy these
jobs. I feel like this is important to remember as every client is going to have
a different outlook and connotation with various roles and careers due to
their culture and upbringing.

Describe strategies from this activity you could use in the career
development program planning, organization, implementation,

administration, and evaluation:

This activity is ideal for clients to research career opportunities that align
with their own values while also taking into account the level of
preparedness they are willing to work on to get to that role, and the
prospected job growth and wages for said role. This tool even has
information on how to get to the position, such as what to study. This tool is
nearly a one-stop shop to pursue a new job field.

How do you think this activity assesses the conditions of the work
environment on clients’ life experiences?

I think this activity does a great job of displaying relevant information to

show clients the multifaceted conditions of a career, which a client can then
assess if this career aligns with their interests, ethics, expectations,
education, and wage requirements. It can also be used as a tool to assess if
the client is experiencing dissonance between their career path and their
wants/needs/values. It can also be a great tool to use when the client knows
they want something different in their role, but don’t necessarily know what
they would rather do.