Career profile · SOC 19-3033

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists

Diagnose and treat mental disorders; learning disabilities; and cognitive, behavioral, and emotional problems, using individual, child, family, and group therapies.

Median salary
$95,830
per year
Growth outlook
Faster Than Average
BLS 10-yr
Education
Doctoral or professional degree
AI exposure
3.6/10
automation risk

Salary distribution (US)

Real salary data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The p10–p90 spread tells you more than the median alone.

Bottom 10%
$50,920
25th %ile
$72,510
Median
$95,830
75th %ile
$120,380
Top 10%
$146,340

Top skills

Active Listening Social Perceptiveness Speaking Critical Thinking Reading Comprehension Complex Problem Solving Judgment and Decision Making Writing Service Orientation Active Learning

Knowledge you'll build

  • Psychology
  • Therapy and Counseling
  • English Language
  • Sociology and Anthropology
  • Education and Training
  • Customer and Personal Service
  • Biology
  • Medicine and Dentistry

A day in the life

Your day begins by reviewing session notes from yesterday and preparing for back-to-back therapy appointments. Throughout the morning you meet with individual clients—using cognitive-behavioral techniques with one, EMDR with a trauma survivor, and play therapy with a seven-year-old who is struggling after a divorce. After a working lunch where you score a neuropsychological assessment, the afternoon includes a couples session, a consultation call with a psychiatrist about medication adjustments, and documentation of clinical notes. The emotional labor is significant, but watching a client break through a pattern that has held them back for years is profoundly gratifying.

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