A career is a long and winding journey, and it’s not uncommon for people to feel stuck, lost, or unfulfilled at different points.
That’s why it can be extremely beneficial to call in career support.
However, it’s not always clear what type of support to call in.
Two of the top options are career coaches and career counselors. And in this article, I’ll help you get crystal clear on the difference between the two, and if either might be a good next step for your career.
But before going into too much detail, here’s a quick list of the differences between career coaches and career counselors.
Aspect | Career Coach | Career Counselor |
Focus of work | Your future; Goal-oriented | Your past; Healing-oriented |
Methodology | Clarify your dream job, then learn the tools to get there | Examine how your past is shaping your career |
Qualifications | Certification; Real career experience | Master's degree |
Duration and structure | 3 or 6-month packages; Regularly scheduled calls | One-off sessions; Meet when you want |
Payment | Pay for a result; Pay upfront for coaching package; $1k-10k /month | Pay for counselor's time; Pay per session; $150-200/session |
Let’s unpack each of those so you can discern whether a career coach or a career counselor may be a better fit.
1. Core Focus: Future vs. Past
Career coaches deal with the future. They help you figure out where you want to go in your career, and then they support you with the strategy and skill-building to get there.
This will involve some soul-searching. As a career coach, I ask clients thought-provoking questions about their career history. And I’ll help intuit patterns around what they’ve liked about past jobs and what they’ve hated.
Once a client knows what they're shooting for, the bulk of career coaching involves teaching them the nitty-gritty skills needed to get their dream job. That might include résumé writing, interview skills, job search strategies, or leadership skills.
While the focus of coaching isn’t your past, it’s likely that your emotions, limiting beliefs, and personal history will come up. And a good career coach will be skilled in working through this terrain.
Career counselors on the other hand deal more with the past. They are therapists helping you work out how your childhood events created difficult emotions and unhealthy patterns in your career.
You may explore your relationship with career success and money, what beliefs cause you to consistently burn out, or how your relationship with your parents has impacted your career choices.
Ultimately, career counseling is about healing your relationship with yourself, and using your career as an access point.
That said, career counselors can still help you clarify your career direction, and get your career on track. The conversations just won’t be as tactical as coaching.
As a metaphor, imagine you’re climbing a mountain. A career coach would help you pick where you want to climb and help you get there. They’d teach you technique and get you the right gear.
A career counselor would help you understand why climbing makes you feel anxious. Why you feel scared to go for too high a peak, or why you’re hesitating at the base of the mountain.
2. Methods: Strategy vs. Healing
Career coaching is often about helping a client land their dream job.
Here’s a framework I share with clients:
Not everyone knows what their dream job is. So often the first few sessions with a coach will include:
Clarifying your top strengths (or what I call your “Badass List”)
Figuring out what fulfills you
The coach sharing job options that fit your strengths and interests (many of which you may have never thought of!)
Once the client figures out their dream job, sessions with a coach become more practical and strategic.
The coach will create an action plan and teach the client skills to move toward their career dreams; that could include crafting a captivating LinkedIn page, networking to get a job, or developing a charismatic presence.
The career coach will also give the client weekly homework assignments to take action steps toward their goal.
The bulk of the work with career counselors tends to focus on your inner world.
Counselors will use therapy modalities like Internal Family Systems or Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help you understand how unresolved wounds from your past might be shaping your current perception of your career.
For example, maybe you grew up in a wealthy family and have always felt an unachievable pressure to succeed. Or maybe as the youngest child, you never prioritized what you wanted, and this habit is showing up in a career that doesn’t match your desires.
You have your own history, and a career counselor will help you understand how it’s impacting your career decisions.
This healing work will eventually circle back to the present, and give you more agency over pursuing what type of career you really want for yourself.
Career counselors also often use career assessments or personality tests to clarify your strengths and interests to point you toward potential career paths you hadn’t considered.
The reality is, that both coaches and counselors will help you achieve your goals and heal your inner world. It’s just a matter of where the emphasis is.
3. Qualifications: Training & Experience vs. Degree
Career coaching isn’t a regulated field, so not all coaches are formally trained. However, I’d recommend working with a coach who studied with an accredited institution like the International Association for Career Coaches. These trainings typically involve a multi-month program with reading, practice sessions, and mentorship from seasoned experts.
Additionally, career coaches often act as a mentors for their clients. That coach has earned wisdom through years of wins and losses in their own career—they’ve gained experience that can’t be taught in a school.
Career counselors on the other hand need to get a master’s degree in counseling, which usually takes around two years. Then they need to get licensed, which requires supervised hours. And finally, they must get credentialed in career counseling.
Think of a career coach as part mentor, part teacher, and part friend. Whereas a career counselor is a mental health professional.
4. Duration: Defined Timeline vs. Open-ended
Career coaches tend to work on a per-package basis. That means you’ll hire the coach for a set amount of time.
The most common arrangement is a 2-month package, which you can continue with afterward for up to six more months. However, some coaches offer 3-month packages, some 1-month packages, some 6-month packages.
Career coaches work this way because their priority is helping you achieve your career goals. So coaches structure their package length based on how long they think it’ll take to help you get to where you want to go.
Plus, paying for a coaching package as a whole can elicit a sense of commitment to the process (from both the client and the coach). It puts the coaching arrangement—and your career development—front and center in your life, which makes it more likely you’ll achieve your professional goals.
Career counselors work on a per-session basis. That can give you a lot more flexibility. You could meet with them every week, every month, or just once in a while when you need support.
The only downside of this arrangement is that it can evoke less commitment from the client. In theory, you could hire a career counselor, but not really prioritize the work. If you just meet with them every now and then and don’t fully commit to the process, you might not see any notable career growth.
5. Payment: Fixed Packages vs. Pay Per Session
Career coaches typically charge an upfront cost to work together for a set time duration.
The cost can vary quite a bit. Newer coaches might charge as low as $500 per month. Though it’s likely a more experienced coach will cost at least $1,000 per month. High-end coaches can cost up to $5,000/month.
The idea is that you’re paying for a specific result in your career, and the coaching package is the way to get there.
Also, consider that this service can pay for itself. If you hire a career coach to land a new job, negotiate a raise, or secure a promotion, the few thousand you invest might be just a drop in the bucket compared to your increased earnings.
A career counselor charges per session and most counselors’ fees will fall in the $150-$200 / session range. Though sessions can go as high as $300 or as low as $100. And prices vary by region.
With a counselor, you are in essence paying for their time.
The good news is that plenty of career counselors accept insurance payments.
Which Should You Choose, Career Coaching vs Career Counseling?
If you think you’d benefit from some support from a career professional, but aren’t sure if a career coach or a career counselor would be a better fit, take a look at the questions below.
A career coach is likely a good fit if you’re asking yourself these questions:
I’m a little unsatisfied in my career…what’s my next move?
I know what I want—but how do I get there?
How can I be more strategic in building my career?
I want to transition to a more fulfilling job or industry…what should I do?
Grr, I’m struggling to land a job. What am I doing wrong?
A career counselor is likely a good fit if you’re asking yourself these questions:
Why do I struggle with imposter syndrome in my career?
I feel like I’m underachieving in my work. How can I stop?
When I think about work, my whole body clenches in dread and anxiety. Help!
I’ve achieved all the career aspirations I’ve ever had. Why am I still unsatisfied?
Even when I get a promotion or recognition, why can't I shake the feeling that I don't deserve it?
If you think a career coach could help take your career to the next level, check out the International Association of Career Coaches. Just fill out a short form describing what you’re looking for, and we’ll match you with a few potential coaches for free. Then you can pick who you reach out to.
If you think a career counselor would help you, try going to Psychology Today. It’s a global repository of hundreds of thousands of counselors. Just type in your location, click “all filters,” click “show more specialties,” then check “career counseling.”