Occupation salary profile

Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors

SOC 21-1012 BLS OEWS May 2025 H-1B LCAs, last 12 months

Advise and assist students and provide educational and vocational guidance services.

National median · BLS
$64,330
▼ -1.24% YoY
H-1B sponsor median
$55,734
▲ +2.44% YoY · 288 LCAs
Average salary · BLS
$71,430
Mean annual wage
U.S. employment
353,310
Jobs (BLS)
Highest-paying state (cost-adjusted) Loading…
Most jobs Loading…
Highest-paying metro (cost-adjusted) Loading…

Check your salary

Enter your pay and a location to see where you stand against BLS and H-1B pay, your estimated take-home pay, and your purchasing power.

Pay range for Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors

Annual base pay at each percentile. BLS covers all U.S. workers in this occupation; H-1B covers 288 certified Labor Condition Applications filed by sponsoring employers in the last 12 months.

Percentile All U.S. workers (BLS) H-1B sponsored
10th — entry pay$45,020$44,990
25th$51,270$49,000
Median (50th)$64,330$55,734
75th$82,870$65,270
90th — top pay$104,770$75,000
H-1B sponsors pay a median of $55,734 for Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors — 13.4% below the BLS national median of $64,330.

Hourly ⇄ annual pay

Type in either box; the other updates instantly.

Monthly—
Every 2 weeks—
Weekly—
Daily—
Based on hrs/week × weeks/year = 2,080 hrs
Projections 2025–2035

Job outlook for Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors

BLS projects employment of educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors to grow 2.9% from 2025 to 2035, slower than the 3.5% average for all occupations. About 27,800 openings are projected each year, on average, from new jobs and from replacing workers who retire or move to other occupations.

Jobs 2025 → 2035
389,500 → 400,900
+11,400 jobs
Projected change
+2.9%
All occupations: +3.5%
Openings per year
27,800
Average, 2025–2035
Typical entry education
Master's degree
No related experience required
Self-employed
0.6% of workers (2025)
Preparation needed (O*NET Job Zone 5)
Extensive Preparation Needed. Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).
Fastest-growing jobs → Best-paying jobs that need a master's degree →

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025–2035 · BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook →

H-1B sponsored pay

Pay by H-1B wage level

Employers assign every H-1B filing a Department of Labor prevailing-wage level, from Level I (entry) to Level IV (fully competent). Pay rises steeply with level.

H-1B median $55,734
Change vs prior year +2.44%
After inflation (CPI-U) -0.67%
Wage level LCAs Share P25 Median P75
Level I 164 56.9% $46,375 $51,670 $57,768
Level II 78 27.1% $55,000 $64,688 $72,000
Level III 18 6.3% $62,889 $70,162 $78,650
H-1B job titles

Salaries by job title in Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors

The 4 most-filed job titles inside SOC 21-1012, from 288 H-1B filings. Seniority words and level numbers are grouped (“Senior Data Engineer II” counts as Data Engineer). Tap a title for its full range, wage levels and the exact titles employers used.

Job title LCAs Share P25 Median P75 YoY
School Counselor 13 4.51% $52,000 $57,243 $61,800 +8.41%
Educational Counselor 12 4.17% $57,500 $65,478 $68,309 —
Academic Advisor 11 3.82% $55,770 $57,768 $65,166 +13.44%
Assistant Director 10 3.47% $58,298 $61,011 $63,481 -3.92%

Titles are cleaned from the employer's own LCA text (codes and typos removed, nothing invented). Rows need 10+ filings in this SOC.

Skills & tools

Skills needed for Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors

How important each skill and knowledge area is for this job, rated by O*NET on a 1–5 scale from surveys of workers and occupational analysts.

Top skills
  • Active Listening4.4
  • Social Perceptiveness4.1
  • Speaking4.1
  • Service Orientation4.0
  • Critical Thinking3.9
  • Reading Comprehension3.9
  • Writing3.9
  • Active Learning3.8
  • Complex Problem Solving3.8
  • Learning Strategies3.8
Top knowledge areas
  • Customer and Personal Service4.1
  • English Language3.9
  • Therapy and Counseling3.6
  • Education and Training3.4
  • Psychology3.1
  • Administrative3.1
  • Administration and Management2.9
  • Sociology and Anthropology2.8
Software and technology used
Microsoft ExcelMicrosoft Office softwareMicrosoft OutlookMicrosoft PowerPointAdobe PhotoshopFacebookGoogle DocsMicrosoft AccessMicrosoft ProjectMicrosoft SharePointMicrosoft SQL Server Reporting Services SSRSMicrosoft WordOracle PeopleSoftACT DiscoverACT WorkKeysAdobe ActionScriptAthena Software Penelope Case ManagementBlackbaud The Raiser's Edge

Highlighted = in demand: frequently listed in employer job postings for this occupation (O*NET).

Source: O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.

About the job

What educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors do

  • Maintain accurate and complete student records as required by laws, district policies, and administrative regulations.
  • Counsel students regarding educational issues, such as course and program selection, class scheduling and registration, school adjustment, truancy, study habits, and career planning.
  • Provide crisis intervention to students when difficult situations occur at schools.
  • Counsel individuals or groups to help them understand and overcome personal, social, or behavioral problems affecting their educational or vocational situations.
  • Review transcripts to ensure that students meet graduation or college entrance requirements, and write letters of recommendation.
  • Prepare students for later educational experiences by encouraging them to explore learning opportunities and to persevere with challenging tasks.
  • Refer students to outside counseling services.
  • Refer students to degree programs based on interests, aptitudes, or educational assessments.
Also called
Academic AdvisorCareer CounselorGuidance CounselorSchool CounselorAcademic CounselorAdmissions CounselorCollege CounselorElementary School CounselorStudent Services CoordinatorVocational Counselor
More job titles for this occupation (68)
Adult School CounselorAdvisorArticulation OfficerAssessment SpecialistCareer AdvisorCareer CoachCareer ConsultantCareer CoordinatorCareer DeveloperCareer Development ConsultantCareer Development CounselorCareer Development FacilitatorCareer Development SpecialistCareer Guidance CounselorCareer Services CoordinatorCareer Technical CounselorCareer Transition SpecialistChild Guidance CounselorCounselorCurriculum CounselorDisability Services CoordinatorEducation CoordinatorEducation CounselorEducational AdvisorEducational ConsultantEducational Guidance CounselorEmployment CoachEmployment CoordinatorEmployment CounselorEmployment SpecialistEmployment TrainerEmployment Training SpecialistEnrollment CounselorEnrollment SpecialistExtension Course CounselorFinancial Services SpecialistForeign Student AdvisorGuidance AdvisorHigh School CounselorHigh School Guidance CounselorInternational Student CounselorInternship CoordinatorJob CoachLife Skills CoachOffender Employment Specialist (OES)Offender Job Retention SpecialistOffender Workforce Development Specialist (OWDS)Outplacement ConsultantPlacement CoordinatorPupil Personnel WorkerResidence CounselorResume WriterScheduling SpecialistSchool Adjustment CounselorSchool Guidance CounselorStudent AdvisorStudent CounselorStudent Development AdvisorStudent Services CounselorStudent Success CounselorStudent Support CounselorStudy Abroad AdvisorTransition AdvisorTransition SpecialistVocational AdviserVocational EvaluatorVocational ExaminerVocational Rehabilitation Counselor (Vocational Rehab Counselor)

Source: O*NET 31.0 (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0). These are general job titles, not H-1B filings; for titles employers actually filed, see “Job titles” above.