The mental health working profession is challenging, rewarding and filled with opportunity. If you are looking for a career in mental health, you might consider some factors. For example, educational requirements, skills, specific roles in the job and the responsibilities etc. if you know this information will help you to do well in the career you’re seeking. In this article, I shall share some parts of the most important job roles in this sector as well as some legitimate steps to follow.

Top Six mental health jobs you may consider:

1. Substance counsellorst

A substance abuse counsellor’s primary job responsibility is to help people who are addicted to drugs and alcohol. They are cured by behavioural therapy and medical intervention. They can overcome their addiction through this treatment. To become a substance abuse counsellor, you need to earn an accredited counselling degree. Later on, you need to work as a counsellor for availing some practice hours under supervision. Afterwards, you need to pass a national or state licensing or certification exam post-degree. During the work, you may incur a wage of £12.18 per hour. Which will increase over the period.

2. Social worker

If you are in this profession, you will help people to overcome challenges like abuse, addiction, poverty and mental illness as well. It's a range of work you should do in your everyday life. You obliged to protect helpless children or support families who need help. You may also have to give treatment in terms of your education. It could include mental behaviour and some emotional issues. To become a social worker you need a credential from a licensed provider like NASW. To be eligible for the license, you need to earn at least a bachelor of social work (BSW) degree or a master of social work (MSW) degree. Despite that, you can also earn some professional certification licenses like licensed social workers (LSWs), licensed independent social workers (LISWs), licensed clinical social workers (LCSWs) etc. in terms of payment, you can earn £40,816 per year in this profession.

3. Licensed professional counsellor

Licensed professional counsellors (LPCs) are meant to work with adults or children individually. They also work with families or a bunch of persons to treat mental, behavioural or emotional problems. To become a licensed professional counsellor you must have these two distinctive features. First, one is to listen properly and the second one is problem-solving skills. If you think you are the one with these skills, then this profession is ideal for you. To become a licensed professional counsellor, you need to have at least a master’s degree like masters in mental health counselling. Additionally, you also need to have experience in supervising any clinical work. Moreover, you need to assess and diagnose your patient and create a treatment plan. Reinforce them to overcome the goals which will be set by you. Meanwhile, you have to have the mindset to work with all levels of aged people. Your client can be from 16 to 61. They could encompass a variety of levels of illness like depression, anxiety, alcoholism/addiction or trauma etc. you need to understand their levels of illness and treat them or counsels them as they require. A certified licensed professional counsellor may incur 50k pound sterling over a year.

4. Psychologist

We all know their name and we all admire them for standing beside us during our bad times. Yes, psychologists are the most decorated personnel in society. They can be helpful during your darkest time. Although, there are two types of Psychologists. The first one is clinical and the second one is counselling. Clinical psychologists work in hospitals. They can also be seen in the criminal justice system. Sometimes they help the law enforcement authority to tweak any complex cases. On the other hand, counselling psychologists assist patients. They help them to cope with stress and mental illness. Typically they do that through talk therapy. To become a psychologist, first, you need to attain a bachelor degree in Psychology. Otherwise, you cannot be able to patch up with the pace. To begin the career you must seat your goals and try to work and gain experience from your very beginning. For example, If you are interested in tentative psychology you need to do an apprenticeship under a professor. You can help him/her with his/her research projects. If you are keen to practice developmental psychology then work with handicapped children. There are many more like this. If you can get hands-on experience before you complete your degree you might have comparative advantages after the graduations. Henceforth, the salary is lucrative, whopping 60 thousand pounds per year.

5. Psychiatric nurse

If you aspire to become a psychiatric nurse you have to work in a community centre, private practices and hospitals. Also providing care and support for people who suffer from serious mental health conditions. You also have to work with the families of the patient. Over there, you need to teach them how to interact with their loved ones and also how to relate themselves to the external environment in productive ways. To become a psychiatric nurse you'll need a minimum of five GCSEs at grade 4/C or above. All have to be in English language and a science subject. Furthermore, two A levels or equivalent level 3 qualifications for an undergraduate degree. Some universities might ask you for three A levels or alike. However, if you already acquire a degree, you might be capable of studying for a postgraduate qualification. But remember, here in this profession you must have interpersonal skills despite having those degrees. Without that, you can't be proficient enough for the challenge. The salary, as usual, is much higher. You can earn £ 80 thousand per year.

6. Psychiatrist

The primary responsibility of a psychiatrist is to train himself as a medical doctor. And then diagnose the unpleasant situation and treat the problem. Furthermore, you are also alleged to prevent emotional and mental disorders of the patients. It is to be noted that psychologists and psychiatrists can prescribe medication as well. To pursue this career you’ll need to accomplish a five-year degree in medicine which should be acknowledged by the UK general medical council. Also, you need to have a 2-year foundation program in a general training session, three years of training in psychiatry and last but not least you must have a special three-year training certification to avail the license. The average salary of a psychiatrist can be £1, 61,332 per year. To recapitulate, the ground of mental health jobs is growing at a very fast pace. The rate may reach 14% over the next decade amidst the total job market. Additionally, there may be over 26,000 jobs that can be expected to be added in the upcoming years. Therefore, it will have a plethora of prospects for those who are eagerly looking forward to joining the field of psychology. If you follow the steps and convey the processes, you must reach the utmost level of success over the years to come.