Human services is the practice of helping people meet their physical and mental needs through a variety of different approaches. The field includes both non-profit organizations and for-profit companies that provide health care, social and emotional support, child care, education, or other services.
As a human services professional, you might work in the community or in an organization as a counsellor, psychologist, case manager, social worker, family counsellor, or work in many other positions.
These are just some of the many careers you can explore with a human service degree.
Career Paths for Human Service Degree
There are many careers you can pursue through a human services degree. We’ve looked at a variety of careers you can explore with a health and human services program. These include but are not limited to these.
Substance Abuse Counsellor
A substance abuse counsellor is specialized in helping people with chemical dependency issues and assisting with recovery from substance abuse. The counsellor provides services to help people identify and overcome their substance abuse issues. They work with individuals and their families to provide counselling and treatment options and provide treatment for relapse prevention.
Note that there is a difference between a substance abuse counsellor and a drug and alcohol counsellor. A drug and alcohol counsellor works with addicts and drug users with a focus on substance abuse. They are trained to provide counselling and assistance to help individuals achieve long-term recovery.
Substance abuse counsellors work in both public and private settings to help people battling addiction. They can work in a mental health facility, a hospital, a treatment centre, or any other group or solo practice.
Home Health Aide
A home health aide is a professional worker who helps people with physical, mental, and chronic disabilities with a variety of tasks. A home health aide can help with daily tasks such as bathing, dressing, feeding, and maintaining the patient’s medical needs and needs for care.
They may also help with administrative tasks such as making medical appointments, submitting and documenting reports, and maintaining a patient’s records and medical charts.
They’re trained to provide assistance with activities of daily living and keep a patient’s home safe.
Marriage and Family Therapist
A marriage and family therapist is a licensed therapist who specializes in the treatment and counselling of individuals, couples, and families for emotional, mental, and behavioural difficulties. They may work in solo practice or in a small group setting to provide therapy.
They also specialize in techniques for addressing relationship difficulties and helping them in numerous ways by increasing their ability to communicate and find a middle ground in their conflicts.
Marriage and family therapists typically work in private practice, hospitals and outpatient clinics, psychiatric centres, child care centres, and schools. They are also a good choice for private practice nurses, social workers, and school teachers, as they can help address various aspects of a patient’s emotional and behavioural difficulties.
Domestic Violence Counsellor
A domestic violence counsellor is a licensed therapist who focuses on domestic violence. They provide counselling, therapy, and assistance to partners, spouses, and children of domestic violence survivors.
They also help the survivors to navigate the criminal justice system and other services to receive appropriate support and get back on their feet. Domestic violence counsellors also work to provide additional support for survivors who have left abusive relationships and are experiencing problems like depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and substance abuse.
They can also be part of a social work department, a department of psychology, or other mental health services departments.
Social Worker
Social workers are professionally trained people who work in mental health, social welfare, and the community. They provide a wide range of services to individuals, families, and communities. They’re best known for providing assistance and therapy to children, families, and youth in need.
They focus on the ways social inequalities and problems create barriers to healthy social, emotional, and behavioural development in the children and families they serve.
Social workers also work to assist individuals who are affected by mental health problems, disabilities, violence, substance abuse, or mental health-related addictions. They can also help low-income families struggling with basic living and monetary problems.
Social workers work in outpatient clinics, community mental health centres, day-care centres, and schools. In some areas, they may also provide social and vocational services to adults.
