Roles, Functions and Competencies of Counselors Counselors employ different styles and strategies in assisting and helping a client

solve their own problems by utilizing some models presented by known personalities that suit
Counseling given by counselors can make a huge impact on the lives of individuals, the needs of a certain client.
groups and communities. This service aid people to traverse challenging life situation in their
lives. Counseling is a process and a relationship between/among the client(s) and counselor. FOUNDATION SKILLS IN FOSTERING CONVERSATION AND EXPLORATION IN
Ready to share time to explore the client’s clarification of his/her issues and solve it at the end. COUNSELING
Ultimately, counseling empowers people to lead healthy and fulfilling lives. Conversation and exploration are essential parts of the counseling process. Thus,
counselors must have the following foundation skills to make the counseling session
The Philippine Republic Act No. 9258 (Sec. 2-3) defines a guidance counselor as a successful.
natural person who has been professionally registered and licensed by a legitimate state entity
and by specialized training to perform the functions of guidance and counseling. They are 1. Attending and Listening
trained professionals who undergone trainings to provide the necessary assistance to their
 It refers to active listening, which means listening with purpose and responding in
clients.
such a way that clients are aware that they have both been heard and understood.
Counselors who will play a part in the counseling service should know their roles,
 Active listening involves listening to the words, gestures and body language.
functions and competencies so that they will be able to perform their job effectively and
efficiently. The following are the roles, functions and competencies of a counselor.  It is listening for what is said and what is not said; listening to content – its
Roles of Counselors meaning and the emotions behind it.

1. Assist the person or persons in realizing a change in behavior or attitude;  ATTENDING refers to the ways in which counsellors can be “with” their clients,
2. Assist clients to seek achievement of goals; and both physically and psychologically. Effective attending tells clients that you are
3. Assist clients to find help with them and that they can share their world with you. 

Functions of Guidance Counselors  LISTENING refers to the ability of counsellors to capture and understand the
1. Help a client to develop potentials/abilities to the fullest messages clients communicate as they tell their stories, whether those messages
2. help a client to plan to utilize his or her potentials/abilities are transmitted verbally or nonverbally.
3. help a client to plan to utilize his or her future in accordance with his or her abilities,
interests and needs
4. share and apply knowledge related to counseling such as counseling theories, tools 2. Reflective Skills
and techniques
5. administer wide range human development service  analyzing your own experiences to improve the way you learn or work.
 It concerned with the other person’s frame of reference.
Competencies of Guidance Counselors  It captures what the client is saying and plays it back to them but in
1. administer and maintain career guidance and counseling program counselor’s own word.
2. administer career advocacy activities
3. capable career advocates
4. facilitate conduct of career advocacy in collaboration with career advocates and
peer facilitators
 Reflection in counseling is like holding up a mirror: repeating the client's words back to 1. Communication skills
them exactly as they said them. You might reflect back the whole sentence, or you might select
-include the ability to actively listen, demonstrate understanding, ask
a few words – or even one single word – from what the client has brought.
appropriate questions and provide information as needed.
3. Probing Skills
-effective communication means the message you want to communicate is received as
 Skill that facilitates going deeper, asking more directed or leading questions. you intended it to be received.

 Probing involves statements and questions from the counsellor that enable 2. Motivational skills
clients to explore more fully any relevant issue of their lives.   these skills are the ones that influence a client to act after the helping session or
Probes or questions serve the following purposes: consultation.

 to encourage non-assertive or unwilling clients to tell their stories 3. Problem-solving skills

 to help clients to remain focused on relevant and important issues  -includes differentiating between symptoms and the problem, pinpointing
probable causes and triggers for the problem, and then generating a
 to help clients to identify experiences, behaviors and feelings that give a fuller range of possible solutions to the actual problem.
picture to their story, in other words, to fill in missing pieces of the picture
 4. Conflict resolution skills
 to help clients to move forward in the helping process
 -involves learning about style of conflict resolution and recognizing the
 to help clients understand themselves and their problem situations more fully signs of it and learning the process of conflict resolution.
Specific Areas Where Counselor’s Work
Keep the following in mind when you use probes or questions: Use questions with 1. Child Development and Counseling
caution.
 Child development and counseling as area of specialization includes parent
 Don't ask too many questions. They make clients feel “grilled”, and they often education, preschool counseling, early childhood education, elementary school
serve as fillers when counselors don't know what else to do. counseling, child counseling in mental health agencies, and counseling with
 Don't ask a question if you don't really want to know the answer! battered and abused children and their families.
 If you ask two questions in a row, it is probably one question too much. 2. Career/Lifestyle
 Although close-ended questions have their place, avoid asking too many  It includes guidance on choices and decision-making pertaining to career
close-ended questions that begin with “does”, “did”, or “is”. or lifestyle
 Ask open-ended questions - that is, questions that require more than a simple  guidance on career development
yes or no answer. Start sentences with: “how”, “tell me about”, or “what”.
Open-ended questions are non-threatening and they encourage description.  provision of educational and occupational information to clients
Common Skills of a Counselor  conducting education on career and lifestyle trends;
  provision of various forms of vocational assessment appropriate to a 8. Marital Relationship Counseling
setting
 This area of counseling includes premarital counseling, marriage
 addressing the career and life development needs of special populations counseling, family counseling, sex education. Sexual dysfunction
and appropriate career services in given settings counseling, and divorce mediation.

 facilitation of work related activities as an integral part of development and 9. Gerontology (the aged
formation across the lifespan  Gerontological counseling (the aged) as area of specialization is
 modeling application of decision-making across the lifespan considered the fastest growing field and essentially involves counseling of
older citizens. It includes preretirement counseling, community centers,
3. College and University counseling, nursing home counseling, and hospice work.
 It offers the following opportunities: college student counseling, student 10. Business and Industry
activities, student personal work, residential hall or dormitory counselor
and counselor educator.  It includes training and development personnel, quality and work-life or
quality circles manager, employee assistance programs manager,
4. Consultation employee career development officer, affirmative action, or equal
 This covers agency and corporate consulting, organizational development opportunity specialist.
director, industrial psychology specialist, and training manager.  11. Other Specialties
5. Drugs  Other specialties may include phobia counseling, agoraphobia, self-
 Drugs as area of specialization has several options such as substance management, intra personal management, interpersonal relationships
abuse counseling, alcohol counseling, drug counseling, stop smoking management, and grief counseling.
program manager, and crisis intervention counseling.  In all specialties, the counselor could be self-employed as a private
6. Health practitioner or may be employed by the agency, which may be a
government or a non-government organization (NGO). In any specialty
 Health as an area of specialization offers possibility for nutrition area, additional education and trainings beyond graduate and post-
counseling, exercise and health education, nurse-counselor, rehabilitation graduate education are required.
counseling, stress management counseling, holistic health counseling,
anorexia or bulimia counseling, and genetic counseling.
7. Adolescent Development and Counseling
 This area covers middle and high school counseling, psychological
education, career development specialist, adolescent counseling in mental
health agencies, youth work in a residential facility, and youth probation
officer.