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Community Health Services/Counseling

A program that prepares individuals to serve as facilitators, advocates, and referral professionals linking health care and related social services with affected recipient communities. Includes instruction in public and community health, human and social services, health services administration, group counseling, health education, group advocacy, cross-cultural and multilingual communication, and applicable laws and policies. Examples: [Community Health Education]

Types of Degrees Community Health Services/Counseling Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing Community Health Services/Counseling can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	48
Associate’s Degree	180
Bachelor’s Degree	1,263
Master’s Degree	726
Doctor’s Degree	13

What Community Health Services/Counseling Majors Need to Know

Coursework for Community Health Services/Counseling build a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Community Health Services/Counseling graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing Community Health Services/Counseling emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 4.5 / 5; level 5.7 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Administrative — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Psychology — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

Skills built by a Community Health Services/Counseling program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Active Listening — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Social Perceptiveness — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4 / 7.

Abilities

The cognitive and physical abilities most relevant to Community Health Services/Counseling careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Community Health Services/Counseling graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.7 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.7 / 7
Communicating with People Outside the Organization	4.7 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.6 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.6 / 7
Performing for or Working Directly with the Public	4.5 / 7
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	4.4 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	4.3 / 7
Scheduling Work and Activities	4.3 / 7
Working with Computers	4.3 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Community Health Services/Counseling professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft Publisher	Desktop publishing software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Access	Data base user interface and query software	—
Google Workspace software	Office suite software	—
SmugMug Flickr	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Electronic health record EHR software	Medical software	—
Apple macOS	Operating system software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Community Health Services/Counseling graduates include:

• Community Health Worker (CHW)
• Community Health Program Coordinator
• Public Health Outreach Worker
• HIV CTS Specialist (Human Immunodeficiency Virus Counseling and Testing Services Specialist)
• Field Based Community Health Worker
• Community Health Promoter
• Community Navigator
• Community Health Advocate
• Community Liaison
• Promoter
• Nurse Navigator
• Behavioral Health Advocate
• Community Health Representative
• Health Outreach Worker
• Community Health Agent

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Community Health Services/Counseling graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Bachelor’s degree	43.9%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	37.7%
Master’s degree	10.8%
High school diploma or equivalent	5.6%
Some college courses	1.6%
Doctoral degree	0.3%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in Community Health Services/Counseling?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 82.5% of Community Health Services/Counseling degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	1,896	82.5%
Men	402	17.5%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Community Health Services/Counseling graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	1,133	49.3%
Asian	114	5.0%
Hispanic or Latino	383	16.7%
Black or African American	410	17.8%
American Indian / Alaska Native	47	2.0%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	11	0.5%
Two or More Races	87	3.8%
Race Unknown	77	3.4%
International Students	36	1.6%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Community Health Services/Counseling Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of Community Health Services/Counseling graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. These numbers tend to grow steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$46,066
4 years	$46,824
5 years	$52,641

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $52,641 — roughly 14% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online Community Health Services/Counseling Programs

Fully online options are documented by IPEDS for Community Health Services/Counseling. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Associate’s	4	3
Bachelor’s	5	5
Master’s	7	4
Doctoral (Research)	1	0

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in Community Health Services/Counseling Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Community Health Services/Counseling graduates earn a median of $46,824 four years after completion — roughly 23% above the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000).

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	Annual Degrees Awarded
Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions	33,946
Public Health, General	25,004
Mental Health Counseling/Counselor	10,855
Substance Abuse/Addiction Counseling	6,135
Health and Wellness, General	5,611
Marriage and Family Therapy/Counseling	4,476
Public Health Education and Promotion	3,785
Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions, Other	3,545
Clinical/Medical Social Work	3,296
Psychiatric/Mental Health Services Technician	2,601
Community Health and Preventive Medicine	2,571
Behavioral Aspects of Health	623

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.