Running head: ASSESSING A FAMILY THERAPIST CAREER

Assessing a Family Therapist Career

Anna Marie Hannibal

Salt Lake Community Collage

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ASSESSING A FAMILY THERAPIST CAREER

Abstract

This assessment summarizes the job description, general career path, general education

required, average salary, and career outlook of a Family Therapist Career. It also includes a bio

of Lauri Schade, a licensed Family Therapist located in Utah, and how I (Anna Marie Hannibal)

am a great fit for this career.

Keywords: Psychology, Schooling for Psychology, Family Therapist Careers, Lauri

Schade

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Assessing a Family Therapist Career

If all your friends and family members call you when there are having a problem with a

relationship to ask for your advice and you enjoy giving it to them you may enjoy working as a

family therapist.

Job Description

In general, a family therapist helps families pinpoint the underlining cause of relationship

problems and helps them learn how to resolve these problems (Marriage and Family Therapist

Careers). As a family therapist, your day to day duties include teaching families how to resolve

problems, conducting interviews, managing tests, having discussions with your patients, and

make observations. You are also responsible for referring your patients to medical professionals

when needed, maintaining patient records, developing treatment plans and following up with

your patients. A family therapist is required to have good communication skills, be assertive, and

be empathetic (Marriage and Family Therapist Career Info).

General Education Experience

To become a family therapist, you should start by completing a bachelors degree in a

field such as psychology, social work, or counseling with an emphasis on marriage and family

situations. Depending on what career path you choose to take, you may want to continue your

education by getting a masters degree and in some cases your Ph.D. A masters degree is

required if you wish to become a licensed therapist (Marriage and Family Therapist Career Info).

Many colleges offer programs to complete your bachelors degree, making it easy to begin your

career path.

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General Career Path

Once you have graduated from college with your masters degree you must than complete

two years of supervised clinical work. After you have completed your two years of supervised

clinical work you then must take and pass an exam. Depending on what state you are in, you may

only be required to complete your bachelors degree before working for the state to administer

therapy (Marriage and Family Therapist Career Info). The amount of supervised clinical work

hours required also varies depending on the state you are in. For example, California requires

3,000 hours where as New York requires 1,500 hours (Marriage and Family Therapist Careers).

Average Salary

According to the Bureau of labor statistics, Family Therapist make a median wage of

$23.64 an hour (21-1013). In 2008, Family Therapist made average salary of $44,000 a year

(Marriage and Family Therapist Career Info). As a Family Therapist, the top five paying cities

are Trenton, Camden, Santa Rosa, Newark, Vallejo (Jobs).

Career Outlook

In the last 10 years in the United States there was a 40 percent increase in bachelors

degrees in psychology and a 177 percent increase in associates degrees in psychology (Careers

2016). With this dramatic increase in psychology degrees it seems that any career outlook using a

psychology degree troubling. But with only a 0.6 percent unemployment rate chances are that

you will find a job within your career (Jobs).

Bio of a Professional

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Lauri Schade is a licensed Marriage and Family therapist from Sothern California,

currently located in Pleasant Grove, UT. She has her Ph.D. and M.S. in Marriage and Family

Therapy. She is certified as a Emotionally Focused Couples Therapist, and is certified to

supervise therapists in this model (Compassionate). She is an adjunct teacher at Utah Valley

University and Brigham Young University, teaching subjects such as human sexuality, family

process, and psychotherapy. With how successful she has become at helping repair family

relationship and teaching other to, she is an inspirational role model to anyone pursuing a career

in family therapy. In addition to all of her education and certifications she is a mother of seven

children and maintains a happy and healthy marriage with her husband. When asked why she

choose to become a family therapist she said, I chose the profession and practice of marriage

and family therapy because I loved growing up in my own large family, and believe in the

strength of family systems (Schade 2016).

Pros and Cons

Like any career there are pros and cons that arise. In the career of family therapy one of

the most positive aspects is its versatile use of your degreeif you are willing to think out of the

box. Other than the obvious career, Clinical Therapist, you can use your knowledge and skills of

understanding human behavior with human resource departments, health care providers, and

management positions (Careers 2017). One of the cons to perusing a career in family therapy is

that you typically work nights and weekends to work around your patients work schedules

(Marriage and Family Therapist Career Info).

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My Fit with Family Therapy

I believe I will be a great fit in the career of Family Therapy because I thrive off

understanding how the mind works and why humans display different behaviors. I love helping

and listening to others. I feel that when I complete my education in psychology I will be able to

make a positive impact in the lives of many families. Like Lauri Schade, I truly believe that there

is strength, love and support in a positive family relationship (Schade 2016).

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References

21-1013 Marriage and Family Therapists. (n.d.). Retrieved April 26, 2017, from

https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes211013.htm

CAREERS IN PSYCHOLOGY. (2016). Psychology Today, 49(2), 83-85.

CAREERS IN PSYCHOLOGY. (2017). Psychology Today, 50(2), 83-91.

Jobs, B. S. (n.d.). Marriage and Family Therapist Ranks Among Best Jobs of 2017. Retrieved

April 26, 2017, from http://money.usnews.com/careers/best-jobs/marriage-and-family-

therapist

Marriage and Family Therapist Careers. (n.d.). Retrieved April 25, 2017, from

http://careersinpsychology.org/marriage-and-family-therapist-careers/

Marriage and Family Therapist Career Information, Jobs, Degrees & Training Programs. (n.d.).

Retrieved April 25, 2017, from https://www.psychologycareercenter.org/marriage-family-

therapist.html

Schade, L. (2016, October 24). About. Retrieved April 25, 2017, from

https://drlorischade.wordpress.com/about/

Schade, L. (n.d.). Compassionate Connections Counseling. Retrieved April 25, 2017, from

http://compassionateconnectionscounseling.com/about.html