Introduction
Creating an eye-catching CV is the first step to winning over hiring managers and impressing recruiters. A strong CV will describe your important professional experience, skills, and accomplishments. It will also offer potential employers a glimpse into who you are. Learn how to fashion a great document, like the one shown, with our mental health counselor cv template. We offer advice on creating a winning mental health counselor CV, as well as guidelines for writing key sections, such as the Professional Summary, Work Experience, Education, Skills, and Hobbies and Interests segments.
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Mental Health Counselor CV Template
Frederick, MD 11111
E: jennysmith@email.com P: 555-555-1111
Professional Summary
Dedicated and compassionate counselor with six years of professional experience counseling individuals and groups. Expertise in working with individuals suffering from addictions, mental health conditions, including bipolar disorder and major depression, and with those in acute crisis who may attempt suicide. Specialized knowledge and understanding of crisis thinking. Strong communicator with keen perceptivity that allows me to develop possible solutions and suggestions to help clients gain practical insight into their situations. A passion for helping others return to their personal centers, to regain emotional balance, and to reach a state of calmness where communication can take place and healing may begin. Experienced team player who continually seeks ways to help both clients and co-workers.
Work Experience
Counselor
Maryland State Hospital
March 2013 – present
* Calm troubled clients in crisis situations and work with them to find understanding and both immediate as well as long-term solutions.
* Establish and maintain strict confidentiality regarding clients’ treatments.
* Write and maintain client-related paperwork, including diagnostic records, progress notes, and federal- and state-mandated forms.
* Assist other staff when necessary.
* Help clients and staff in emergency situations.
* Recipient of a state award for professional excellence in 2016.
Counselor
March 2011 – 2013
Midtown Health and Wellness
* Use interviews and observation to gather information about clients.
* Create an atmosphere of safety and understanding so clients will feel comfortable about sharing their feelings and talking about life events and developments.
* Offer clients thoughtful reflections on their situations in hopes of helping them gain practical insight.
* Assess clients for risk of suicide attempts.
Education and Training
Master of Arts in Counseling – 2010
Goddard College, Plainfield, Vermont
Bachelor of Arts in Psychology – 2008
Goddard College, Plainfield, Vermont
Skills
* Exceptional and keen observer whose social perceptiveness help me to be highly sensitive to present and potential problems.
* Dedicated active listener who can offer troubled clients thoughtful and caring reflections to help them gain deeper understanding of themselves and their situations.
* Exceptional verbal and written communicator who can clearly get ideas across to others succinctly and efficiently.
* Outstanding critical thinker who seeks to help clients find solutions and a state of comfort and safety.
* Able to draw on personal experiences to be compassionate, understanding, and empathetic.
* Dedicated team player who seeks to help others.
Hobbies and Interests
I like to relax at home with my three cats, and I am an avid non-fiction reader. I also play the oboe in the community orchestra. I enjoy handwork, such as crochet and cross-stitch, though I have not quite mastered the art of knitting””yet. Both the cats and I enjoy it when I cook, often soups and roasted vegetables.
Using a Job Description to Create a Standout Mental Health Counselor CV
A Sample Mental Health Counselor Description
Job Summary
A mental health counselor is a lifeline for people in great distress. You must exude kindness, courtesy, and patience, all without judgment. This role also supports people to prevent crisis situations. As a counselor at the Hannibal Health Center, you will work with individuals and groups to promote optimum mental and emotional health. Issues you will encounter and help others with include substance abuse; addictions; mental conditions, including bipolar disorder, depression, and personality disorders; family, parental, and marital problems; stress management; low self-esteem; and aging. Troubled people will look to you for support and advice in times of turmoil and deep uncertainty. You must never take this sacred trust for granted. We are a community health center that cares for people with little or no money. We are a hard-working, dedicated team of caring professionals who also support each other. If you can draw on your experiences and offer empathy and practical kindness to those in need, and if you are a strong team player, we need you.
Job Responsibilities
We are seeking a dedicated, compassionate mental health counselor to support and assist clients. Your responsibilities will include:
* Collect information about clients using tests, interviews, and observations.
* Encourage clients to share their feelings and discuss events in their lives, and help them to gain insight into themselves and their relationships.
* Assess clients for risk of suicide attempts.
* Establish and maintain strict confidentiality regarding clients’ treatments.
* Write and maintain client-related paperwork, including diagnostic records, progress notes, and federal- and state-mandated forms.
* Assist other staff when necessary.
Job Skills
We are seeking someone with the following qualifications. Do you have them?
* Master’s degree in counseling
* Keen observer
* Active listener
* Excellent verbal and written communicator
* Outstanding critical thinker
* Socially perceptive
* Problem sensitive
* Service-oriented
* Compassionate, empathetic, understanding
How to Employ the Job Description in Your Mental Health Counselor CV
Using keywords from the job description in your CV, as the applicant in the mental health counselor cv template did, is a good way to get noticed by hiring managers. How do you know which to include? Go to the job skills section of the description and actually quote key terms exactly as they are used. For example, don’t write “I pay attention to people.” Instead, like the applicant in the mental health counselor cv template, use the description “active listener.”
Many prospective employers now use applicant tracking software to target CVs with specific keywords, and they only accept those particular CVs. In addition to creating your CV with this sort of software in mind, repeating key terms also signifies to hiring managers you have the experience they are looking for and that you would be a good fit for their job. Try to fit keywords into your job skills section. However, if you cannot fit them in there, then work them naturally into your work history and your professional summary statement.