Genetic Counselor
Impact: Informed medical decision-making and family wellbeing through expert genetic counseling
Assess the risk of inherited conditions and provide information and support to individuals and families facing genetic disorders. Interpret genetic test results, explain complex genetic information, and help clients make informed decisions about testing, family planning, and medical management.
What the day looks like
- People interaction
- Moderate
- Team vs solo
- 55% Team / 45% Solo
- Client facing
- Sometimes
- Impact visibility
- High
- Travel
- Minimal
- Schedule flexibility
- Moderate
- Remote work
- Hybrid
- Typical work hours
- 38 to 45 hours/week
- Stress level
- Moderate
At a glance
- Median salary
- $125,000
- Entry-level
- $75,000 - $100,000
- Senior
- $180,000+
- Growth by 2033
- 16% (faster than average)
- Demand
- Growing Fast
- Freelance potential
- Low
- Salary growth potential
- High - 65 to 80% growth from entry to senior
- Typical student debt
- $40,000 - $100,000
Skills you'll use
Hard skills
- Genetic testing interpretation
- Risk assessment
- Counselling techniques
- Genomics
- Medical genetics
Soft skills
- Empathy
- Communication
- Analytical thinking
- Ethical reasoning
- Patience
Technical complexity: Moderate
How to get there
- Minimum education
- Master's Degree
- Licensing
- No
- Years to mid-career
- 2 to 3 years
- Years to senior
- 5 to 8 years
- Career switching
- Hard
Where this career leads
How people arrive here
Where you can go from here
Typical progression
- Genetic Counselor > Senior Genetic Counselor > Lead Genetic Counselor > Director of Genetic Counseling
Future outlook
- Automation probability
- 10% low risk as genetic interpretation and counselling require human expertise
- AI disruption risk
- Low
- Demand trend
- Growing Fast
How people feel about it
- Overall satisfaction
- 8.5/10
- Meaning
- 9.2/10
- Work-life balance
- 7.5/10
- Prestige
- 8.5/10
- Social perception
- Very High