Title: How to Become a Prison Counselor
Headings: Prison Counseling Careers
Prison Counseling Careers
What is a Prison Counselor?
What Does a Prison Counselor Do?
What is the Nature of Work for a Prison Counselor?
Is Prison Counseling Right For You?
What are the Education Requirements to Become a Prison Counselor?
What Do You Learn in Prison Counseling Training?
How Much Does a Prison Counselor Make?

Content: During your formal education/training you may acquire following skills: Criminal justice system – Providing an overview of the criminal justice system, how it works and what is involved in each process. This allows counselors to better understand the challenges faced by their clients at particular times and the pathway they are likely to follow through the system so they can help them prepare. Criminal theory – The basic theories about criminal behavior and what the underlying causes often are. Psychology – Basic psychology courses to provide an insight into the theories and principles that may be useful to help progression of clients through rehabilitation. Students may also take courses in social psychology to better understand how social interactions shape human responses. Human behavior – To get a grounding of why people behave as they do, how challenging behaviors are best dealt with and what motivates long-term change. Counseling skills – A solid grounding in counseling skills to help build relationships with clients and guide them through the treatment pathways. Self-defense – Often taught as a useful add-on, to help deal with the physical threat of working within the prison environment
Psychological evaluation methods – A prison counselor may be called upon to give an opinion as to the threat of reoffending of an individual or about the ongoing risks they pose. They need a good basic knowledge of psychological evaluation methods to be able to do this well.