Mental health and psychology

How to become a mental health counsellor

Official title: Mental health counsellor

Also called: Psychotherapist, Psychologist, Counselling psychologist, Mental health therapist

Mental health counsellors use theurapeutic techniques to help individuals, couples, families and groups deal with issues that affect their mental health and wellbeing.

Main tasks

Counsel clients in personal issues
Teach techniques for managing mental health
Monitor changes in client mood and behaviour
Teach life skills to clients and families
Counsel clients with substance abuse issues
Write reports and evaluations
Develop treatment plans for clients
Help in crisis situations

How to become one

You need a qualification to become a mental health counsellor and experience may be useful. You need University Entrance to do the study or training for this job. Required: a bachelor's degree in counselling OR a Bachelor of Health Science (Counselling) OR a Bachelor of Social Services (Counselling); to pass a police check. Other requirements: a Postgraduate Certificate in Mental Health and Addiction; a Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Mental Health and Addiction Counselling; a Master of Counselling; experience in similar work; to be registered with the New Zealand Association of Counsellors; an Annual Practicing Certificate.

See the full Tahatū profile

Ways in

University: Social Work & Community degrees, Offered by 3 universities in New Zealand
University: Health & Public Health degrees, Offered by 6 universities in New Zealand
University: Allied Health degrees, Offered by 4 universities in New Zealand

Pay · Past change · AI and this job

Most common pay: $86,912 to $106,564 a year (median $96,738), a TEC estimate before tax.
Lower: $77,087 a year · Upper: $116,390 a year
TEC's pay figures are estimates only. TEC says they must not be used to set pay, in pay negotiations or in visa applications.
Change in the number of people doing this job between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses: Increase (TEC). This is past change, not a forecast.
People employed in the group Psychologists: 3,432 at the 2018 Census and 4,275 at the 2023 Census (+24.6%). Past change, not a forecast.
Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Who does this work

About 590 people did this job at the 2023 Census (TEC).
In the group Psychologists, 77% of workers are female (sex at birth, 2023 Census).
Where people in the group Psychologists work (2023 Census): Auckland 34.3%, Canterbury 13.9%, and Wellington 13.6%.

Questions people ask

How do I become a mental health counsellor?

How much does a mental health counsellor earn in New Zealand?

The Tertiary Education Commission estimates median pay at $96,738 a year, before tax. Most common pay is $86,912 to $106,564 a year.

Has the number of people working as a mental health counsellor grown in New Zealand?

It has grown: TEC records an increase in the number of people doing this job between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses. This is past change, not a forecast.

Will AI change the work of a mental health counsellor?

Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

Tertiary Education Commission (Tahatu Career Navigator): Tahatu career ideas: descriptions, tasks, pay estimates, people employed, employment change 2018 to 2023, entry requirements, registration, interest scores (Site scrape 2026-10 (816 career ideas, sitemap lastmod 2026-10-01)), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
Stats NZ (via Figure.NZ): Census totals by topic for individuals 2013, 2018, 2023 (CEN23_TBT_004): employed by occupation, ANZSCO V1.3, summed to unit group (2023 Census (CEN23_TBT_004)), CC BY 4.0 (Stats NZ), CC BY 3.0 NZ (Figure.NZ), retrieved 4 October 2026
Stats NZ (via Figure.NZ): Census 2023: employed by regional council, occupation (ANZSCO V1.3 unit group) and sex at birth (2023 Census), CC BY 4.0 (Stats NZ), CC BY 3.0 NZ (Figure.NZ), retrieved 4 October 2026
International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026

This content is sourced from the Tertiary Education Commission through the Tahatū Career Navigator website (www.tahatu.govt.nz) and used under the CC BY 4.0 licence. All or some of the information has been modified by Peernovo. TEC has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications. TEC will not be held accountable for any errors within this content.

Qualification information from NZQA, used under CC BY 3.0 NZ.

This work is based on/includes Stats NZ's data which are licensed by Stats NZ for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence. Census data via Figure.NZ.

Includes information from O*NET OnLine by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

Sources: Tertiary Education Commission, Tahatū Career Navigator (career ideas, pay estimates, entry requirements and study options, CC BY 4.0, modified by Peernovo); Stats NZ, 2023 Census (via Figure.NZ) and the National Occupation List (CC BY 4.0); NZQA qualification information (CC BY 3.0 NZ); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Links between career ideas and ANZSCO groups, degree fields and broad job groups are Peernovo's.

These results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.

Graduate outcomes: these results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.

Updated 4 October 2026