The document discusses the author's career plan to become a substance abuse/behavioral disorder counselor. It provides details on three potential career paths - substance abuse counselor, correctional treatment specialist, and arbitrator/mediator. The author analyzes each career, including typical responsibilities, employment and salary statistics. The author expresses a passion for helping those struggling with addiction and shares how their own son's experience with drug court inspired this career choice. The document concludes with the author's reflection on the research process and commitment to continuing education to make an impact in the field.

1. Running head: PROFESSIONAL PLAN 1
Professional Plan
April D Rowley
Bryant & Stratton College
COMM150: Introduction to Information Literacy and Research
Mr. Pase
July 24, 2014

2. PROFESSIONAL PLAN 2
My major in criminal justice will enable me to work with troubled teens and adults, and
get them back on the right track of being a productive part of society. I have researched three
different careers to give myself an idea of where I would like to go in this field. I have a nursing
degree and have 20 years of experience in this field, coupled with an associate degree in criminal
justice, the possibility of reaching my goal is in sight.
Substance Abuse/ Behavioral Disorder Counselor:
Responsibilities and tasks for this career include: drug testing, problem solving, counseling,
teaching life skills and being a good listener. I will have to confer with other professionals to set
up care plans for clients. A typical day would be meeting with clients in and out of facilities to
assess their needs for treatment. I would also meet with families to discuss follow up care after
release from these facilities, whether it is a jail or a treatment facility. Being organized and able
to maintain accurate records are important attributes to have.
There are not enough counselors in the justice system in my personal opinion. However,
during my research I found that there is a projected growth trend of 31% increase between 2012-
2022 (Bureau of Labor Statistics [BLS], 2014c, Job Outlook section, para.1). There were over
89,000 employed in this field in 2012 (BLS, 2014c, Summary section, para.1). The highest and
lowest 10% of annual salary is $25-60K (BLS, 2014c, Pay section, para.1). The lifelong learning
opportunities include getting a master’s in psychology and studying the relationship between
substance abuse and crime. I was surprised to find out that 23% of substance abuse counselors
only have a high school diploma, and 28% have a bachelor’s degree (BLS, 2014c, Education
section, para. 1). I am drawn to this career because I have worked with people with addiction as a
nurse and find it to be very fulfilling. When someone with a drug addiction starts off they are lost
and fight you at every step of the way. With careful guidance, encouragement, and hope they

3. PROFESSIONAL PLAN 3
soon stop fighting and participate in their recovery. Being a part of seeing another human being
“reborn” is a priceless feeling.
This graph shows the employment and earnings ratio for substance abuse/ behavioral
counselors in five different states (BLS, 2013b, para. 5).
Correctional Treatment Specialist:
Responsibilities and tasks in this field are to work with inmates on a pre/post arrest and
or conviction. Interviewing and evaluation clients and making recommendations for services will
be a major part of the day. There will be times when I would need to administer drug tests as
well. A typical day would consist of meeting in my office, a client’s home, or a facility to discuss
problems and develop answers to these problems. Conducting pre/post sentencing investigations,
arranging medical/mental and drug treatment as well as keeping detailed records is a key
component to this career. This particular career is much like being a substance/behavioral
counselor, as I will be using many problem solving, and listening to clients’ problems. One
major difference is this would be fully within the justice system.
There is little to no change being seen in this career during the period 2012-2022,
according to Occupational Outlook Handbook (2014-2015ed.). The median annual salary is
$48K, with the top 10% earning over $83K (BLS, 2014b, Pay section, para1). There were 90,300
Pennsylvania California New York Florida Texas
0
10000
20000
30000
40000
50000
Employment/AnnualSalary
Employment Salary

4. PROFESSIONAL PLAN 4
people employed in this field in 2012(BLS, 2014b, Summary section, para. 1). Lifelong learning
opportunities include getting a grasp of the psychological and sociological affects that crime has
on people and their families. About 80% of people in this career have a bachelor degree with
little to none having some college or masters (BLS, 2014b, Education section, para. 1). I would
have to go on in my education to get a job in this field after graduating from Bryant & Stratton.
The graph below shows you the employment and salary ratio for correctional treatment specialist
in five different states (BLS, 2013a, para. 5).
Arbitrator, Mediator and Conciliator:
Responsibilities in this field are to help resolve conflicts outside of the court system by
facilitating negotiation and dialogue between disputing parties. Using mediation to diffuse a
volatile situation and hopefully reach an agreement without having to go to court is the main
objective. I would need to apply relevant law to these situations and conduct hearings to obtain
information from all concerned. At times I could even be the one to authorize payments on valid
claims. A typical day would be listening to all sides of the dispute and calmly trying to use
critical thinking and the law to reach an agreement that all parties are happy with. Using problem
solving and being a good listener will be helpful in this career as well. The power of persuasion
is another key skill to have.
0
20,000
40,000
60,000
80,000
100,000
Employment/AnnualSalary
Employment
Annual mean wage

5. PROFESSIONAL PLAN 5
There is about an average of 10% increase in employment opportunities projected for
2012-2022 (BLS, 2014a, Summary section, para. 1). The median annual wage is $61K with the
lowest 10% only making $34K and the highest 10% making over $137K (BLS, 2014a, Pay
section, para. 1). There is 24% with a bachelor degree, 20% with a post bachelor certificate and
16% with a master degree (BLS, 2014a, Education section, para. 1). Some places will even
require a Ph.D. in law to be an arbitrator, which is a lifelong learning opportunity for this career.
Although the pay is much higher in this career choice, there is also a lot more education needed.
My Career Choice is the substance abuse/behavioral disorder counselor
Having a nursing degree and specialized training in addictive medicine will help me to
get a good position in this field. There are too many people that fall through the cracks in the
justice system because they have drug addiction or mental diseases. The number of drug use
crimes is on the rise. We need to treat the addictions and behaviors before the crimes can be
stopped. I have a personal reason for choosing this career as well. My son was arrested and
charged with cocaine possession. This could have ruined his life if not for the development of
drug courts. After treatment and counseling he graduated from drug court and has been clean and
sober for over 2 years now.
The case loads can be taxing and be hard to keep up with when you work with offenders
in prison versus working in a community setting (Perkins & Oser, 2014, p. 1). Research has
shown that counselors with more experience suffer less burnout (Perkins & Oser, 2014, p. 4). For
those counselors who stay in their jobs while experiencing frustration or burnout, the
consequences can be detrimental to not only the counselor personally but also to their coworkers,
management, and clients (Perkins & Oser, 2014, p. 1). My opinion on this is that if you are in a
career you really love and are passionate about, this should not be the case. I have been a nurse

6. PROFESSIONAL PLAN 6
for over 20 years and have been working with substance abuse for the last 8 years. My degree in
criminal justice will allow me to speak up and advocate for those who have been punished
instead of helped with their addictions.
Content knowledge required for my career choice:
A high school diploma is basically all that is needed, but to make the impact that I want
to make, I will need to have a bachelor’s degree or better. I plan on continuing to get a master’s
degree. I am already drug and alcohol certified, so I can do these tests on my clients without
needing further education for that. This field is growing at a rapid pace; however, I feel there is
not enough people in this field that actually care about making a difference. To most this is a job,
but for me it is a career, a mission of mine to bring about reform in a system that has run its
course of effectiveness.
Reflection:
I would say it was difficult at first to get started. Once we were given an outline by Mr.
Pase, it became easier to do when that was coupled with the research paperwork provided by Mr.
Kani. Having structure and order is a necessity when trying to do this assignment. If I were to
give advice to future students doing this professional plan I would advise that they use the
outline, ask as many questions as needed, and never think that any question is stupid. Use
multiple resources: Google scholar, the virtual library, professors and people in the fields of
interest. The most important thing to remember to do is keep track of your resources and copy
and paste them to a document to be sure you have the proper information. You can always put
them in to the proper format as long as you have all the right information. I would not change
anything I did to prepare this plan; I am very passionate about my school work and above all my
career. As long as you focus and keep your eye on the prize, anything is possible.

7. PROFESSIONAL PLAN 7
In doing this project, I became more aware of the career I was pursuing. As I stated
previously, I was surprised to find that I didn’t need a degree in criminal justice, but I feel it will
be more helpful in the long run for me, as well as the clients I will be counseling. Once I have
this degree, I will go on to eventually get my master’s degree and be able to write papers and
hopefully start a much needed reform for the people suffering with addictions and mental
disease.