Your work. Your records.
Education Counselor Workplace Records Guide
Educational and career counselors work across advising, records, referrals and urgent student needs. When a workplace concern involves workload or evaluation, distinguish scheduled appointments from the unplanned responsibilities you handled. Identify the employing organization and your actual role; the occupation title does not by itself establish coverage or whether a particular matter can be accepted.
Call now(800) 800-5555Free initial case evaluation. Representation depends on work state and case eligibility. This guide explains record preparation; it does not determine whether a legal claim exists.
A record map for your role
What to organize first
Assigned workload
List advising, records and program responsibilities and the date a supervisor changed their priority.
Resource requests
Record your request for staffing, clarification or support and the dated response without student details.
Personal review
Keep your own evaluation and written response together, identifying the expectation and period under review.
Start with the work you actually do
Advise and assist students and provide educational and vocational guidance services.
O*NET classifies this occupation as Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors (21-1012.00). Its description covers a typical occupation, not every workplace or individual job. It does not establish employee status, overtime eligibility or employer misconduct.
- Maintain accurate and complete student records as required by laws, district policies, and administrative regulations.Source task 5606 · updated 08/2024
- Counsel students regarding educational issues, such as course and program selection, class scheduling and registration, school adjustment, truancy, study habits, and career planning.Source task 18627 · updated 08/2024
- Provide crisis intervention to students when difficult situations occur at schools.Source task 5608 · updated 08/2024
- Review transcripts to ensure that students meet graduation or college entrance requirements, and write letters of recommendation.Source task 5631 · updated 08/2024
- Prepare students for later educational experiences by encouraging them to explore learning opportunities and to persevere with challenging tasks.Source task 5611 · updated 08/2024
A reference point for your pay records
May 2025 wage estimates by state
Compare your pay records with published BLS estimates for Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors (SOC 21-1012). These describe an occupation across employers. They are not a required pay rate, an overtime calculation, or evidence of discrimination or unpaid wages.
Select your work state to see its published pay range. No personal pay information is requested or sent.
The 25th and 75th percentiles mark the middle half of the estimated wage distribution; the median is its midpoint. Actual pay can differ with experience, employer, location and duties. Hourly and annual figures are shown as published, without converting one into the other.
All published state estimates for this occupation
| State | Hourly 25th | Hourly median | Hourly 75th | Annual median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $21.92 | $28.64 | $35.31 | $59,570 |
| Alaska | $30.43 | $39.86 | $47.03 | $82,900 |
| Arizona | $23.84 | $28.00 | $32.88 | $58,250 |
| Arkansas | $22.41 | $28.74 | $32.49 | $59,770 |
| Connecticut | $27.32 | $35.53 | $46.13 | $73,910 |
| Delaware | $28.70 | $35.61 | $42.74 | $74,070 |
| Florida | $22.50 | $25.55 | $32.12 | $53,140 |
| Georgia | $23.56 | $30.63 | $38.05 | $63,720 |
| Hawaii | $24.81 | $29.68 | $42.37 | $61,730 |
| Idaho | $24.55 | $29.00 | $34.94 | $60,320 |
| Indiana | $22.94 | $28.49 | $34.55 | $59,260 |
| Iowa | $23.22 | $27.18 | $31.64 | $56,540 |
| Kansas | $23.15 | $27.21 | $32.28 | $56,590 |
| Kentucky | $23.60 | $30.94 | $37.78 | $64,350 |
| Louisiana | $24.41 | $29.74 | $36.07 | $61,870 |
| Maine | $23.69 | $28.19 | $35.74 | $58,630 |
| Michigan | $22.74 | $28.58 | $36.48 | $59,440 |
| Minnesota | $27.59 | $31.06 | $37.55 | $64,600 |
| Mississippi | $22.32 | $28.23 | $31.84 | $58,710 |
| Missouri | $22.89 | $27.91 | $31.32 | $58,040 |
| Montana | $22.42 | $27.84 | $38.19 | $57,900 |
| Nebraska | $23.26 | $30.05 | $38.55 | $62,500 |
| New Hampshire | $27.45 | $34.17 | $39.66 | $71,080 |
| New Mexico | $26.01 | $37.44 | $41.92 | $77,880 |
| New York | $27.67 | $34.43 | $44.97 | $71,610 |
| North Carolina | $22.51 | $27.71 | $30.51 | $57,630 |
| North Dakota | $23.98 | $28.35 | $35.51 | $58,960 |
| Ohio | $23.40 | $29.69 | $38.52 | $61,760 |
| Oklahoma | $22.10 | $25.02 | $30.98 | $52,040 |
| Pennsylvania | $24.60 | $29.27 | $37.72 | $60,880 |
| Rhode Island | $28.23 | $36.06 | $43.31 | $75,000 |
| South Dakota | $22.38 | $24.92 | $28.89 | $51,830 |
| Tennessee | $23.30 | $28.83 | $33.57 | $59,960 |
| Texas | $23.93 | $32.64 | $39.65 | $67,900 |
| Utah | $23.39 | $29.48 | $38.76 | $61,320 |
| Vermont | $27.75 | $31.04 | $37.88 | $64,570 |
| Virginia | $26.87 | $32.53 | $40.12 | $67,660 |
| West Virginia | $21.49 | $26.69 | $29.91 | $55,520 |
| Wisconsin | $25.97 | $30.14 | $37.06 | $62,690 |
| Wyoming | $27.76 | $30.50 | $35.98 | $63,430 |
“Not published” preserves unavailable or suppressed source cells. “Above reporting limit” preserves a top-coded source value without inventing a number. A missing state estimate does not establish service eligibility. The data describe wage and salary employment; they do not measure self-employment income.
Source: BLS May 2025 state workbook · OEWS tables · BLS technical notes. Use your own schedule, pay statement and compensation terms to identify the question you want reviewed.
Describe assignments without student identities
Outline the program, general caseload responsibilities and administrative duties relevant to the concern. Note changes in assignment, staffing or service expectations and who communicated them. Use nonidentifying descriptions of interruptions or urgent work. Do not include student histories, recommendation letters or counseling content merely to demonstrate how demanding an assignment was.
Connect evaluation to workload and instructions
Identify the target or procedure cited in your own review and the time period it covered. Record requests for resources, clarification or reprioritization and the response received. Distinguish tasks you could complete independently from decisions requiring another office. Avoid inferring a student's outcome or another counselor's performance from incomplete institutional records.
Separate employment records from student records
Keep your own role description, schedule, evaluation and permitted employment correspondence. Student records and sensitive advising notes should remain in authorized systems. A timeline can identify the category of institutional record and its custodian without copying it. Seek handling guidance before sharing any material that could reveal a student's identity or private circumstances.
Choose your next step
Review the workplace retaliation guide, unpaid wages guide, or discrimination guide if those concerns fit your experience. A job title alone does not establish a claim.
Call now(800) 800-5555Current service-state coverage
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