Home Careers Counsellor Salary
Careers Counsellor salary in Australia
The median full-time salary for a careers counsellor is $112,000 per annum, before tax, up $23,100 since 2018.
- Pay depends heavily on the setting: school counsellors are covered by state education agreements or independent school agreements, university careers services by enterprise agreements, and private practitioners by the fees they charge and the number of clients they see.
- Part-time work is common in schools, so a full-time equivalent figure can sit above what a part-time counsellor actually takes home.
- Within an employer, a postgraduate qualification in career development and several years of practice are the main things that move you up the scale.
The median salary rose by $23,100 between 2018 and 2024; the dashed line shows a projection to 2028 based on the real ABS Wage Price Index growth rate, not a role-specific forecast.
How to negotiate a higher careers counsellor salary
- Know the market rate before you ask. The median full-time careers counsellor salary is $112,000; use that, not a guess, as your anchor, and adjust for your experience and employer.
- Lead with what's scarce, not just tenure. Skills like Pastoral care and wellbeing and Data analysis tend to command a premium over general careers counsellor experience, name them specifically when you ask.
- Time it deliberately. Reviews, the end of a project you delivered, or taking on responsibility beyond your job description are stronger moments to ask than an arbitrary date on the calendar.
- Ask for a number, not a raise. "Based on the market rate and [specific contribution], I'd like to move to X" gets a clearer answer than "I think I deserve more."
Careers Counsellor salary questions
How much do careers counsellors earn in Australia?
The median full-time salary for a careers counsellor is $112,000 a year before tax. Seniority, specialisation, sector and the award or agreement you're employed under all move it.
Is careers counsellor pay rising or falling?
The median careers counsellor salary is up $23,100 since 2018. Figures from 2025 onward on this page are a projection, not a measured result.
Related salaries
- Recruiter salary
- Learning and Development Specialist salary
- Counsellor salary
- Secondary School Teacher salary
- HR Advisor salary
- Librarian salary
Pay advice
- How to ask for a pay rise, and back it up with real numbersWhat national wage growth looks like right now, how to work out a figure for your own role, wording you can adapt for the conversation, and what to do if the answer is no.
- The average salary in Australia (2026)Full-time adults in Australia averaged $2,083.70 a week in May 2026. Several measures get called the average salary, and this explains which one fits your situation.
- Overtime pay, time in lieu and what your award saysOvertime rates come from your award or agreement, not one national rule. How rates work, what happens on a salary, and how time off in lieu works.