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Genetic Counsellor salary in Australia
The median full-time salary for a genetic counsellor is $104,000 per annum, before tax, up $21,500 since 2018.
Pay usually follows the state health department enterprise agreement covering your hospital or service, so it moves with your classification and years of experience rather than with individual negotiation. Senior clinical roles, team leadership and positions in private genetics practices or laboratories sit higher. Part-time work is common in hospital genetics services, so advertised salaries are often quoted as full-time equivalents.
How to negotiate a higher genetic counsellor salary
- Know the market rate before you ask. The median full-time genetic counsellor salary is $104,000; use that, not a guess, as your anchor, and adjust for your experience and employer.
- Use demand as leverage. Genetic Counsellors are on the national skills shortage list, so employers are more likely to move on price to keep or attract someone in a role they're struggling to fill.
- Lead with what's scarce, not just tenure. Skills like Clinical assessment and treatment and Counselling and support work tend to command a premium over general genetic 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."
Genetic Counsellor salary questions
How much do genetic counsellors earn in Australia?
The median full-time salary for a genetic counsellor is $104,000 a year before tax. Seniority, specialisation, sector and the award or agreement you're employed under all move it.
Is genetic counsellor pay rising or falling?
The median genetic counsellor salary is up $21,500 since 2018. Figures from 2025 onward on this page are a projection, not a measured result.