Why I Want To Be A Genetic Counselor

Genetic Counselor; one who determines health risks for hereditary diseases and disorders in patients; is a career I wish to pursue due to salary, benefits, and the ability to help others. When asked to research a future occupation, I immediately knew I wanted to go into a STEM field, or Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. As I continued to research, and after many future occupation quizzes, I came across Genetic Counseling. When I first saw this, I was a little confused because I did not know what it was. However, after going through pages and pages of job descriptions and watching videos of the background of genetic counselors, I decided that this was the career I wanted to go into. As a child, I have always loved doing basic
Genetic counselors help families, adults, children, or anyone who is cautious of their genetics or heredity and wish to prevent any harmful diseases in the future (“Overview” 1). There are many skills used every day in genetic counseling. Using technology is an everyday skill in this occupation. Being in a technology heavy school was a major benefit because it taught students to work with and use technology at an early age. Some other skills are, being able to assist and care for others and the ability to teach others. It is extremely important that genetic counselors understand the speech of others, speak clearly and thoroughly, and to notice the difference between colors and shades (“Physical Demands” 1). Most genetic counselors work in a clinic or an office, and occasionally a lab (“Working Conditions” 1). Genetic counselors are a part of a team that want to help people overcome their genetic issues and help patients cope with genetic
It starts with taking helpful courses in high school, and moving to college and getting several degrees. Some helpful high school courses would include; psychology, sociology, anthropology, child development, and parenting. However, there are some requirements to becoming a genetic counselor. One must complete high school, have a bachelor's degree, and achieve a masters degree in genetic counseling (“At a Glance” 1). Not all states require a licence or certification, however, getting a certification will be beneficial. Along with high educational training, one must have certain interests and values to become a genetic counselor. One must consider relationships important and have the desire to help people in a calm, friendly environment (“Interests and Values” 1). There is one last important key into becoming a genetic counselor. Having knowledge of biology, psychology, and mathematics is highly important and could be a deciding factor on becoming a genetic counselor (“Knowledge” 1). These are important factors to remember when applying or researching to be a genetic