AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 19-3033.00

Will AI replace Clinical and Counseling Psychologists?

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists: AI can already handle 15 of 30 tasks; the work mostly needs a frontier-tier model.

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Every task, scored

The 30 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Clinical and Counseling Psychologists, from most to least exposed. 15 reach 60 or more, the level at which AI already handles a task.

Task AI exposure Evidence Model tier Importance
Interact with clients to assist them in gaining insight, defining goals, and planning action to achieve effective personal, social, educational, or vocational development and adjustment. 97 Observed Frontier 4.4
Counsel individuals, groups, or families to help them understand problems, deal with crisis situations, define goals, and develop realistic action plans. 93 Observed Frontier 4.5
Provide consulting services, including educational programs, outreach programs, or prevention talks to schools, social service agencies, businesses, or the general public. 88 Observed Standard 3.2
Write reports on clients and maintain required paperwork. 85 Estimated Efficient 4.6
Collect information about individuals or clients, using interviews, case histories, observational techniques, and other assessment methods. 85 Observed Standard 4.4
Use a variety of treatment methods, such as psychotherapy, hypnosis, behavior modification, stress reduction therapy, psychodrama, or play therapy. 75 Estimated Frontier 4.3
Prepare written evaluations of individuals' psychological competence for court hearings. 75 Estimated Efficient 3.0
Provide psychological or administrative services and advice to private firms or community agencies regarding mental health programs or individual cases. 75 Estimated Standard 2.9
Conduct assessments of patients' risk for harm to self or others. 65 Estimated Standard 5.0
Obtain and study medical, psychological, social, and family histories by interviewing individuals, couples, or families and by reviewing records. 65 Estimated Efficient 4.0
Select, administer, score, and interpret psychological tests to obtain information on individuals' intelligence, achievements, interests, or personalities. 65 Estimated Frontier 4.0
Direct, coordinate, and evaluate activities of staff and interns engaged in patient assessment and treatment. 65 Estimated Frontier 3.9
Provide occupational, educational, or other information to individuals so that they can make educational or vocational plans. 65 Observed Frontier 3.2
Document patient information including session notes, progress notes, recommendations, and treatment plans. 60 Estimated Standard 4.8
Consult with other professionals, agencies, or universities to discuss therapies, treatments, counseling resources or techniques, and to share occupational information. 60 Estimated Standard 3.6
Develop therapeutic and treatment plans based on clients' interests, abilities, or needs. 50 Estimated Frontier 4.3
Develop and implement individual treatment plans, specifying type, frequency, intensity, and duration of therapy. 50 Estimated Frontier 4.2
Develop, direct, and participate in training programs for staff and students. 50 Estimated Frontier 3.5
Plan and develop accredited psychological service programs in psychiatric centers or hospitals, in collaboration with psychiatrists and other professional staff. 50 Estimated Frontier 3.5
Conduct research to develop or improve diagnostic or therapeutic counseling techniques. 50 Estimated Frontier 3.1
Observe individuals at play, in group interactions, or in other contexts to detect indications of cognitive, intellectual, or developmental disabilities. 50 Estimated Efficient 3.0
Plan, supervise, and conduct psychological research and write papers describing research results. 50 Estimated Frontier 2.9
Consult with or provide consultation to other doctors, therapists, or clinicians regarding patient care. 40 Observed Standard 4.0
Advise clients on how they could be helped by counseling. 40 Observed Standard 3.9
Refer clients to other specialists, institutions, or support services as necessary. 40 Observed Standard 3.7
Supervise and train interns, clinicians in training, and other counselors. 35 Estimated Efficient 3.8
Maintain current knowledge of relevant research. 20 Estimated Efficient 4.2
Identify psychological, emotional, or behavioral issues and diagnose disorders, using information obtained from interviews, tests, records, or reference materials. 10 Estimated No tier 4.6
Evaluate the effectiveness of counseling or treatments and the accuracy and completeness of diagnoses, modifying plans or diagnoses as necessary. 10 Estimated No tier 4.4
Consult reference material, such as textbooks, manuals, or journals, to identify symptoms, make diagnoses, or develop approaches to treatment. 10 Estimated No tier 4.0

Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 8 of 30 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 22 of 30. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central the task is. Model tier is the lowest tier that can do the task under the published rubric; "No tier" marks hands-on work.

The model tier this role needs

A frontier-tier model or lower covers 89% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 89% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 11% is hands-on.

Efficient, standard and frontier tiers come from the JobRoute model tier reference. The recommended tier is the lowest one that covers 80% of the work AI can address. How the method works.

Wages, employment and outlook

US employment
75,990
Median annual wage
$100,580
Middle half of earners
$73,210 to $135,200
Projected change, 2024 to 2034
+11.2%

Employment and wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, national. Projection: BLS Employment Projections 2024 to 2034.

Adjacent roles

The occupations that reuse the most of this role's skills, with the usual time to move. These are the first places to look when you plan to redeploy or retrain people in this role.

Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.

Questions about Clinical and Counseling Psychologists and AI

Will AI replace Clinical and Counseling Psychologists?

AI already handles 15 of the 30 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 56 out of 100. JobRoute scores tasks, not whole jobs, so the score shows how much of the work changes rather than whether the job disappears. BLS projects employment to change by +11.2% from 2024 to 2034.

What is the AI exposure of Clinical and Counseling Psychologists?

56 out of 100 on JobRoute's task exposure measure, the importance-weighted average of the role's O*NET task scores. Higher means more of the work is AI-doable today. 8 of the 30 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 22 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.

Which Clinical and Counseling Psychologists tasks can AI already do?

The tasks with the highest exposure are: Interact with clients to assist them in gaining insight, defining goals, and planning action to achieve effective personal, social, educational, or vocational development and adjustment; Counsel individuals, groups, or families to help them understand problems, deal with crisis situations, define goals, and develop realistic action plans; Provide consulting services, including educational programs, outreach programs, or prevention talks to schools, social service agencies, businesses, or the general public. They are three of the 15 tasks that reach 60 or more.

What AI model tier does this role need?

A frontier-tier model or lower covers 89% of the role's importance-weighted task work. JobRoute assigns each task the lowest tier that can do it under a published rubric and recommends the lowest tier that covers 80% of the work AI can address.

How many people work as Clinical and Counseling Psychologists, and what do they earn?

75,990 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $100,580 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of +11.2% from 2024 to 2034.

How to cite

Data version 2026-11-02, JobRoute method v1.0.0. Download all occupations or this occupation as JSON. Methodology.

JobRoute (2026). AI exposure: Clinical and Counseling Psychologists. Data version 2026-11-02, method v1.0.0. Built on O*NET 30.3, BLS OEWS May 2025 and the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026). CC BY 4.0. https://www.jobroute.ai/jobs/clinical-and-counseling-psychologists

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