Credit Counselors

Advise and educate individuals or organizations on acquiring and managing debt. May provide guidance in determining the best type of loan and explain loan requirements or restrictions. May help develop debt management plans or student financial aid packages. May advise on credit issues, or provide budget, mortgage, bankruptcy, or student financial aid counseling.

On the job, you would:

Calculate clients' available monthly income to meet debt obligations.
Explain services or policies to clients, such as debt management program rules, advantages and disadvantages of using services, or creditor concession policies.
Create debt management plans, spending plans, or budgets to assist clients to meet financial goals.

Personality

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Characteristics of this Career
		99%	Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical.
		94%	Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
		92%	Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
		91%	Attention to Detail - Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
		90%	Self-Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
		87%	Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
		85%	Adaptability/Flexibility - Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
		85%	Stress Tolerance - Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations.
		83%	Analytical Thinking - Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
		81%	Achievement/Effort - Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
		80%	Initiative - Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
		75%	Independence - Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
		72%	Persistence - Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
		67%	Leadership - Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
		66%	Social Orientation - Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job.
		62%	Innovation - Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Strengths
		72%	Social - Work involves helping, teaching, advising, assisting, or providing service to others. Social occupations are often associated with social, health care, personal service, teaching/education, or religious activities.
		72%	Enterprising - Work involves managing, negotiating, marketing, or selling, typically in a business setting, or leading or advising people in political and legal situations. Enterprising occupations are often associated with business initiatives, sales, marketing/advertising, finance, management/administration, professional advising, public speaking, politics, or law.
		72%	Conventional - Work involves following procedures and regulations to organize information or data, typically in a business setting. Conventional occupations are often associated with office work, accounting, mathematics/statistics, information technology, finance, or human resources.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Values of the Work Environment
		78%	Relationships - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service.
		72%	Achievement - Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.
		72%	Independence - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.
		61%	Working Conditions - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.

Aptitude

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Abilities \| Cognitive, Physical, Personality
		78%	Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
		75%	Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
		72%	Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
		69%	Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
		69%	Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
		69%	Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
		69%	Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
		56%	Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
		56%	Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
		56%	Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
		56%	Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
		53%	Number Facility - The ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.
		53%	Mathematical Reasoning - The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
		53%	Fluency of Ideas - The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Skills \| Cognitive, Physical, Personality
		57%	Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
		57%	Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
		55%	Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
		55%	Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
		54%	Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
		52%	Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

Job Details

Responsibilities

Correspond with customers to answer questions or resolve complaints.

Advise others on financial matters.

Assess financial status of clients.

Compute debt repayment schedules.

Develop financial plans for clients.

Compute debt repayment schedules.

Explain regulations, policies, or procedures.

Interview clients to gather financial information.

Prepare financial documents.

Negotiate agreements to resolve disputes.

Prepare contracts or other transaction documents.

Develop financial plans for clients.

Educate clients on financial planning topics.

Recommend investments to clients.

Refer clients to community or social service programs.

Assess financial status of clients.

Advise others on financial matters.

Develop financial plans for clients.

Disburse funds from clients accounts to creditors.

Educate clients on financial planning topics.

Interpret financial information for others.

Examine financial records.

Educate clients on financial planning topics.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent
		96%	Electronic Mail - How often do you use electronic mail in this job?
		94%	Telephone - How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?
		91%	Spend Time Sitting - How much does this job require sitting?
		87%	Contact With Others - How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?
		86%	Frequency of Decision Making - How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization?
		83%	Indoors, Environmentally Controlled - How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions?
		83%	Importance of Being Exact or Accurate - How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job?
		81%	Freedom to Make Decisions - How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer?
		79%	Letters and Memos - How often does the job require written letters and memos?
		77%	Importance of Repeating Same Tasks - How important is repeating the same physical activities (e.g., key entry) or mental activities (e.g., checking entries in a ledger) over and over, without stopping, to performing this job?
		77%	Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results - What results do your decisions usually have on other people or the image or reputation or financial resources of your employer?
		76%	Structured versus Unstructured Work - To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals?
		74%	Face-to-Face Discussions - How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?
		71%	Time Pressure - How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines?
		69%	Work With Work Group or Team - How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job?
		66%	Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls - How much does this job require using your hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools or controls?
		65%	Deal With External Customers - How important is it to work with external customers or the public in this job?
		63%	Deal With Unpleasant or Angry People - How frequently does the worker have to deal with unpleasant, angry, or discourteous individuals as part of the job requirements?
		61%	Spend Time Making Repetitive Motions - How much does this job require making repetitive motions?
		54%	Duration of Typical Work Week - Number of hours typically worked in one week.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Tasks & Values
		89%	Getting Information - Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
		85%	Documenting/Recording Information - Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
		85%	Working with Computers - Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
		78%	Making Decisions and Solving Problems - Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
		75%	Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge - Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
		75%	Communicating with People Outside the Organization - Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
		73%	Processing Information - Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.
		71%	Performing for or Working Directly with the Public - Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests.
		71%	Performing Administrative Activities - Performing day-to-day administrative tasks such as maintaining information files and processing paperwork.
		70%	Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events - Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
		69%	Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships - Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
		69%	Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates - Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
		67%	Analyzing Data or Information - Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts.
		66%	Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work - Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
		62%	Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards - Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
		61%	Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others - Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others.
		56%	Thinking Creatively - Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
		55%	Assisting and Caring for Others - Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
		54%	Coaching and Developing Others - Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills.
		54%	Providing Consultation and Advice to Others - Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups on technical, systems-, or process-related topics.
		53%	Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others - Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used.
		52%	Training and Teaching Others - Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
		52%	Scheduling Work and Activities - Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
		51%	Developing Objectives and Strategies - Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them.

Getting Started

Education:

40%

Bachelor's Degree

36%

High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)

Credit Counselors

What they do:

On the job, you would:

Personality

Characteristics of this Career

Strengths

Values of the Work Environment

Aptitude

Abilities | Cognitive, Physical, Personality

Skills | Cognitive, Physical, Personality

Job Details

Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent

Tasks & Values

Getting Started