Counselor is a career occupation of the Star Army of Yamatai. Counselors are responsible for the mental well-being of Star Army of Yamatai personnel. Their occupational code is 08C, indicating that it is a specialization of Star Army Medical, with a uniform panel designated with “Medical Teal” (hex code #00C0C0).
Recognizing the growing need for mental health professionals in the Star Army of Yamatai, the counselor occupation was created in late YE 44.
Most Star Army of Yamatai counselors attend a 4 year counseling program at Star Army Academy. Alternatively, anyone with at least a master's degree in counselling or psychology with a counselling specialization is eligible, but they must take additional training to prepare them for the challenges that are unique to counseling in the Star Army of Yamatai.
A medical degree grants extra privileges, though a medical degree on its own is insufficient to provide therapy. The Star Army Academy offers an intensive one-year program to enrich a medical degree with mental health training. But most who intend to diagnose and treat mental illness take the full-length medical program at Star Army Academy with an emphasis on mental health.
Since this occupation requires significant training and usually at least one post-secondary degree, the minimum rank for this occupation is Shoi and the maximum rank is Taisa.
Counselors are expected to devote most of their time to talking with active duty Star Army of Yamatai personnel, primarily fostering a safe environment for them to talk about issues related to their mental health. Counselors may also be called upon to de-escalate and resolve conflicts between personnel. The best counselors will also help to build a psychologically safe work environment where personnel can perform at their highest ability.
It is important to note that counselors are not always medical professionals. Unless they have a medical doctors (M.D.) or equivalent, they cannot prescribe drugs or give medical advice. They may refer personnel to the most appropriate medical officer to seek such treatment and even provide recommendations, though the medical officer is not under any obligation to follow those recommendations. Without a medical degree, a counselor may still help their patients by providing any form of therapy in which they have been trained.
Counselors must be comfortable talking about post-traumatic stress, substance abuse, and suicide among other similarly sensitive subjects. It is important to note that private conversations between counselors and their patients is privileged and not required to be divulged even in a court-martial.
Counselors have a common set of skills:
And typically specialize in one or more forms of therapy:
If the counselor has a medical degree, they gain the following privilege:
The player should have a basic understanding of building and fostering a psychologically safe environment, especially for those with trauma. You as a player should be comfortable talking about sensitive subjects. You will not be expected to provide actual mental health advice, but you should be comfortable writing a character that at least actively listens to other characters without making them feel judged.
These are the characters currently listed as Star Army counselors.
Hyralt created this article on 2022/10/05 15:50 with significant feedback from Yuuki and a deleted user.
Uniform art is by Wes, modified to change the color by Hyralt.
Patch by Yuuki from approval thread: https://stararmy.com/roleplay-forum/threads/star-army-counselor.69238/page-3#post-428923
Approval thread: https://stararmy.com/roleplay-forum/threads/star-army-counselor.69238/
