FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - The changing dynamics of an aging population, federal guidelines and shrinking graduate programs have combined to make rehabilitation counseling a hot field, and a career in need of more master’s-level students, according to a University of Arkansas rehabilitation counselor educator.

"The growth in demand for master’s-level rehabilitation counselors has never been greater," said Jason Andrew, professor of rehabilitation. State agencies seeking to fill counselor vacancies frequently are forced to hire bachelor’s degree personnel, or personnel trained in other fields, due to the shortage of trained rehabilitation counselors.

And as an aging baby-boomer population continues to work longer, the need for well-trained rehabilitation counselors will only grow.

"In this society, we define people by what they do," Andrew said. "Many people want to keep working past 65, but due to illness or part of the aging process they may need rehabilitation services in order to do that."

The federal government has funded rehabilitation programs since the 1930s, with the goal of helping people with disabilities find employment. In the 1950s, the government began funding universities to train rehabilitation counselors to work with clients of the state/federal rehabilitation program. Since the early 1970s, state rehabilitation programs have focused on people with the most severe disabilities, and research has shown that counselors with master’s degrees prove most effective in helping such people attain employment.

"You’ve got to know what you’re doing. You can’t be of much help without proper training," Andrew said.

The Americans with Disabilities Act once again brought disabled employment to the forefront, creating another boost to jobs for rehabilitation counselors. In the meantime, the counselors who entered the field in the 1950s and rose through the ranks have started to retire, leaving gaps in management positions across the United States.

These trends have left state agencies desperate to recruit counselors. Many offer paid internships to students, hoping to recruit them straight out of school. People with only one year of experience have ended up as supervisors.

"The states will take all of the graduates we can produce," Andrew said.

Program graduates go to work for government agencies, for insurance companies on workman’s compensation issues, or for non-profit community rehabilitation programs.

In fact, the shortage of rehabilitation students - and the opportunity for those who choose to pursue the field - is even greater at the doctoral level, according to Andrew. The number of doctoral programs nationwide has shrunk from 30 to about 18, and these programs only average one to two graduates per year.

"It’s a rosy picture if you are coming out of a rehabilitation program," Andrew said. "There have never been better opportunities."