Mental Health Assisting Careers
This course provides classroom instruction and hands-on learning in preparation for a career as a mental health technician or in the mental health field. Students gain an understanding of how to provide routine care and perform therapeutic procedures, respond to emergency situations, provide patient rehabilitation, and facilitate patient recreational activities. They prepare to assist mental health professionals in hospitals, outpatient clinics, and community mental health facilities. Contextual instruction and student participation in co-curricular career and technical student organization (CTSO) activities will develop leadership, interpersonal, and career skills. High-quality work-based learning (HQWBL) will provide experiential learning opportunities related to students' career goals and/or interests, integrated with instruction, and performed in partnership with local businesses and organizations.
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Course Sequences
A combination of this course and those below, equivalent to two 36-week courses, is a concentration sequence. Students wishing to complete a specialization may take additional courses based on their career pathways. A program completer is a student who has met the requirements for a CTE concentration sequence and all other requirements for high school graduation or an approved alternative education program.
Industry Credentials (Only apply to 36-week courses)
- College and Career Readiness Assessment (CCRA+)
- Diagnostic Services Assessment
- Health Assisting Assessment
- Mental Health Technician Certification (MHTC) Examination
- National Career Readiness Certificate (NCRC)
- National Health Science Assessment
- Therapeutic Services Assessment
- Workplace Readiness Skills for the Commonwealth Examination
Virginia’s High Demand Occupations and Apprenticeable Occupations
Section § 2.2-2472 of the Code of Virginia requires the Virginia Board of Workforce Development (VBWD) to publish a list of jobs, trades, and professions for which a high demand for qualified workers exists or is projected. The Virginia Office of Education Economics (VOEE) collaborated with the VBWD and related stakeholders to develop the high demand occupations list. VOEE’s mission is to leverage data to inform educational programming, policy, and workforce partnerships across the Commonwealth. See also the Virginia 2024 High Demand Occupations Dashboard.
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) Code, Occupation Description, and Active Apprenticeable Occupation status (Yes/No per the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry).
| SOC Code | Occupation Description | Apprenticeable Occupation |
|---|---|---|
| 312011 | Occupational Therapy Assistants | No |
Career Clusters
| Pathway | Occupation |
|---|---|
| Therapeutic Services |
|
| Pathway | Occupation |
|---|---|
| Counseling & Mental Health Services |
|
