A Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor typically anchors clinical care in a substance use program — assessments, individual and group sessions, treatment planning — with state licensure shaping scope and documentation expectations.
Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor (LADC) pay typically runs $47K–$78K at this level. The next title up is often Senior Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor (LADC).
Daily work usually layers individual counseling, group facilitation, assessments, and treatment plan documentation. You'll often work across detox, residential, IOP, and outpatient handoffs, with ASAM-criteria decisions showing up regularly. Walk-ins, crises, and care-coordination calls reshape the schedule routinely.
The licensure-driven expectations around chart quality, ethics, and continuing education are not optional and can shape daily decisions. Coordination with probation, family, medical providers, and insurance reviewers runs heavier than newcomers expect. The emotional labor of repeated relapse builds slowly over time.
Counselors who thrive typically combine clinical curiosity, durable self-care, and comfort with ambivalence. A non-judgmental stance and patience with slow, non-linear change usually matter more than allegiance to any single therapeutic model.
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Roles like this one sit within a broader occupational category. The numbers below reflect that full landscape — helpful for context, but your specific experience will depend on level, specialty, and where you work.
Roles with similar work and overlapping career paths
View all Social Services roles →A Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor typically anchors clinical care in a substance use program — assessments, individual and group sessions, treatment planning — with state licensure shaping scope and documentation expectations.
Median pay for a Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor (LADC) is about $60K nationally, with the field ranging roughly from $39K to $101K depending on experience, employer, and metro (BLS).
Core skills for this role include Active Listening, Speaking, Critical Thinking, Social Perceptiveness, and Monitoring.
Most people in this role hold a master's degree.
Closely related roles include Senior Licensed Alcohol And Drug Counselor (Ladc), Youth and Family Director, and Direct Care Counselor.
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