Genetic counseling is an up-and-coming field with great career possibilities. Yet the average person doesn’t know what genetic counselors do or how vital their work is.

My name is Allyson Cohen. I am a psychology major at The Ohio State University, and I am thrilled to be interning at the Chicago Center for Jewish Genetic Disorders for the summer of 2010. I want to get the word out about genetic counseling, and hopefully inspire other college students to consider it once they graduate.

If you’re thinking about pursuing genetic counseling as a career, you probably have plenty of questions about where to start. Here are some facts to get you started.
 

What is a genetic counselor?
Genetic counselors work with individuals or families who have genetic diseases, who are at risk for such a disease, or who wish to learn about their genetic history. They provide patients and their families with information about their condition, identify resources for the family and help them make informed decisions. A genetic counselor works with them to create an accurate pedigree, provides genetic testing, interprets results, and ultimately helps families or individuals cope with any bad news while counseling them about their next step in the journey.

What major should I choose?
Genetic counseling programs look for candidates who have a firm command of the science behind genetic counseling. This makes a biology or chemistry major ideal, but a degree in hard science is not the only path. Majors in fields related to caring and counseling for people, such as psychology, nursing, and social work, also provide valuable backgrounds. All other majors will be accepted as long as the proper prerequisites are complete.

How do I prepare academically to gain admission?
Programs in genetic counseling are extremely competitive. Most programs receive more than 100 applicants each year and ultimately accept very small classes ranging anywhere from four students to twenty-five students. Most schools require at least a 3.0 GPA in order to apply. GPA and test scores, however, are not the sole determining factors for admission. Check with school’s admissions office or genetic counseling department to learn more about admitted student’s GPAs.

What else can I do?
The competitive nature of admissions to genetic counseling programs make experiences such as volunteering, shadowing, and internships great to have on a application. Volunteering at places like Planned Parenthood or a crisis hotline center are also great ways to get involved. These experiences help develop valuable skills and knowledge for counseling people in times of need. Fluency or some knowledge of another language (especially Spanish) is also highly desirable.

Do I need to take the GRE? If so, how do I prepare?
Like many other graduate programs, admission to a genetic counseling program requires a score on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). Kaplan and Princeton Review both offer GRE preparation and classes on campuses near you.

How do I choose a school?
Just like with undergrad, you’ll want to consider what your needs and wants are for a graduate program. Ask yourself questions. What city to live in? Are the prerequisites completed? Can I afford it? And most importantly, Can I get in?

Click here to view a PDF table comparing all the full and provisional (waiting to be accredited) genetic counseling programs in the United States, including each school’s location, prerequisites, and tuition. 

For more information, visit the National Society of Genetic Counselors website.

My Story

Upon arriving at Ohio State University, I believed I was already set. I was a pre-nursing major and my mind was made up: all I had to do was get into the nursing program. I immediately signed up to volunteer at the Ohio State Medical Center, and was placed in the maternity ward. Although the experience was very rewarding, I realized that being a nurse wasn’t exactly what I wanted to do. I wanted to be able to help people while developing a relationship with them, be able to talk them through their problems, and I wanted to have more freedom. Right away, psychology and genetics jumped into my head. I was very intrigued by the counseling side of psychology and was always fascinated by genetics. My one stepping stone was finding how they could fit together. As far as I knew, I had to choose one or the other.

Like most stories go, my mom was the answer to all my problems. My mom works for an egg donor and surrogacy agency. Sometimes issues arise during the cycle, and when this occurs, recipients and donors are referred to genetic counselors to help work them through. After confiding in my mother for guidance, she suggested the field of genetic counseling. Desperate to find my calling, I quickly researched her suggestion and found that genetic counseling was exactly what I wanted. It is the perfect balance of the two fields and it was as if the occupation was made for me.

I am now in the process of researching genetic counseling programs and how I can prepare myself to be the best candidate and eventually the most successful genetic counselor. I hope that my journey to becoming a genetic counselor can not only inspire other students to follow, but to also ease the difficulty on discovering how to become one.

My Road to Genetic Counseling
by Michelle Gilats, Licensed Genetic Counselor

I became fascinated with genetics early on in my college career at UW-Madison. I had initially planned to go the pre-med route, but quickly decided that it wasn’t appealing to me. I was a Zoology major, and genetics particularly sparked my interest. When it came time to think about post-graduation plans, I considered genetic counseling, but was steered away by a number of factors (and family members!). I decided to instead apply to Genetics Ph.D. programs, since I was certain I wanted to work in the field of Genetics.

I attended a Ph. D. program and quickly decided that being at a lab bench all day wasn’t for me. I left the Ph.D. program after a year and took some time off to get some experience, but with the intention that I would, indeed, become a genetic counselor. I volunteered on a crisis hotline to get some counseling experience. I applied to genetic counseling graduate programs the following year, and while I had several interviews, I was not accepted into a program. I was discouraged, but motivated by the wonderful feedback I received from the program directors. They were impressed with me, but I needed to have more exposure to the field before proceeding.

The following year I volunteered in the Genetics department at a pediatric hospital, where I was able to observe genetic counseling sessions, help draw pedigrees, and learn about the field in general. Though I’d already suspected it, I knew then that genetic counseling was the perfect field for me, combining the science with the human aspect, and when I re-applied to the graduate programs, I was a much more confident, prepared applicant. I chose the graduate program at the University of California-Berkeley and loved delving into the field of genetic counseling, both through course work and clinical rotations.

Shortly after graduation I accepted a wonderful job at a general genetics clinic, doing prenatal, pediatric/adult, and cancer counseling. It was a unique position that allowed me to experience many different areas of the field. Now that I have been working for a while, I am in a more specialized position, which I am also thoroughly enjoying. One of the wonderful things about genetic counseling is that there are so many different avenues to explore, and the number of opportunities continues to grow.