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Leidos
Coronado, California, United States

Military Family Life Counselor -Youth

Counselor / TherapistFull-Time

Listed compensation

$59k-$107k

The week · per this posting · weekdays assumed

Ask the employer about the work setting, call expectations, weekend coverage and time off.

Posted 1h ago · Verified live

Job Description

Leidos is hiring licensed behavioral health professionals to join our Child and Youth Behavioral, Military and Family Life Counselor (MFLC) team to support Naval Base Coronado in California. This assignment supports a rotation covering a CDC, Youth Center and a High School.

Join the mission to support U.S. military service members and their families as they work through important military life adjustments while serving their country.

The Child and Youth Behavioral Military and Family Life Counselor (CYB-MFLC) position offers a unique opportunity to serve a vital role, in providing non-medical support, which includes counseling, consultation, and outreach, to eligible faculty, staff, parents, children, and youth.

Non-medical counseling is preventive in nature and aims to address and provide solution focused approaches to issues before they become greater challenges.

Military children face unique emotional and environmental challenges due to the stress of military life. This is an opportunity for you to reach them where and when you are most needed.

CYB-MFLC Responsibilities Include

Work at installation Child Development Centers (CDCs) with children 0-5, before or after-school care centers for school-aged children, youth and teens on educational activities and appropriate developmental focus.

Observe, participate, and engage in activities with children and youth; provide coaching, guidance and support to staff and parents; and model behavior management techniques for staff and parents.

Offer presentations to address social skills development and social emotional learning that is crucial for childhood early development.

  • Promote creativity and positivity through approved materials.
  • Build rapport with parents and families by attending installation and community events.
  • Help children with transition adjustments, such as a new school and a new home.
  • Participate in regular in-service training or other contract activities as assigned.
  • Communicate information regarding trends and issues at assigned installation to Team Leads.

CYB-MFLC Will Also Benefit From

  • No insurance to file.
  • No progress notes required.

No treatment plans to develop. iPad provided for easy digital reporting, with no PII or PHI.

  • Paid federal holidays.
  • Free and unlimited behavioral healthcare training.
  • Reimbursement for job-related license renewal fees.
  • Eligibility to participate in 401K retirement plan.

Centralized support through a Counseling Center of Excellence that provides best practices, expert speakers, and state-of-the-art resources.

Additional Job Duties May Include

  • Responding to emergent situations in any physical location on a military installation
  • Traversing long distances to both indoor and outdoor locations, to maneuver through rugged, outdoor, or uneven locations (ascend/descend), and work in outdoor weather.
  • Travelling to locations outside of a military base in a variety of physical environments.

Due to the nature of working on military installations or related worksites, counselors may need to comply with various site-specific requirements to work at designated locations.

Environment

At the direction of the Department of Defense, duties are performed in multiple indoor locations (approximately 60%) and outdoor locations (approximately 40%). The indoor locations are located within a child development center (CDC) controlled by the Department of Defense.

The outdoor locations frequently involve traversing over uneven grassy, gravel, and/or dirt areas, ascending/descending stairs, and exposure to the weather. CDC settings frequently involve sitting on the floor to interact with children for up to 2 hours at a time.

Licensure Portability

Great news!

Under the recent National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), licensed Military and Family Life Counselors may provide non-medical counseling services to military families at any location in a U.S. state, the District of Columbia, or a territory or possession of the United States, regardless of which state the counselor is licensed in.

Within the scope of the MFLC program, a counselor may hold any independent and clinical license recognized by the Secretary of Defense as an appropriate license for the provision of non-medical counseling services.

Minimum Requirements

A master’s degree or higher in the Behavioral Health Professions (MS/MSW/MA/PhD).

The candidate must hold a valid independent license in the mental health field from any US state or territory (LCSW, MHC, MFT, LPCC, Psychologist).

Must be a U.S. citizen.

Must be able to pass a basic background check for employment, a Child National Agency Check, and Inquiries (NACI/CNACI) clearance, commonly called a Public Trust clearance.

If you're looking for comfort, keep scrolling. At Leidos, we outthink, outbuild, and outpace the status quo — because the mission demands it. We're not hiring followers. We're recruiting the ones who disrupt, provoke, and refuse to fail. Step 10 is ancient history. We're already at step 30 — and moving faster than anyone else dares.

Original Posting

November 4, 2026

For U.S. Positions: While subject to change based on business needs, Leidos reasonably anticipates that this job requisition will remain open for at least 3 days with an anticipated close date of no earlier than 3 days after the original posting date as listed above.

Pay Range

Pay Range $59,150.00 - $106,925.00

The Leidos pay range for this job level is a general guideline only and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity, alignment with market data, applicable bargaining agreement (if any), or other law.

Key Responsibilities

Provide non-medical counseling, consultation, and outreach services to military children, youth, and their families at installation facilities. Engage in developmental activities, model behavior management techniques, and support families through military life transitions.

Requirements

Requires a master's degree or higher in a behavioral health profession and a valid independent clinical license (LCSW, MHC, MFT, LPCC, or Psychologist). Candidates must be U.S. citizens and able to pass a Public Trust background clearance.

Qualifications

Education
Master's degree (postgraduate degree)
Experience
2+ years of experience

Key Skills

Youth developmentCrisis interventionCase managementClinical assessmentFamily supportSolution-focused therapyCommunication

Behavioral Health — Counselor Career Context

The cost-of-living index for California is 110.7 (US average = 100; BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)), so the posted ~$83k midpoint carries the purchasing power of roughly $75k in an average-cost state. 63.6% of California clinicians report burnout symptoms in WeekdayDoc's Burnout Index (2026-01 data).

Of the 50 active Behavioral Health listings this role was benchmarked against, 62% are remote, 22% have no call, 64% require no weekends.

What does the Behavioral Health market look like in California?
MeasureThis jobMarket
Listed pay$59k–$107kBehavioral Health median $88k (middle half $83k–$106k)28 comparable listings, Nov 2026
Cost-of-living adjusted pay~$75k in purchasing powerCalifornia index 110.7 (US = 100)BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)
Behavioral Health listings in California22 active338 nationallylive on WeekdayDoc, Nov 2026
Work settingon-sitepeers: 62% remote · 22% no call · 64% no weekends50 benchmarked listings
Sign-on & loan repaymentnot statedCalifornia Counselor listings: 11% state a sign-on bonus (median $3k) · 9% offer loan repayment1,000 active listings, Nov 2026
New Behavioral Health listings847 in the last 30 days531 the 30 days before (+60%)U.S., first seen on WeekdayDoc, Nov 2026
Behavioral Health pay trend−6.7% vs prior quarter—through Oct 2026
Sources: WeekdayDoc live listing index, BEA Regional Price Parities (2024); as of Nov 2026. Same values as the Weekday Verdict and Market Insights on this page.

Top Counselor Jobs

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Salary Distribution

45 jobs · 38 employers
9
<$90k
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$120k-135k
4
$135k+

Annual compensation range

Benefits & Perks

31 jobs
401k / retirement match
97% this job
CME allowance
48%
Sign-on bonus
39%
Loan repayment
6%
Relocation assistance
6%

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Work-life snapshot

median 2.8this job 1.5
Below most Behavioral Health (Counseling) listings for work-life

Listing-based score, 0–10, across 333 comparable listings. Shaded area = the share scoring below this one.

Leidos logo

About Leidos

Defense and Space Manufacturing
Reston, Virginia
10,000+ employees

Benefits & Perks

No insurance to file
No progress notes required
No treatment plans to develop
iPad provided for digital reporting
Paid federal holidays
Free and unlimited behavioral healthcare training
Reimbursement for job-related license renewal fees
401K retirement plan eligibility

Living in Coronado

Typical 3-bedroom home value
$2.62M≈ 44.3× annual pay
Typical market rent
$5,122/mo≈ 104% of gross pay
Residents’ average commute
18 min
Metro price indexU.S. average = 100
111.9
State income tax
Up to 13.3%
Sources & methodology

Sources: Zillow home values (Sep 2026), Zillow market rents (Sep 2026), U.S. Census ACS 2024 five-year.

BEA 2024 · San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro prices. Housing figures are city-level.

Ratios use this listing’s gross annual pay. Not a cost-of-living guarantee.