This intensive course will boost your employability and allow you to work in various health and industry based settings. On successful completion of this course you will be able to work as a registered counsellor. This exciting career-based course will allow you to target jobs in an array of different settings such as GP surgeries, charities, universities, schools, colleges, private practice and many more.

This course will enable you to develop skills and knowledge in each of the core areas in counselling and coaching, including cognitive, behavioural, humanistic and psychodynamic counselling. Additionally, the course will enhance your communications and IT skills relevant to counselling and coaching, as well as developing your research skills and your ethical awareness in this important discipline.

This programme has been designed in accordance to the British Association for Counselling, Care Quality Commission, NHS and National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines. In addition to developing counselling and coaching skills you will be trained in safeguarding policy, psycho-pharmaceutical matters, risk assessment and risk management, all of which are now critical in healthcare.

Assessment

You will be assessed through summative and formative assessments, this will include power point presentations, written assignments and examinations. Continuous assessment will take place where you will have to complete reflective logs and a series of competencies.

Examination will mainly involve you counselling each other (Counselling Skills) followed by a review of your practice. You will complete a research dissertation in the final year related to counselling and coaching. Diversified assessment methods will be employed in order to support and develop your learning practices and skills across both academic and practitioner areas. Periodic multiple choice questions (formative assessments) will also be included to support your developing academic skills.

Entry requirements

In addition to the University's standard entry requirements, you should have:

A minimum of grades BCC in three A levels or minimum grades BC in at least two A levels in academic or business subjects (or a minimum of 104 UCAS points from an equivalent Level 3 qualification, eg BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma/Diploma; or Advanced Diploma; or Progression Diploma; or Access to HE Diploma with 60 credits)
English Language and Mathematics GCSE at grade C/grade 4 or above (or equivalent)

Applicants with relevant professional qualifications or extensive professional experience will also be considered on a case by case basis. Entry from appropriate foundation and access courses will also be considered.If you don’t have traditional qualifications or can’t meet the entry requirements for this undergraduate degree, applicants may still be able to gain entry by completing the first year of the Psychology Extended Degree BSc.

All applicants must be able to demonstrate proficiency in the English language. Applicants who require a Tier 4 student visa may need to provide a Secure English Language Test (SELT) such as Academic IELTS. For more information about English qualifications please see our English language requirements.

Modular structure Year 1 (level 4)

Introduction to counselling skills - humanistic,
CBT, psychodynamic
Placement support and study skills
Child and adult safeguarding, ethics and counselling

Year 2 (level 5)

Placement and study skills
Counselling across the lifespan
Coaching, healthcare and developing
interventions

Year 3 (level 6)

Advanced counselling and coaching skills (core)
Risk assessment and management (core)
Being a brain wise counsellor (optional)
Understanding psychopathology (core)
Short term, solution focused counselling
Couple and sex therapy (optional)
Placement support and study skills (core)

After the course

Completing this course would make you eligible to study at postgraduate level. This course will help you develop transferable skills such as report writing, teamwork, time management organisation, IT and numeracy skills, which are valued by employers in a wide range of industries. Since this is a practitioner course, you may be employed by your current placement or choose alternative working environments. This may be private, the workplace, universities, schools, colleges or NHS practices.