Counselling Top-up

The BSc (Hons) in Counselling (top-up) has been specifically designed for practising counsellors already qualified to diploma or foundation degree level and working in paid employment, private practice or a voluntary setting. It provides a unique opportunity for counsellors to deepen their understanding of counselling theory and practice, to gain more understanding of client issues and how to work with them, undertake a research project on a research question of their own choosing and gain a degree at the same time. It also provides a forum where counsellors from a variety of orientations and backgrounds will be able to share information and experience to their mutual advantage. Employers are increasingly asking for counsellors with a degree in counselling, or with BACP accreditation or both. Graduates also progress to postgraduate programmes or go on to more specialised training, i.e. in couples counselling, drug and alcohol addiction or working with children and adolescents.

Specifically, the aims of the programme are:

• To expand students’ appreciation and understanding of a range of counselling approaches other than the one in which they have completed their training. • To develop students’ ability to critically reflect on the particular nature of their clinical practice in light of their individual training and personal experiences and their responses to these. • To enable students to understand the ways in which they can respond effectively in their clinical practice to the demands of working in particular settings and cultural contexts. • To develop students’ knowledge and understanding of the BACP Ethical Framework as an example of a relevant professional ethical policy • To develop students’ engagement with systematic research in counselling by fostering their critical understanding of relevant research methods and enabling them to undertake a suitable research project in an area of personal interest. • To foster students’ self-awareness of their current capacities as counsellors and identify future continuing professional development possibilities in support of their professional aspirations. • To enable students with the appropriate capacities to achieve a graduate-level award in counselling, enhancing their opportunities to secure future employment and training at levels that they may have found hard to access as non-graduates.

Students must take all of the following modules:

• Personal and Professional Development in Practice • Research informed Practice • Research Proposal • Theory in Practice

Students will be required to complete 80 supervised client practice hours as part of the programme. They will also be required to be in personal therapy for a minimum of 60 hours during the programme.

Having successfully achieved the BSc (Hons) in Counselling, it is envisaged that many students will seek employment in the counselling field, including setting up in private practice and/or progress to postgraduate study.