Counselling MSc

What is the difference between Counselling and Psychotherapy?

Counselling is typically designed to be a short-term intervention and to deal with the “here and now”. It is often “integrative” and therefore tends to incorporate a variety of different therapeutic approaches and techniques.  Psychotherapy is typically designed to be a longer-term intervention, to deal with issues in depth and psychotherapists often specialise in one particular model of therapy (e.g., CBT, Psychodynamic, Gestalt).  There are exceptions to this, but this is historically how the training for the two disciplines has been separated.  The UKCP has been better known for Psychotherapy accreditation whilst the BACP has been better known for Counselling, however again, there are some exceptions to this.

Does this course enable me to practice as a Counsellor upon completion?

The MSc at Worcester is not accredited by a UK Professional and Statutory Regulating Body (PSRB). In order to practice as a Counsellor, you need to have completed a training programme/course which is accredited by a UK based governing body (i.e., PSRB).  The main two PSRBs within the Counselling discipline are the UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP) and the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP).  Training programmes which are accredited by these two PSRBs must have a placement component which enables trainees to gain a minimum of 100 supervised practice hours.  The MSc in Counselling at the University of Worcester does not include a placement element and, therefore, does not enable graduates of the programme to register as Counsellors directly following completion of the course.

If I want to become a Counsellor, is this course for me?

Despite the fact that the course does not provide graduates with a qualification that enables them to practice as a Counsellor after completion, we have had students on the course who want to be Counsellors and who chose the course because some counselling training programmes only cover the basics of theory and research. The course at Worcester provides students with a thorough understanding of and grounding in the theoretical underpinnings of counselling practice and enables students to develop research skills that are vital to future work as an evidence-based practitioner.  If you have any interest in developing a deeper theoretical basis for a counselling skills training, and/or if you like the idea of designing and carrying out research or being part of the research community in Psychology then the MSc in Counselling is an appropriate course for you to embark on!  Some students have chosen to undertake their level 2/3 Counselling Skills Training alongside the MSc in Counselling and this can work well because the MSc is delivered in a block taught format across a total of 32 contact days (16 Fridays and 16 Saturdays) over the course of the academic year.  There are a number of local institutions which offer level 2/3 Counselling Skills Training including Evesham College and Worcester College.  Levels 2 and 3 can also be completed online at a number of UK based institutions.  Level 2/3 counselling skills courses can help focus on counselling skills themselves, whilst the MSc counselling can help to underpin these skills by grounding students in theory and research.

I am applying because I want to be Counselling Psychologist or Clinical Psychologist

• To become a Chartered/Registered Counselling or Clinical Psychologist you need to complete Doctoral level training which is ONLY accredited by the British Psychological Society (BPS). This is because Counselling Psychology and Clinical Psychology sit within a different academic discipline (Psychology) whereas Counselling and Psychotherapy sit within their own discipline (Counselling and Psychotherapy).  Counselling and Clinical Psychologists differ from Counsellors and Psychotherapists in that their training has a stronger focus on competencies in conducting research and skills required to take on complex or longer-term clients.
• Many of our applicants apply for our MSc in Counselling because they want to be accepted onto one of the Counselling or Clinical Psychology doctorates and see our course as a steppingstone to being accepted onto a doctorate programme. All of the Clinical Psychology doctorates and many of the Counselling Psychology doctorates require a BPS-accredited Psychology degree with a minimum of a 2:1 degree classification (and some require a first class degree) and most doctorates require previous clinical experience OR a level 7 qualification (i.e. MSc) or counselling skills training.  This is where the MSc at Worcester can fit in and can help students to enhance their profile ready for applying for a doctorate whilst also providing graduates with an excellent grounding in the theoretical perspectives and research evidence that inform counselling practices.

How do I know which course is best for me?

• If you are working towards a career as a Counsellor and want to have an excellent theoretical underpinning to your future practice, then the MSc in Counselling is for you. You will need to complete 100 hours of supervised practice in addition to the MSc (either during or after completion of the MSc) in order to be qualified to practice as a Counsellor. 
• If you want to become a Counselling or Clinical Psychologist, then the MSc can be a great steppingstone to helping you achieve this aim, but completion of the MSc in Counselling alone will not qualify you to practice as a counselling or clinical psychologist. If you are interested in becoming a Counselling or Clinical Psychologist, you may wish to look at the BPS website
• If you are interested in becoming a Counsellor, you may wish to look at the BACP website
• If you are interested in becoming a Psychotherapist, you may wish to look at the UKCP website 
• If you are interested in becoming a Family Therapist, you may wish to look at the AFT website
• If you are interested in becoming Cognitive Behavioural Therapist, you may wish to look the BABCP website for relevant training courses

Teaching

The programmes utilise in-person delivery with modules being supported with the use of online reading materials. There is an emphasis on self-directed autonomous learning where you will apply learning outcomes and content to your own areas of interest or practice.

Teaching within the course aims to be engaging with formal approaches such as lectures being interspersed with discussion, debates, analysis of cases, and examples from practice settings. Learning approaches may include the use of Blackboard Collaborate, online discussion forums and flipped classrooms which expect you to complete independent work in preparation for teaching sessions to reinforce learning.

Sessions take a variety of formats and are intended to enable the application of learning through discussion and small group activities. Seminars enable the discussion and development of understanding of topics covered in lectures and are focused on developing subject-specific skills and applied individual and group project work. Tutorials are a key aspect of the learning strategy where you are encouraged to share your assessment plans with tutors and peers, allowing structured questions and feedback. Tutorials can be in-person or utilise digital/videoconferencing technologies such as Skype/MS Teams/Zoom etc.

In addition, you will have a minimum of two meetings with your Personal Academic Tutors, timed to coincide with key points such as induction or assessment. When undertaking the dissertation module, a supervisor will be allocated towards the start of the module. Timetabled group support sessions as well as individual tutorials will be used for supervision of the independent research dissertation.

Contact time

The programme is taught across two-day blocks on a Friday and Saturday, each 15-credit module being four days in total, and the 30-credit module being eight days in total. Full time students complete all eight taught modules across two semesters, four modules per semester, plus the dissertation within a third semester in one academic year. Part time students select which modules and how many they want to complete in each year, with their dissertation in the final year. 

In the final semester when students will normally be undertaking the dissertation, they will have less classroom contact time in order to do more independent study. Individual supervision will be provided on a one to one basis of a total of 8 hours.  

In a typical week, students will have around 37 hours engaged in study which will, in a normal week, include a combination of taught sessions and independent study.

Independent self-study

In addition to the contact time, full-time students are expected to undertake around 24 hours of personal self-study per week. Part-time students are expected to undertake around 6 hours of personal self-study per module per week. Typically, this will involve further reading on each module and additional reading and research to complete each module's assessments. Assessments may consist of written essays, individual presentations, poster presentations and case study work.

Independent learning is supported by a range of excellent learning facilities, including The Hive and library resources, the virtual learning environment, and extensive electronic learning resources. There is also additional reading and resources on the module's Blackboard site, which will be available once you register for the module.

Teaching staff

You will be taught by a teaching team whose expertise and knowledge are closely matched to the content of the modules on the course. The team includes staff from a variety of Psychology backgrounds including counselling psychology, health psychology, psychotherapy and EMDR.

Teaching is informed by the research and consultancy, and all of our lecturers are practitioners with significant training and skills in their area of expertise.

Assessment

The course provides opportunities to test understanding and learning informally through the completion of practice or 'formative' assignments. Each module has one or more formal or 'summative' assessments, which are graded and count towards the overall module grade.

Assessment methods include a range of coursework assessments such as essays, reports, role play of counselling skills, project plan, presentations and a dissertation. Submission of assignments and feedback is managed electronically through Blackboard.

The precise assessment requirements for an individual student in an academic year will vary according to the mandatory and optional modules taken, but a typical formal summative assessment pattern, for a full-time student, for each year of the course is: 

Semester 1

• 1 Conference paper with Audio Presentation
• 1 Qualitative analysis report
• 1 Essay
• 1 Research Proposal 

Semester 2

• 1 Case study
• 1 Role Play with Process Report
• 1 Reflective Workbook
• 1 Essay

Semester 3

• Dissertation

The precise assessment requirements for part time students will vary according to the modules selected. All assignments will be internally marked and moderated as well as being externally examined as per the UW assessment policy. All assignments are submitted electronically, with feedback focusing on areas of strength and development needs, with advice for feeding forward to future assignments. Feedback takes a range of formats, including written comments, peer feedback, discussions with staff and audio recorded comments.

Feedback

You will receive feedback on practice assessments and on formal assessments undertaken by coursework. Feedback is intended to support learning and you are encouraged to discuss it with personal academic tutors and module tutors as appropriate.

We aim to provide you with feedback on formal course work assessments within 20 working days of hand-in.

Intermediate awards

Two intermediate awards are available if you are unable to commit the time required to gain the Masters award:

• Postgraduate Certificate in Counselling Studies (successful completion of three modules)
• Postgraduate Diploma in Counselling (successful completion of six modules)

Programme specification

For comprehensive details on the aims and intended learning outcomes of the course, and the means by which these are achieved through learning, teaching and assessment, please download the latest programme specification document.