BA (HONS) COUNSELLING

This module provides students with a theoretical base and foundation for the whole programme. It introduces students to a Christian anthropology and theory of human personality and to the Waverley Integrative Framework of Counselling, a holistic approach which reflects on the client's history and current circumstances and on all core aspects of human functioning: relational, physical, emotional, volitional, rational and spiritual.

Furthermore, the module provides students with the opportunity to apply the Waverley Integrative Framework and related counselling skills in a guided practice situation and through the use of case studies. Students will also be given an overview of the field of human development and a survey of human behaviour associated to lifespan development. In addition, students will be given an introduction to a range of therapeutic approaches to counselling and to basic research principles and methodology, assisting students to understand and make use of research findings to ensure evidence-based practice.

This module aims to equip students with the counselling skills needed to prepare them for their work with clients. It facilitates students to understand the importance of developing relationship-building skills which enables the formation of a therapeutic relationship and creates conditions in which change can occur.

Students are introduced to a range of basic and advanced counselling skills for use within the counselling process and provided with the opportunity to gain practice and experience in their use. Students are also assisted to develop self-awareness and the ability to give and receive feedback, relating counselling theory with practice via peer counselling triplets using the Waverley Integrative Framework.

This module aims to enable students to understand the different aspects of professional development in its various contexts and settings, assisting them to appreciate the need for ongoing professional development and providing them with an understanding of what constitutes good practice for the professional counsellor.

This includes introducing students to the ethical and legal obligations for counsellors, the importance of supervision, and awareness of potential ethical dilemmas and boundary issues — including those that might occur for practitioners operating within faith communities. Students are also assisted to increase their self-awareness and to understand the importance of self-awareness in professional practice.

Additional requirements: Students are required to undertake 20 hours of self-funded personal therapy.

This module introduces students to a number of mental health disorders and diagnostic criteria, encouraging them to reflect on a range of assessment issues and consider when counselling may or may not be helpful, and when referral might be required.

The module assists students in reviewing psychological literature and research in order to consider cognitive, developmental and social psychology and the potential implications of findings for the practice of counselling.

Building on previous skills and theory lectures, this module introduces students to a number of interventions, drawing on Psychodynamic Theory, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, creative methods and (if appropriate to the client) Christian approaches to spirituality.

Students will be encouraged to identify issues of difference and diversity and to become increasingly aware of the impact of a client's cultural and social context.

Additional requirements: Students are required to undertake 50 hours of supervised placement work with clients. All placement hours must be carried out in the UK.

This module enables students to become ethical and competent practitioners. It provides students with professional awareness and expertise, in particular a greater knowledge of ethical practice, and provides training on how to use supervision and group supervision effectively.

Students are supported in their client work with group supervision and gain experience in giving and receiving feedback on their client work in a group setting. Students will also be informed of the accreditation requirements of counselling bodies (BACP and ACC).

This module encourages students to understand theories and models of group dynamics; to continue to attend process groups; to reflect on the connection between their personal story, their relationships with others, and their relationship with God; and to have personal therapy to continue to assist personal growth and awareness.

Additional requirements: Students are required to undertake 20 hours of self-funded personal therapy (direct entrants to Year 2 will need to complete 40 hours). Students are required to undertake 50 hours of supervised placement work with clients. All placement hours must be carried out in the UK.

This module deepens students' knowledge and critical understanding of a further range of theoretical approaches to counselling, providing evidence as to how interventions from a variety of theoretical approaches may be successfully integrated into the Waverley Integrative Framework and personal client work.

The module builds further on an understanding of a range of mental health problems that a client may present, identifying when counselling may not be appropriate, and provides an understanding of how quantitative and/or qualitative methods in outcome research inform counselling practice.

This module supports students in developing advanced counselling skills as they continue to work with clients, and in particular assists in evaluating the use of religious and spiritual interventions in clinical practice. It builds on previous teaching from the first two years of study.

Group supervision provided in this module will continue to support students in their clinical practice and enhance their ability to critically evaluate their clinical work with clients.

Additional requirements: Students are required to undertake 50 hours of supervised placement work with clients. All placement hours must be carried out in the UK.

This module provides students with the conditions and opportunity to reflect on themselves and their interactions with others. It enables students to continue to experience group process by means of process groups and reflect on their relational style in a group setting; to reflect on their relational experience with clients and supervisors; and to enhance self-awareness and personal development through written reflective recording.

Students are also encouraged to develop an awareness of the history and range of personality typologies and their personal therapeutic application.

This module is designed to deepen the student's understanding of the integrative approach and to assess clinical interventions in terms of which are most appropriate when working in a variety of clinical situations.

The module further considers integration in practice by assisting students to critically review the body of knowledge of three differing approaches in more depth: Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Family and Systemic Psychotherapy (FSP) and Internal Family Systems Therapy (IFS).

Module description to follow.

Counsellors working within faith communities are inevitably faced with the interface between Christian spirituality and counselling. This module provides students with the further opportunity to reflect on the relationship between spirituality, counselling and spiritual direction and to increase understanding and deepen awareness of the tensions that inevitably arise within church, pastoral and counselling settings.

The module will also further explore counselling and spirituality which is non-faith specific, and consider relational dynamics in transpersonal counselling.

As a conclusion to this programme, students will be required to conduct a literature review on a personal area of interest related to their counselling practice. In order to analyse and engage in depth with the area of interest, students will be encouraged to develop advanced theoretical knowledge of counselling research methodology.

Students will be provided with the opportunity to select an appropriate question and area of interest and produce a literature review illustrating how they have critically evaluated relevant theories, literature sources and research findings.