We are sure you will find the topics included in
our Diploma of Professional Counselling to be both interesting
and contemporary with the course and individual units
structured cohesively to assist your learning. The course
is comprised of 22 units that focus on a range of theoretical
and practical counselling topics.
If you have any queries or would like further information
regarding the course outline, please .
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Following is an outline of the course, Diploma of Professional
Counselling.
The course comprises a total of 22 units including:-
| Unit No |
Unit Code |
Unit Topic |
| Unit 1 |
DPC1C |
|
| Unit 2 |
DPC2C |
|
| Unit 3 |
DPC3C |
|
| Unit 4 |
DPC4C |
|
| Unit 5 |
DPC5C |
|
| Unit 6 |
DPC6C |
|
| Unit 7 |
DPC7C |
|
| Unit 8 |
DPC8C |
|
| Unit 9 |
DPC9C |
|
| Unit 10 |
DPC10C |
|
| Unit 11 |
DPC11C |
|
| Unit 12 |
DPC12C |
|
| Unit 13 |
CHCCW13B |
|
| Unit 14 |
CHCCM3B |
|
| Unit 15 |
DPC15C |
|
| Unit 16 |
DPC16C |
|
| Unit 17 |
CHCCS7C |
|
| Unit 18 |
DPC18C |
|
| Unit 19 |
DPC19C |
|
| Unit 20 |
CHCGROUP3C |
|
| Unit 21 |
DPC21C |
|
| Unit 22 |
CHCPOL3A |
|
Unit 1 - Introduction to the Counselling Industry
The first unit of the Diploma of Professional Counselling introduces
the ethical and legal framework a counsellor should work within.
The unit also identifies issues that may impact on the client-counsellor
relationship and will allow the student to:
- Reflect upon counsellor challenges that may impact on the counselling process
- Identify rights and responsibilities of the counsellor
- Identify rights and responsibilities of the client
- Analyse issues involved in counselling practice
- Counselling roles
- Analyse issues within the client-counsellor relationship, and
- Identify areas of personal and professional growth.
Unit 2 - Specialist Interpersonal Communication
This unit involves the exploration and application of basic interpersonal
communication skills to facilitate the client-counsellor relationship
within a counselling practice. The unit covers the application of:
- Counsellor observation skills
- Counsellor questioning skills
- Counsellor feedback skills
- Noting and reflecting
- The variables in communication, and
- The impact of communication.
Unit 3 - Counselling Interview Skills
Unit 3 builds on the basic skills of Unit 2 and covers advanced interpersonal
communication skills. There is a particular emphasis on facilitating the
client-counsellor relationship within a counselling practice. At its
completion, students will be able to apply:
- Advanced counselling skills
- Micro-skills for influence
- Focusing skills, and
- Confrontation skills.
Unit 4 - The Counselling Process
This unit focuses on the application of the knowledge and skills required to
facilitate the counselling process to encourage and enhance client growth.
The following areas are covered in the unit:
- Beginning the counselling process
- Facilitating the identification of client concerns
- Exploring client concerns
- Reviewing the counselling process, and
- Negotiating the termination of the client-counsellor relationship.
Unit 5 - Personality and Human Development
Unit 5 provides an introduction to key concepts and constructs underlying
theories of personality and human development. The unit explores the
development of theories of behaviour and their application in the
client-counsellor relationship and the counselling process. Students
will also apply and analyse the Humanistic Theory and Behaviourism Theory
in counselling practice.
Unit 6 - Foundations of Behaviourism
Unit 6 focuses on the theory of behaviourism and the application and
impact of stimulus/response theory on behaviour. The unit allows students
to apply the theory of stimulus and response in counselling practice,
along with analysing and applying negative and positive reinforcement.
Unit 7 - Social Learning
This unit focuses on the application of social learning (modelling)
theory in counselling practice addressing the application and impact of
social learning on behaviour. In this unit, students will:
- Analyse environmental modelling influences in counselling practice
- Analyse possible behavioural outcomes of different modelling and reinforcement influences, and
- Formulate a program for client change.
Unit 8 - Behaviour Therapy
This unit builds on the skills learned in Unit 6 and focuses on
theoretical concepts, processes, knowledge and skills for the analysis
and practical application of Behaviour Therapy within counselling
practice. The unit covers:
- Analysis of client needs using behaviour therapy in counselling practice
- Evaluation of limitations of behaviour therapy, and
- Application of behaviour therapy techniques in counselling practice.
Unit 9 - Person Centred Therapy
Unit 9 focuses on theoretical concepts, processes, knowledge and skills
for the analysis and practical application of Person-Centred Therapy
within counselling practice. Students will:
- Apply the key concepts of Person Centred Therapy
- Analyse Roger's contribution
- Analyse Maslow's contribution
- Analyse the contributions of the counsellor and the client in the therapeutic process, and
- Learn the limitations of Person Centred Therapy.
Unit 10 - Gestalt Therapy
This unit provides an introduction to the key theoretical concepts and
techniques of Gestalt Therapy within a counselling practice.
Students will:
- Apply the key concepts of Gestalt Therapy
- Analyse Perl's contribution
- Gestalt terms, key concepts and techniques
- Overview the therapeutic process, and
- Learn the limitations of Gestalt Therapy.
Unit 11 - Cognitive Behaviour Therapy
This unit focuses on the application of theoretical concepts, processes,
knowledge and skills for the analysis and practical application of
Cognitive Behaviour Therapy within counselling practice. Students will:
- Apply the key concepts of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy
- Analyse both Beck's and Ellis' contributions
- Overview and apply the therapeutic process, and
- Learn the limitations of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy.
Unit 12 - Apply Solution Focused Therapy in Counselling
Unit 12 focuses on theoretical concepts, processes, knowledge and skills
for the analysis and practical application of Solution Focused Therapy
within counselling practice. Along with applying the therapeutic process,
students will:
- Apply the key concepts of Solution Focused Therapy
- Learn the exponents of Solution Focused Therapy, and
- Learn the limitations of Solution Focussed Therapy.
Unit 13 - Case Work
Counsellors are often required to deliver specialised client services
based on individual case assessment and intervention. In Unit 13,
students learn about:
- The phases of the counselling process (assessment,
intervention and termination)
- Crisis intervention
- Client's ethical rights
- Counsellor's ethical and legal responsibilities
- Transition processes
- Day to day management in the case work role
- Review and evaluation of case work and programs, and
- Application of the various therapeutic approaches
to the counselling process.
Unit 14 - Case Management
Unit 14 provides students with information on all aspects
of case management and encourages consideration of 'best practice'.
The unit covers:
- Roles of the case manager
- Process of case management
- Conducting case management meetings
- Working with other professionals
- Organisational contexts
- The client's ethical rights
- The counsellor's ethical and legal responsibilities, and
- Applicable documentation.
Unit 15 - Stress Management
This unit covers the knowledge and skills necessary for identifying,
analysing and evaluating stress and providing remediation programs
and/or recommendations to clients exhibiting stress. Students study:
- The potential effects of stress upon cognition,
behaviour and physiology
- Internal and external stressors
- The effects of acute and chronic stress
- Elicit causal factors and corresponding effects
in counselling interviews
- Evaluation of case information for remediation or referral, and
- Application of functional concepts in formulation
of appropriate remediation strategies for the client.
Unit 16 - Family Therapy
This unit focuses on providing an introduction to family therapy
processes within counselling practice, including:
- The origins of Family Therapy
- Leading therapists
- Phases of 'treatment'
- Assessment of families
- Family Therapy concepts and approaches including systems,
experiential, cognitive-behavioural and strategic approaches, and
- Issues of difference in working with families.
Unit 17 - Working with Difference
The knowledge base of this unit increases the counsellor's
insight and sensitivity to the special needs of clients
and whose gender, culture, ethnicity, subculture, sexuality
and ability is to be recognised in the interaction.
Students learn about:
- Issues of difference
- Social themes on difference
- Support for difference, and
- Documentation, storage and retrieval of specialist services.
Unit 18 - Apply issues relating to abuse
Unit 18 provides an introduction to a conceptual framework for responsible
counselling practice with victims of abuse including statutory requirements
and referral to specialist agencies/personnel. The unit covers:
- Abuse recognition
- Causal theories of abuse
- Effects of abuse
- Statutory requirements
- Implications for counsellors
- Support networks, and
- Referral processes.
Unit 19 - Relationship Issues
This unit allows the opportunity to analyse relationship functions and
dysfunctions and includes techniques for developing healthy
relationships. Students examine:
- Types of relationships
- Dynamics in relationships
- Qualities of dysfunctional and healthy relationships
- Conflict resolution strategies, and
- Referral processes.
Unit 20 - Group Counselling Processes
Unit 20 provides the theoretical basis and practical skills necessary
for conducting group counselling sessions. The unit covers:
- Theory of group membership
- Group structure, process and programming
- Planning group counselling sessions
- Skills of group facilitation (including dealing
with conflict), and
- Ethical considerations.
Unit 21 - Ethics and Referral
This unit builds on Unit 1 and provides the opportunity to apply ethical
and legal requirements to counselling practice.
Students will learn about:
- The need for ethical standards
- A counsellor's ethical and legal responsibilities
- Ethics of dual-role relationships
- Ethical problem solving
- Referral procedures, and
- The need for professional development.
Unit 22 - Contemporary Counselling Issues
The unit provides the opportunity to understand the process of research
and undertake a substantial, complex analysis and presentation of a
contemporary issue in counselling (as a research project). The unit
covers a variety of areas including:
- Types of research methods
- How to plan, conduct and write up research
- Evaluating a contemporary counselling issue
- Presentation of an argument that encompasses theory/
models/ principles/ assumptions/ practice in counselling, and
- Preparation for employment as a counsellor.
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