Graduate Certificate in Mental Health Counselling
GCMH
The Graduate Certificate in Mental Health will develop your knowledge and skills in mental health practice, with a focus on applying counselling skills for mental health and wellbeing in a broad range of contexts and sectors.
The Graduate Certificate in Mental Health Counselling will develop your knowledge and skills in mental health practice, with a focus on applying counselling skills for mental health and wellbeing in a broad range of contexts and sectors. You will gain understanding and knowledge of contemporary issues and diverse populations, contextualised to mental health settings.
Our program is approved for FEE-HELP and is delivered online.
You can apply for entry into the Graduate Certificate in Mental Health Counselling if you have successfully completed an undergraduate (Bachelor) degree in any field.
FEE-HELP is a loan scheme for eligible students to pay their tuition (subject) fees.
Pay your subject fees direct to the institute each semester for each subject in which you are enrolled.
Split Payments. This means you can pay a portion of your subject fees yourself, and the remaining portion using FEE-HELP (if eligible).
Pay via Credit Card or Direct Debit.
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Course Recognition
Why study our Graduate Certificate in Mental Health Counselling
Our Graduate Certificate in Mental Health Counselling provides a flexible and affordable alternative to traditional tertiary education.
Career ready
A specialist graduate course is your chance to step up with advanced knowledge in a focused area of counselling practice. These qualifications give you real-world, immediately applicable expertise to enhance your current role or prepare you for future study — putting you on a clear pathway if you decide to pursue full counselling qualifications later on.
Extremely applicable
Our specialist graduate courses are designed for professionals who want to elevate their impact. You’ll gain powerful knowledge that integrates seamlessly into your career — helping you better support others, deepen client communication, and stand out as a specialist in your field.
Counselling education specialists
We believe you're better off learning from a specialist than a generalist. Many training providers deliver courses across a variety of industries. At AIPC, we prefer to concentrate on counselling and community services education.
Flexible learning
With so many demands on our time it can be difficult to fit study in around other commitments, that's why our Graduate Certificate in Mental Health Counselling has been designed to maximise your learning from home where you can progress through your studies in a full-time or part-time pace.
Career ready
A specialist graduate course is your chance to step up with advanced knowledge in a focused area of counselling practice. These qualifications give you real-world, immediately applicable expertise to enhance your current role or prepare you for future study — putting you on a clear pathway if you decide to pursue full counselling qualifications later on.
Extremely applicable
Our specialist graduate courses are designed for professionals who want to elevate their impact. You’ll gain powerful knowledge that integrates seamlessly into your career — helping you better support others, deepen client communication, and stand out as a specialist in your field.
Counselling education specialists
We believe you're better off learning from a specialist than a generalist. Many training providers deliver courses across a variety of industries. At AIPC, we prefer to concentrate on counselling and community services education.
Flexible learning
With so many demands on our time it can be difficult to fit study in around other commitments, that's why our Graduate Certificate in Mental Health Counselling has been designed to maximise your learning from home where you can progress through your studies in a full-time or part-time pace.
Course Outline
Prerequisite: NIL, EFTSL: 0.125
This unit provides students with the theoretical grounding and fundamental elements of counselling practice through an integration of counselling processes and skills. Students will learn about the importance of the therapeutic alliance and develop discrete micro-counselling skills with an emphasis on relationship development and change facilitation. Students will be supported to explore and reflect on their own values and beliefs and how these may affect the counselling relationship and process.
Prerequisite: NIL, EFTSL: 0.125
This unit discusses the importance of ethical and legal frameworks and the obligations of the counsellor within the therapeutic context. Students will examine confidentiality and other core ethical principles with consideration of culture and identity within an Australian context. Record keeping, note taking and general client management are included to ensure student understanding of these legal and procedural elements.
Prerequisite: NIL, EFTSL: 0.125
In this unit students will gain an understanding of the rights of mental health consumers and their careers, and how to optimise the participation of consumers in the services developed for their care and support. This unit seeks to assist counselling practitioners wanting to work in the mental health sector, by developing their knowledge and understanding of the factors that govern the scope of practice of mental health professionals.
Prerequisite: NIL, EFTSL: 0.125
This unit examines the guiding principles of a recovery-oriented counselling approach to mental illness. Students will critically examine the key principles of recovery-orientated mental health including recognition of the uniqueness of the individual, real choices, attitudes and rights, dignity and respect, partnership, and communication. Students will use strength-based approaches including recovery orientated cognitive therapy.
This course is for the development of specialist knowledge and skills enhancement and does not lead to accreditation or registration as a generalist or specialist Counsellor.
Below are the upcoming intake periods for the Graduate Certificate in Mental Health Counselling.
Trimester | Commences | Census | Residential School | End Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Term 1, 2026 | 2nd Feb 2026 | 16th Feb 2026 | - | 5th Apr 2026 |
Term 2, 2026 | 20th Apr 2026 | 4th May 2026 | - | 21st Jun 2026 |
Term 3, 2026 | 13th Jul 2026 | 27th Jul 2026 | - | 13th Sept 2026 |
Term 4, 2026 | 5th Oct 2026 | 19th Oct 2026 | - | 6th Dec 2026 |
Course | Year | Tuition Fee per unit | Total Course Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
Graduate Certificate in Mental Health Counselling (4 units) | 2026 | $2,990 each | $11,960 |
On your Application Form, you chose one course payment option to pay for your course. You are able to:
Option 1: Pay for your course using FEE-HELP (if you are eligible).
Option 2: Pay for each term of your studies upfront.
Option 3: Pay for a portion of your fees upfront and the remaining portion using FEE-HELP.
If your application is successful and you accept your placement, the investment for each unit is payable via the following methods after accepting your placement:
If you are choosing to pay all or part of your unit fees through FEE-HELP, you will need to return your Request for FEE-HELP Assistance form for the term by the due date indicated in your term enrolment letter. You can find out more about FEE-HELP from the following publication: Fee Help Information – 2026
Payment by credit card, cheque or money order for the term by the due date indicated in your term enrolment letter (usually within two weeks of the term commencing).
If you are paying some of your fees yourself and some through FEE-HELP, then returning your Request for FEEHELP Assistance form and payment of the remaining amount by credit card, cheque or money order by the due date of the term.
If accepted into the course, you nominate your preferred payment method on your Confirmation of Acceptance form to confirm your place in the course. Please note that the unit fees, and any other associated fees, are current only for the units in which you are presently enrolled, and can be reviewed and changed at the Institute’s discretion for future terms.
Subjects where credit is granted
Students are able to apply for credit of previous studies and experience as described in the RPL and Credit Transfer Policy and are not required to pay the unit fee for each unit in which credit is granted.
Additional and Non-Tuition Costs
The following additional and/or non-tuition costs apply:
Current textbook lists are found on the Higher Education Learning Portal which can be accessed upon enrolment. Students are encouraged to submit their online textbook order through Booktopia prior to commencing their studies for the trimester. Students are able to source textbooks from other suppliers if they choose. Students are able to choose from textbooks or e-books, depending on availability, and further information is provided each trimester as to where these can be sourced from.
Students have access to comprehensive online library of texts and resources.
External students borrowing hard copy library resources will need to pay for postage to return the borrowed item/s to the Institute at Locked Bag 15, Fortitude Valley 4006. Please refer to the Australia Post postage calculator for current indicative pricing: http://auspost.com.au/apps/postage-calculator.html.
For students living overseas, please check postage costs with your chosen postal or courier service. Overdue items are charged at $1 per day until the item is returned.
Students are able to apply for Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) or Credit Transfer to receive credit for one or more units** of the Graduate Certificate in Mental Health Counselling (up to a maximum of 2 units).
This enhances student progression through the course and provides recognition for students entering the course with relevant prior studies and work experience. Students granted RPL or credit are not disadvantaged in achieving the expected learning outcomes of the course, and the integrity of the qualification must be maintained.
RPL recognises that students, due to relevant life and work experiences, may already possess the requisite skills and knowledge for unit/s in the Bachelor course. Students who have been working within a counselling environment for a number of years are able to apply for recognition of this prior learning or experience. Exemption can be applied for one or more course units** (up to a maximum of 2 units).
Assessing credit from prior experience takes into account the authenticity, currency, quality, relevance, transferability and comparability of the experience to the requirements of the unit for which credit is being applied.
Credit Transfer
Credit Transfer refers to obtaining credit towards another course on the basis of having completed previous study of an equivalent subject or unit. Students who have completed similar units to those included in the Graduate Certificate in Mental Health Counselling are welcome to apply for Credit Transfer. Students who have completed or partially completed another counselling course are particularly encouraged to apply for Credit Transfer.
Credit will not normally be granted for formal study completed more than 10 years prior to application unless there is evidence of continued relevance of this study for the course towards which credit is sought. Credit is granted where there is substantial overlap with the content and/or learning outcomes of the unit for which credit is being applied.
When assessing credit based on prior study, consideration is given to the objectives of the course, methods of delivery and assessment, admission requirements, course durations, the breadth and depth of the course material, practical training requirements, and experience requirements.
**Students can only obtain credit for a total maximum of 2 units inclusive of whether this credit has been obtained via RPL or credit transfer.
Below is a list of policies and procedures that apply to students enrolled in the Graduate Certificate in Mental Health Counselling.
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Zero Risk
We understand that sometimes you may find yourself in a situation where you are unable to continue with your studies. If you need to withdraw from a subject, simply follow our formal withdrawal process prior your census date and you will not be charged the subject fee.
Frequently Asked Questions
This course suits professionals who regularly support people with relationship difficulties in their work and want formal training in how to respond. Counsellors, social workers, psychologists, welfare officers and pastoral care staff all work with people whose relationships are under strain. You must have a bachelor’s degree in any field to qualify for entry, so what you studied won’t rule you out. Bear in mind that the certificate builds specialist expertise rather than qualifying you to practise as a counsellor.
We designed this course for practitioners who want to work in the mental health sector or already do. Nurses, social workers, welfare officers, community services workers and support staff all work with people experiencing mental health challenges on a regular basis. Entry is open to anyone who has completed a bachelor's degree in any field. The course develops specialist knowledge and doesn’t lead to accreditation or registration as a counsellor.
We teach this graduate certificate entirely online, so you can study from any part of Australia without attending a campus. You can start in February, April, July or October, so you won’t wait long to begin. Full-time study covers the four units in six months, but part-time study is available as well if you’ve got other commitments.
Yes. The certificate adds mental health specialisation to counselling skills you already have, particularly around recovery-orientated practice and the scope of practice rules operating in the sector. Professional associations set their own rules on what counts towards continuing professional development and how many hours each activity contributes, so check the current requirements with yours before you enrol.
The certificate strengthens roles that already involve supporting people with mental health concerns. Mental health support workers, community services workers, nurses, welfare officers and case managers can apply this training to their existing positions. In any of these roles, you need to know where your scope of practice ends and what rights the people you support have. To practise as a counsellor you’ll need our Bachelor of Counselling or Master of Counselling, both of which qualify you for Australian Counselling Association membership.
Yes. Our Master of Counselling is the natural next step as it qualifies you to practise as a counsellor. It includes a mental health counselling elective that extends what you cover here. You’ll already meet the requirement, since a bachelor’s degree in any field gets you into both. Apply for credit transfer when you enrol and our admissions team will review what your certificate qualifies for.
Consider this course if you already support people living with mental illness and want a formal grounding in how the sector works. Recovery-orientated practice is the main framework here, which means working with what a person’s strengths, preferences and support needs rather than defining them primarily through diagnosis. You can apply that approach wherever you work, and six months of part-time study fits around it without you leaving the job.
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