Content

As counsellors we are the instrument of our work. Self-knowledge is therefore vital if we are to come alongside clients in an altruistic and compassionate way. Even so, we are not alone in our work. Colleagues, clinical supervisors, employers, the profession at-large, and the community all influence how we practice. You must therefore begin to shape your professional identity recognising the various privileges and responsibilities you hold. As you will be privileged to sit with clients at their most vulnerable, and hear the most intimate details of their lives, your responsibilities are unsurprisingly significant. A key responsibility to clients is the ability to create a “safe space” for their lived experience (e.g., trauma). To yourself it is the practice of ongoing critical and compassionate self-reflection to enhance empathy, and minimise the chance of compassion fatigue or burnout. And to the profession/community there is the responsibility to submit to accountability processes (e.g., regular supervision) and undertake on-going self-care. This unit will teach you how to engage the various facets of professional practice as the foundation for an effective career.

Unit code: CO1002Z

Unit status: Approved (Minor revision)

Points: 18.0

Unit level: Undergraduate Level 1

Unit discipline: Counselling

Proposing College: School of Professional Practice - Counselling

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Learning outcomes

1.

Begin to articulate their known and hidden motivations to work as counsellors; describe how they may be vulnerable to client transference and their own counter-transference; name their commonly used defense mechanisms; name their strengths/weaknesses; and become aware of the extent to which altruistic practice is possible.

2.

Orientate themselves within a dynamic profession characterised as multi-facetted, collaborative, and evolving.

3.

Articulate community expectations of a member of the “helping professions”.

4.

Begin to form a professional identity.

Pedagogy

Transformative Learning

Indicative Bibliography

  1. Becker, H. (2017). Sociological work. Routledge.
  2. Campbell, J. (1993). Myths to live by. Penguin Random House Australia.
  3. Coorey, A. (n.d.). Australian consumer law: The comprehensive guide. Jurisprudentia.
  4. Jung, C. (1999). Man and his symbols. Bantam Dell.
  5. McAdams, D. (1997). The stories we live by: Personal myths and the making of the self. Guilford Press.
  6. Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. (2017). A brief guide to the final report. C’wealth of Australia.
  7. Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. (2017). A brief guide to the final report – Children and young people. C’wealth of Australia.
  8. Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. (2017). A brief guide to the final report – Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. C’wealth of Australia.
  9. Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. (2017). A brief guide to the final report - Disability. C’wealth of Australia.
  10. Ulatowski, J., & van Zyl, L. (2021). Virtue, narrative, and self. Routledge.

Assessment

Type Description Word count Weight (%)
Skeleton Argument

For 5 different module “Activities” across the unit provide either: (1) a response of approx. 100 words to the question posed; or (2) a response of approx. 100 words to another student’s post. Each response will be marked as satisfactory or unsatisfactory.

500 5.0
Personal Reflection

For 5 different module “Reflection questions” across the unit provide either: (1) a response of approx. 100 words to the question posed; or (2) a response of approx. 100 words to another student’s post. Each response will be marked as satisfactory or unsatisfactory.

500 5.0
Skeleton Argument

Identify a small number of "master counsellors". Use Youtube to observe their way of being. What then are the core characteristics of a great counsellor?

300 20.0
Portfolio

Collate a folio of documents pertaining to: (1) the professional ethics of counsellors; (2) national practice standards for mental health professionals; (3) employer OH&S obligations in your state; (4) privacy law including mandated reporting guidelines in your state. Now summarise your responsibilities to: your clients; employer; your professional body; and to the community. In addition, what obligations do these others hold toward you?

1000 30.0
Autobiographical exercise

Consider your own "self-story". In so much as you feel comfortable: (1) explore what motivates you to be a counsellor including your personal strengths; (2) name your core values; (3) name any personal “blind spots” or weaknesses you may sense, or have been told about; and (4) discuss what hampers you in being altruistic towards others.

1700 40.0
Approvals

Unit approved for the University of Divinity by Prof Albert Haddad on 13 Oct, 2023

Unit record last updated: 2023-10-13 12:34:57 +1100