PGCert Systemic Practice

Year 2

(Award available for year: Postgraduate Certificate)

Learning outcomes

On completion of the programme students should have shown evidence of being able to:
- demonstrate in-depth specialist knowledge of techniques relevant to the discipline or to demonstrate an advanced understanding of concepts, information and techniques informed by knowledge across, or in aspects at, the forefront of the discipline;
- exhibit competence in the exercise of generic and subject-specific intellectual abilities;
- demonstrate an advanced understanding of techniques applicable to their own research, advanced scholarship or area of specific interest within the broader discipline;
- take a proactive and self-reflective role in working and to develop professional relationships with others;
- proactively formulate ideas and hypotheses and to evaluate these;
- evaluate current issues and research in the discipline.

At the end of the second year students should be able to demonstrate:
- a familiarity with a broad range of literature relating to family therapy and systemic practice, which should include more recent publications;
- an ability to evaluate theory critically and to explore ideas and their application to different families;
- an ability to describe differences and similarities between approaches in systemic therapy including the theory of change;
- an ability to show a commitment to actively promote ethical, anti-discriminatory practice and to highlight and critique culturally-based assumptions;
- a familiarity with the AFT Code of Ethics and Practice and its implications for practice;
- a capacity to use the consultation process in relation to systemic practice;
- an ability to evaluate critically some areas of relevant research;
- further development in their awareness of personal development processes, and an ability to begin to use them in self-reflexive ways in their practice;
- an ability to appropriately adapt skills and techniques to their own personal area of practice;
- an ability to discuss the impact of key legislative frameworks covering the three jurisdictions of children, mental health and community care on systemic practice;
- knowledge of skills required in convening and engaging a range of client groups and working with them systemically;
- an ability to discuss systemic practice in both oral and written forms.

Transferable (key) skills

Masters (Taught), Postgraduate Diploma & Postgraduate Certificate students will have had the opportunity to acquire the following abilities as defined in the modules specified for the programme:

- the skills necessary to undertake a higher research degree and/or for employment in a higher capacity in industry or area of professional practice;
- evaluating their own achievement and that of others;
- self direction and effective decision making in complex and unpredictable situations;
- independent learning and the ability to work in a way which ensures continuing professional development;
- critical engagement in the development of professional/disciplinary boundaries and norms.

Assessment

Achievement for the Postgraduate Diploma and Postgraduate Certificate will be assessed by a variety of methods in accordance with the learning outcomes of the programme and will involve the achievement of the students in:

- demonstrating the ability to apply breadth and/or depth of knowledge to a complex specialist area;
- drawing on a range of perspectives on an area of study;
- evaluating received opinion;
- making sound judgements whilst understanding the limitations on judgements made in the absence of complete data.