MA Psychotherapy and Counselling* 2022 curriculum *

Year 3

(Award available for year: Master of Arts)

Learning outcomes

On completion of the programme students should have provided evidence of being able to:
- demonstrate an advanced understanding of concepts, information and techniques informed by knowledge across psychotherapy and counselling;
- exhibit competence in the exercise of generic and psychotherapy and counselling intellectual abilities;
- demonstrate an advanced understanding of techniques applicable to advanced scholarship in psychotherapy and counselling;
- take a proactive and self-reflective role in working and developing professional relationships with others;
- proactively formulate ideas and hypotheses and to develop, implement and execute plans by which to evaluate these;
- critically and creatively evaluate current issues, research and advanced scholarship in psychotherapy and counselling.
- demonstrate critical self and intersubjective awareness as a relational therapist who can relate with openness, and articulate awareness with sensitivity in relationships.
- demonstrate critical awareness of societal inequalities and relations of power, to be aware of power relations in therapy and to prioritise the autonomy and power of clients in therapy and therapists’ responsibility to not use power over clients.

Transferable (key) skills

Masters (taught) 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 (by successfully completing an award and for example by adding psychotherapy and counselling to an existing professional area of expertise)
- evaluating their own achievement and that of others (integral to learning in all modules);
- self-direction and effective decision making in complex and unpredictable situations (integral to all counselling skills modules and working as a professional counsellor);
- independent learning and the ability to work in a way which ensures continuing professional development (integral to all modules, particularly the dissertation module);

Assessment

Achievement for the degree of Master (taught programme) will be assessed by a variety of methods in accordance with the learning outcomes of the modules specified for the year/programme and will include:
- evidencing an ability to conduct independent in-depth enquiry within counselling and psychotherapy;
- demonstrating the ability to apply breadth and/or depth of knowledge to psychotherapy and counselling;
- drawing on a range of perspectives on psychotherapy and counselling;
- evaluating and criticising received opinion;
- making reasoned judgements whilst understanding the limitations on judgements made in the absence of complete data.