Part Time or Distance Learning Course in Counseling

Laydee

Hi,
I'm new here but I figured that rather than Googling for hours & getting nowhere that here might have more answers.
I am interested in doing a Part Time or Distance Learning Course in Counseling.
At first I wanted to do psychology or Psychotherapy but due to Parenting commitments & lack of funds I think Counseling might be a safer place to start.
Have any of you done a Degree course in Counseling part time or distance learning?
All advice welcome. Thanks.

MysticalSoul

Personally, I would not touch a distance learning course in counselling with a barge pole. Any reputable course would have hands on experience, as an integral part of the course, and it is not possible to get practice in with your peers in a distance learning course.

paperclip2

By and large I agree with MysticSoul, especially with regards to the Counselling courses via distance learning. However there are some good part-time options. Have a look at the IACP website for courses they accredit; http://www.irish-counselling.ie/index.php/recognised-training-courses

The National Counselling Institute also offer some HETAC accredited degrees in counselling and Levels 7 & 8. I wouldn't touch some of their other courses though.
http://www.ncii.ie/course_list.htm

Addiction Counselling training is available here, agin not all the courses are to the same level: http://www.addiction.ie/1%20BA%20Applied%20Addiction%20Studies.htm and here http://www.mqi.ie/page.php?id=37

There are other providers, btw, those mentioned above are only to get you started. You can also look at qualifax http://www.qualifax.ie

One of the most important things about any training course in this field is the level of support it provides to students. Most of the well regarded courses have some form of requirement that students need to undergo a certain number of hours of therapy as part of the training. This is an important aspect especially in part-time courses where you may only have limited class contact time.

Always check the certification. If it isn't IACP recognised then I would be looking for HETAC, NUI or some form of third level or professional accreditation. Counselling is an unregulated profession, so the quality of your qualification is doubly important, especially to your clients.

Good luck with your search OP.

MysticalSoul

I misread the title, whoops, thought you were only looking for distance learning, and not part-time as well. I am in my final year at PCI College, which has been a fantastic experience www.pcicollege.ie. The Tivoli Institute in Dun Laoghaire is also supposed to be a fab course.

IslandFella

The courses offered by NCII are NOT recognised by the IACP body or any other body except HETAC. I know that most people look for a IACP registered counsellor if they are seeking services.

IACP recognition is extremely important in this field.

Can anyone comment on this? I dont see much discussion on the subject.

jender_bender_

Hi, I was just wondering about the NCII accreditation....according to their website you can work on completion of the level 8 degree, but i'm wondering if its worth doing? i have a psych degree and cant figure out the best way into counselling, any help would be really appreciated, thanks!

paperclip2

jender_bender_ wrote: »

Hi, I was just wondering about the NCII accreditation....according to their website you can work on completion of the level 8 degree, but i'm wondering if its worth doing? i have a psych degree and cant figure out the best way into counselling, any help would be really appreciated, thanks!

If your undergrad degree is PSI recognised you could apply to do one of the postgrad counselling psychology courses in UCC, Trinity or Uni of Ulster. It would be quicker than doing a second undergrad qualification.

lookingaround

There is a significant danger here that misinformation may be spread in relation to accreditation of counselling programmes. There is a big difference between professional association accreditation and academic accreditation. It has been suggested unfailry that courses offered by NCII are unaccredited. That is in fact untrue. NCII is both a college and an a professional body. It is most confusing for people who want to undertake programmes or avail of counselling services but if I can provide some clarity, it might help, There are many professional accrediting bodies in Ireland, In fact I think there are approx 25 such bodies, all of which have their own professional standards. That includes NCII. It is quiet wrong to say that IACP is the only accredition body. In time it will be more important to have academic accreditation, which in Ireland is granted by either the Universities or HETAC at degree level. NCII programmes are both professionally accredited by NCII and academically accredited and awarded by HETAC.

Laydee

Wow, what a difference a year makes, forgot that I'd ever even thought about doing counselling

sallyann23

lookingaround wrote: »

There is a significant danger here that misinformation may be spread in relation to accreditation of counselling programmes. There is a big difference between professional association accreditation and academic accreditation. It has been suggested unfailry that courses offered by NCII are unaccredited. That is in fact untrue. NCII is both a college and an a professional body. It is most confusing for people who want to undertake programmes or avail of counselling services but if I can provide some clarity, it might help, There are many professional accrediting bodies in Ireland, In fact I think there are approx 25 such bodies, all of which have their own professional standards. That includes NCII. It is quiet wrong to say that IACP is the only accredition body. In time it will be more important to have academic accreditation, which in Ireland is granted by either the Universities or HETAC at degree level. NCII programmes are both professionally accredited by NCII and academically accredited and awarded by HETAC.

This is completely misleading. It is not a positive thing that NCII both runs and accredits its own courses professionally. They have HETAC accreditation but no other professional body will touch them (not least because they take kids straight from the CAO) or their graduates apart from the one they set up and operate themselves. No other reputable course has to recognise itself!!!! The whole idea of a professional body recognising a course is for an outside and objective organisation to oversee standards. Surely their DIY professional body will make people deluded enough to join their courses suspicious. If not I give up! I should know, I bought into the NCII propaganda and had to get out and start again!

Larianne

Laydee wrote: »

Wow, what a difference a year makes, forgot that I'd ever even thought about doing counselling

Yes, was wondering if it was the same Laydee.

lookingaround

sallyann23 wrote: »

This is completely misleading. It is not a positive thing that NCII both runs and accredits its own courses professionally. They have HETAC accreditation but no other professional body will touch them (not least because they take kids straight from the CAO) or their graduates apart from the one they set up and operate themselves. No other reputable course has to recognise itself!!!! The whole idea of a professional body recognising a course is for an outside and objective organisation to oversee standards. Surely their DIY professional body will make people deluded enough to join their courses suspicious. If not I give up! I should know, I bought into the NCII propaganda and had to get out and start again!

Sallyann, it is not completely misleading, It outlines the position as it is, I don't believe I took either a positive or negative stance in relation to this issue. I explained it in what I hope is a balanced manner. You are correct in relation to reputable courses not 'recognising themselves' - In that regard NCII rely on HETAC to accredit the academic quality of their programmes. PROFESSIOAL accreditation essentially means that the relevant professional body recognises the course as a sufficient basis for commencing the journey towards full professional membership. these are very different things.

I find the last section of your post disturbing. IT is very disbarraging towards those who exercise their right of choice ( and I a always assumed that counsellors supported people to make informed choices, rather than denigrade them for doing so, but perhaps I am incorrect on that) - referring to the many hundreds of people who have made an option to either study with or become professionally accredited by any professional body as 'deluded' is somewhat disrespectful in my view.

Interestingly you say that you bought into the NCII propoganda and then got out and had to start again. somewhat self revealing I suspect, perhaps you should reflect on it a bit in relation to your own choices rather than attributing blame to others??

little lady

So I was thinking of doing a course in counselling, but from your posts I'm confused as to wheather the courses and qualifications provided by NCII are recognised or not? No point in spending money and time on a course that the qualification is not recognised.

lookingaround

little lady wrote: »

So I was thinking of doing a course in counselling, but from your posts I'm confused as to wheather the courses and qualifications provided by NCII are recognised or not? No point in spending money and time on a course that the qualification is not recognised.

Little Lady,

I suspect nobody here would blame you for being confused. The issue of recognition isimpoortant as is the issue of employability. You should check out all of the programmes and all of the colleges, but I would be concerned that you would dismiss any programme or course or college on the basis of what you have read here!! The qualifications from NCII and from UCD and from PSI and from DBS and others are all recognised, the fact that people on boards differ in terms of how they value programmes or elements of them should inform your decision but it should not determine that decision alone!! The various programmes are professionally recognised by different bodies and some programmes are academically recognised while others are not, but this isn't the case in relation to accredited third level colleges, either independent ones or universities. As you referred to NCII, it fits both categories, but your decision to study with them or not should be your own. I hope you make the correct decision for yourself

positive5

Hey I think "looking around" is on the payroll of NCII.