Open University Foundation degree in Counselling

Pablo Sanchez

Evening all,

I recently began the first module in the OU's Psycology degree but have since noticed that they offer a foundation degree in Counselling.

I would like eventually to help clients with their issues in a private practice but is it better to go along the psycology path to do so or is it better to study counselling/psycotherapy and take it from there.

Is counselling/psychotherapy a watered down version of psychology or simply an area more focused directly on practice?

And finally does the counselling degree actually qualify one to practice in Ireland?

Any thoughts and opinions are greatly appreciated!

Odysseus

Pablo Sanchez wrote: »

Evening all,

I recently began the first module in the OU's Psycology degree but have since noticed that they offer a foundation degree in Counselling.

I would like eventually to help clients with their issues in a private practice but is it better to go along the psycology path to do so or is it better to study counselling/psycotherapy and take it from there.

Is counselling/psychotherapy a watered down version of psychology or simply an area more focused directly on practice?

And finally does the counselling degree actually qualify one to practice in Ireland?

Any thoughts and opinions are greatly appreciated!

At the moment anyone can call themselves a counsellor, getting the work is a tad different though, and this will change in the coming years.

I work as a counsellor and therapist but people who ask me about the best road to take I tell them to go the psychology road. What ever road you go, if you want to be good at it, you will end doing a lot more training than your degree, and a psychology degree will open more doors at post grad level than a counselling or psychotherapy one imo.

The question to ask is what professional bodies will the counselling degree enable you to join for example IACP or other such body. Very few people work only in private practice, they also do agency work or teach. So whilst you have private work in mind, I would suggest you look at making yourself as employable as possible. I know lots of trained counsellors who cannot get any private work at all, they are working for free in various areas trying to get paid work. I'm not saying that a person cannot make in private practice, but it is a lot more difficult than a lot of potential student think, hence my make yourself as employable as possible comment.

Its a long road whatever way you go, it may seem that psychotherapy/counselling is a quicker route to paid work, as a lot of places have a Dip as a entery level qualification, people can be tempted to jump for that and start earning quicker as oppossed to a longer training road. Then once you in employment it's harder to do certain training courses because your employed. I'm about to start another masters in Sept, whilst I want to do this course, tbh there where others that I wanted to do, but due to work restrictions I couldn't, so if you can make the most of the time you have to study before you start.

Psychology and counselling/psychotherapy are different rather than watered down. In most cases as a psychotherapist/counsellor your focus is on the clinical application of your training, yes there are counselling or clinical psychologists, but psychology is much broader than the clinical aspect, educational, research etc.

Are you considering jumping ship to the counselling degree? You said you want to work in private practice is there a particular school of counselling that you are interested in or see yourself as working in? Anyway I hope that was of some help.

Freiheit

Apparently only the Intrductory course is available to Irish residents, not the actual degree. I'm still likely to do that much though.