Graduate Diploma of Counselling (Child, Youth & Family Therapy)

Study UniSQ’s Graduate Diploma of Counselling (Child, Youth and Family Therapy), develop your expertise and make a real difference in families’ lives. Gain the required knowledge to work in relationship, family, child and youth counselling, as well as child abuse prevention and intervention.

1. Apply a core body of knowledge, including contemporary theories and models central to counselling assessment, and treatment.
2. Effectively utilise a range of advanced interpersonal, written, oral and digital literacy skills appropriate for communicating with diverse audiences including clients and professionals.
3. Apply critical reasoning, problem solving, and professional and ethical judgement with initiative to identify and resolve a range of therapeutic, professional, legal and ethical practice issues.
4. Consolidate theory and practice within an integrative framework to effectively provide counselling within diverse cultural and practice contexts and client groups.
5. Utilise relevant research literature, methodologies and findings to inform practice development and decision-making processes.

Study the Graduate Diploma of Counselling and gain the advanced knowledge and expertise to prepare for, or extend, your practices in a range of specialist counselling areas. Fulfil educational requirements towards eligibility for membership with the Australian Counselling Association. Within the Child, Youth and Family Therapy specialisation you will develop your expertise and make a real difference in families’ lives. Gain the required knowledge to work in relationship, family, child and youth counselling, as well as child abuse prevention and intervention. Further study pathway includes the Master of Counselling, which gives you the opportunity to fulfil your counsellor training or delve deeper into your chosen specialisation.

Recommended study pattern

Year 1 - Semester 1

COU8101 Counselling Skills and Applications

COU8102 Professional Counselling Practice, Identity and Ethics

EDU5325 Child Abuse and Neglect: Intervention, Protection and Prevention

COU8021 Couple and Family Counselling

Year 1 - Semester 2

COU8104 Counselling Frameworks

COU8103 Counselling Issues and Contexts

COU8022 Child and Youth Counselling

Approved Course

Award requirements

Completion of eight (8) units as outlined in the Recommended Study Pattern section.

Choose your subjects

Majors

• Alcohol and Drug Studies
• Child, Youth and Family Therapy
• Foundations of Practice
• Mental Health Counselling

Electives

Approved Course List

COU8006 Group Counselling Process and Practice

EDU5335 Emotional and Behavioural Problems of Children and Adolescents

COU8014 Relapse Prevention

COU8013 Introduction to Psychoactive Drugs

Exit points

• Upon completion of the appropriate 4 units, a student may apply to exit with the Graduate Certificate of Counselling.

As Australia’s #1 university for graduate starting salary (Good Universities Guide, 2022), University of Southern Queensland is the right place to make real progress. Regardless of your education history, your age or your aspirations, at UniSQ you’ll be inspired by quality learning experiences matched with top resources and research. Having delivered distance and online learning for over 40+ years, UniSQ supports you to learn at your own pace—exactly how it suits you.

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QS Ranking 2024:

24

Times Higher Education Ranking 2024:

24

Completion of an Australian university three-year bachelor degree in any area or equivalent.

All students are required to satisfy the applicable English language requirements. For entry to the Graduate Diploma of Counselling (Child, Youth and Family Therapy) program, applicants are required to meet the Category 3 English Language Proficiency requirements.

Exemptions/credit will be assessed based on the USQ Credit and Exemption Procedure.

There are mandatory residential schools held at Ipswich, Springfield or Toowoomba campus, and synchronous mandatory online tutorials for:

• COU8102 Professional Counselling Practice, Identity and Ethics
• COU8103 Counselling Issues and Contexts
• COU8101 Counselling Skills and Applications
• COU8104 Counselling Frameworks
• COU8006 Group Counselling Process and Practice