Master of Rehabilitation Counselling

The Master of Rehabilitation Counselling is designed to teach and assess the established and developing body of knowledge required for rehabilitation counselling practice in Australasia and internationally, covering all of the knowledge and skills domain established in the most recent (2010) Australasian rehabilitation counselling competency study, as well as broad human services knowledge. Graduates of the Master of Rehabilitation Counselling will demonstrate multi-disciplinary knowledge about:

1. various systems influences on rehabilitation counselling and human services practice
2. the role of, methods for and applicability of research within human services and research questions relevant to the health and human service professions
3. human behaviour, the nature of social inequality, and the implications of diversity, disability and chronic illness and be able to work effectively with people from diverse and disadvantaged groups
4. workplace health and safety practices, procedures and legislation
5. the roles of other professions in the same field and inter-professional practice
6. the relationships between personal, professional, organisational and sector values
7. the roles and functions of organisations within the rehabilitation counselling and human service sectors
8. the principles of ethical practice applicable to rehabilitation counselling, human services, disability and mental health.

Graduates of the Master of Rehabilitation Counselling will demonstrate discipline specific knowledge about:

1. rehabilitation counselling professional practice including: policy and legislation; disability, Master of Rehabilitation Counselling Document Number 2013/0007071 Page 2 rehabilitation and psychosocial theory; and current professional literature
2. rehabilitation case management including: principles and processes; funding and regulatory requirements; and policy and legislation
3. vocational rehabilitation including: vocational assessment tools and qualitative evaluation processes; career development theories; and vocational training, job matching and placement processes
4. counselling including the psychosocial aspects of behaviour and theoretical frameworks relevant to counselling
5. workplace disability/injury case management including: functional implications of injury and disability; and return to work assessment, planning and management
6. workplace intervention and program management including: injury and disability prevention; and injury and disability program management.

Rehabilitation counsellors are allied health professionals who work within a counselling and case management framework to assist people who are experiencing disability, a health condition or social disadvantage to participate in employment or education, or to live independently and access services in the community. In this program you will gain the knowledge and skills needed to work as a rehabilitation counsellor in government, insurance, workers compensation and motor accident rehabilitation, disability employment services, the National Injury Insurance Scheme (NIIS), the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) (or equivalent internationally), and private and not-for-profit rehabilitation services.

You will learn about vocational evaluation, job placement, injury management, disability studies, applied counselling and research methods. You will also undertake a supervised practicum placement, which will give you the opportunity to apply theory to practice.

Additionally, you will complete a supervised dissertation or choose from elective courses in areas such as workplace health and safety, mental health, entrepreneurial and negotiation skills, disability and ageing studies. This will allow you to complete specialist courses and research relevant to your interests in a particular area of rehabilitation counselling practice.

Recommended study pattern

The program is offered full-time and part-time via off-campus study only.

As a guide, core subjects in this degree can include: 

• Applied Counselling
• Foundations of Research Inquiry
• Dissertation
• Introduction to Rehabilitation Counselling

Plus there’s a selection of electives to choose from. As part of your application, you’ll be guided through how to get the right degree structure in place for you.

Award requirements

To be eligible for the award of Master of Rehabilitation Counselling (MRehabCounsel), a student must acquire 120 credit points as prescribed below:

• gain 80 credit points for core courses, including 10 credit points for the field placement
• gain 40 credit points for listed electives
• OR gain 40 credit points for the dissertation component.

To be eligible for the award of Master of Rehabilitation Counselling (MRehabCounsel), a student admitted with 40 credit points of advanced standing must acquire 80 credit points as prescribed below:

This degree may be awarded with Distinction where a student achieves a minimum program GPA of 6.5 with no failed courses. The words "This award was achieved with Distinction" will be recorded on the testamur

With a network of campuses spanning three cities in South East Queensland, Griffith University is committed to progressive multidisciplinary teaching and research and a valuable online provider with Open Universities Australia. Already attracting students from over one hundred countries, Griffith's dedication to academic excellence is available across Australia through OUA.

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To be eligible for admission to the Master of Rehabilitation Counselling, an applicant must have completed:

• a Bachelor degree from an allied health field such as vocational rehabilitation, psychology, exercise science, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, occupational health nursing, human services, social work, industrial relations, human resource management, occupational health and safety and successful interview with the Program Director
• OR a Bachelor Honours degree, Graduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma or Masters from a different discipline area and successful interview with the Program Director
• OR the Graduate Certificate in Case Management (3050) or a Graduate Certificate or Graduate Diploma qualification in an allied health field such as vocational rehabilitation, psychology, exercise science physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, occupational health nursing, human services, social work, industrial relations, human resource management, occupational health and safety with a GPA of at least 5.0 and successful interview with the Program Director (successful applicants will be eligible for 40 credit points of advanced standing).

English language requirements apply to International applicants and other applicants whose previous study was undertaken in a language other than English. The minimum English language requirements for such applicants for entry to this program are as follows:

• A minimum overall band score of 6.5 on IELTS (Academic) with no sub-score of less than 6.0
• OR a minimum score of 575 on TOEFL
• OR an internet-based (iBT) TOEFL score of 79 (no sub-score less than 19)
• OR no score less than 3+ in each skill of the ISLPR (conducted by ISLPR Language Services only)
• OR a minimum overall score of 176 (no score less than 169) on C1 Advanced (formerly Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English) or C2 Proficiency (formerly Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English)
• OR an overall score of 58 in the Pearson Test of English (Academic) with no score less than 50.

English test results must be no more than two years old.

Students who successfully complete the Direct Entry Program (DEP) will satisfy the English Language requirements for this Griffith degree.

Reduce the time it takes to finish your degree. You can apply to Griffith to recognise your prior learning, including: 

• Formal learning through courses completed at uni and TAFE. 
• Informal learning through workplace experience or volunteer training. 
• Non-formal learning through social experiences and hobbies. 

There are placements associated with this program and before undertaking professional experience placements, all students in this program are required to have completed the following by the end of their first trimester of study:

• Vaccinations and Health Tests
• Licenses and Certificates
• Online Training
• Health Placement Requirements

Students should refer to the checklist of professional practice requirements for their Health discipline on the Fit for Professional Practice website for full details of the requirements regarding professional placement to ensure that they meet eligibility for placement.

Work-integrated learning is established in the core course 7313AHS Rehabilitation Counselling Practicum which is completed in the final trimester of study. Students are required to complete 200 hours (minimum) on-site supervised practice in a suitable rehabilitation counselling practice context. Students will be required to meet requirements for commencing 7313AHS in consultation with Master of Rehabilitation Counselling program staff prior to their final trimester of study.