Student Info – Practical Assessments

To complete your Diploma of Counselling you will need to undertake several practical elements, each of which forms a part of a Unit or Units. As you work through your course you will notice that a number of your workbooks include a reference to a “Practical Component”. Whenever you see this reference, a practical component must be completed for the unit or units covered in that particular workbook.

The practical components of your course form an important part of your skill development as a Professional Counsellor and are designed to give you the opportunity to apply the theory in counselling practice. You have three options for completing each of the practical components:

1. Attending a seminar is the suggested and most popular option, especially for those students whom live within 100km of a Student Support Centre or location where we hold Institute seminars. There are many benefits to attending live seminars including the opportunity to network with fellow students and practicing and refining your counselling skills in a supportive environment under the guidance of a qualified facilitator. Seminar dates can be found here: www.aipc.net.au/timetables.php.
2. Alternative Assessment – Recorded Demonstration of Counselling Skills. If you are unable to attend a seminar or seminars in person this alternative to seminar attendance requires you to record yourself conducting a series of activities where you demonstrate practical counselling skills and send in a DVD or video of your demonstration. Many of the activities require the assistance of a friend. You can apply for this option by filling and sending a nomination form to your Student Support Centre. Upon receipt of this completed form your Student Support Centre will send you complete and easy-to-follow guidelines and instructions on how to complete your practical component by this option. Note: Students whom live within 100km of a Student Support Centre or seminar location are expected to attend seminars where possible.
3. Alternative Assessment – Private Assessment of Counselling Skills with a Private Assessor. This alternative to seminar attendance allows you to complete your practical assessment on an individual basis with an Institute Private Assessor. The Private Assessor will observe and assess you while you work with a friend/s conducting a series of activities demonstrating practical counselling skills. You can apply for this option by filling and sending a nomination form to your Student Support Centre. Upon receipt of this completed form your Student Support Centre will send you detailed guidelines of the activities that you are required to complete. Note: Whilst the Institute has Private Assessors in rural areas of Australia, if you live in a particularly remote location or overseas please contact your Student Support Centre to discuss whether this option will be viable for you.

Practical Component Pre-requisites

Each of the practical components relates very closely to the practical application of the theory that you complete in your workbooks. So that you can derive maximum benefit from your practical components, you must have already completed the relevant theory before applying it in practice.

To ensure you have covered the relevant theory before you complete a practical element there are pre-requisites workbooks that you must first successfully complete, i.e. you must be marked Competent for the prerequisite workbooks/s before booking in for your seminar or alternative assessment.  Each of the practical elements can be completed by attendance at a seminar or either of the two alternative assessment options.  Each practical is referred to by a topic name.

These are the Workbooks that you must have received back as “Competent” before you can complete each of the practical components:

Practical Component Title (Pre-requisite)

The Counselling Process (Marked Competent in Workbook 1)
Communication Skills I (Marked Competent in Workbook 2)
Communication Skills II  (Marked Competent in Workbook 3)
Counselling Therapies I  (Marked Competent in Workbooks 7 & 8)
Counselling Therapies II (Marked Competent in Workbooks 6 & 9)
Legal and Ethical Frameworks (Marked Competent in Workbook 11)
Family Therapy (Marked Competent in Workbook 14)
Case Management (Marked Competent in Workbook 16)

It is strongly recommended that you complete the required practical components as soon as possible after completing the pre-requisite workbook/s so that development of your practical skills and application of knowledge is consistent with your acquisition of theoretical knowledge from the workbooks.

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