Are All Counselling Courses The Same?

You may be in the process of looking for a counselling course in Devon and Cornwall and wonder where to go. There are so many providers all offering different things. It can be a bit of a mystery to know which course is right for you.

Here at Devon and Cornwall Counselling Hub, we want to help you find the right course for you, even if that is not with ourselves. We aim to offer an impartial service that ensures you get the training that will help you on your individual career journey. If you would like to discuss any aspect of selecting a course, you can rest assured that we will help guide you through the mystery of selecting the right course.

To help you though, we offer this blog article that explores what different courses offer. Do be careful though. Not all courses are offering the same qualification at the end of them.

Level 2 Courses

For example, you might think that all level 2 counselling skills qualification would be the same wouldn't you? Well, unfortunately it is not that simple. You may have come across a Level 2 Award and a Level 2 Certificate course. Generally awards are a lower level qualification than a certificate course. Certificate courses are generally longer in length because they are offer a more robust qualification at the end of them. The shorter the course, the lower the amount of credits that they will have attached to them.

Wait! I hear you say, what's all this about credits? Well, all qualification courses have credits attached to them. The shorter the course, the lower the number of credits, the longer the course, the more credits you earn from completing it. For example, some level 2 award courses will earn you no credits, some are around 5-8 credits, whereas others offer 17 credits. The counselling courses in Devon and Cornwall that we offer have 17 credits as they are accredited by the Counselling and Psychotherapy Central Awarding Body (CPCAB).

Credits are a nationally recognised way of assessing the learning someone does during the academic journey. You collect credits as you complete different courses. The credits you collect along the way, can all add up and be used towards obtaining a degree. We offer, via CPCAB, a unique progression route that helps to make this possible.

Diploma Courses

Level 4 Diploma courses can be equally confusing. Some Level 4 courses carry no credits at all, such as the ones that are quality checked by the National Counselling Society (NCS) some offer as little as 62 credits, whereas others, including ours offer 120. The counselling courses we offer via the CPCAB have among the highest levels of credits available within counselling training.

It really is worth checking who accredits the course you enrol on and how many credits it offers. It could be that you are paying a lot of money for a course that does not offer as much training or as many credits as others.

Some diploma courses are not accredited by a recognised awarding body. Whilst they may offer fantastic tuition, you may not get a nationally recognised qualification at the end of your course.

Some diploma courses include the placement hours within their total number of training time. This may seem appealing as there is less time in the classroom. However, it makes sense that the more training you get, the better counsellor you will be and of course this means that clients will benefit from the additional time you have spent in training. Our course offers 420 classroom hours plus the 100 placement hours. It is worth considering which professional you would rather see, the one who did more or less training.

We offer counselling courses in Plymouth, Devon and Cornwall and all of our courses are accredited by CPCAB, so you can be assured that you are working towards worthwhile and recognised qualifications. We have chosen to work with CPCAB in order to ensure that our learners are getting a great qualification with high standards of teaching for their investment.

If we can answer any of your questions, please get in touch at admin@devonandcornwallcounsellinghub.org Remember, we are happy to help you find a course that suits you, even if that is not one of ours.