Psychotherapy and Counselling MA

The MA in Psychotherapy and Counselling provides high quality BACP-accredited training, with a strong research focus. It offers an opportunity to critically and creatively evaluate current theory and practice issues. The focus is on theories of therapy that focus on the therapeutic relationship as the crucial factor and students will have the opportunity to learn about various relational theories and are encouraged to learn more about themselves in relationships, to develop their own approach to therapy based on their own values and beliefs.

You’ll benefit from the knowledge of experienced counsellors and psychotherapists, with senior levels of registration on the MA programme. Our teaching staff are also active researchers, with a range of specialisms. You’ll develop the knowledge and skills to conduct independent in-depth research into a complex specialist area. In your final year, our innovative annual student conference gives you chance to share your research with peers.

You’ll learn in a relatively small cohort of students (up to 24) and this will become your learning environment, involving much experiential learning to develop your self- and intersubjective awareness. This small group enables personal support from your peers and tutors to help with the emotional challenges of such learning.

The programme aims to equip you to work as a counsellor/psychotherapist and make independent clinical decisions in a variety of settings including complex and unpredictable situations. Many students also bring a wealth of personal experience that helps them to reflect on a range of human issues. Our excellent relationships with a range of agencies throughout the region will assist you in finding a practice placement.

Admissions Tutor - Rachel Casper r.casper@leeds.ac.uk

Programme Leader - Netalie Shloim n.shloim@leeds.ac.uk

More information

Staff research specialisms include: values and ethics, power and politics, person-centred approaches, phenomenology, reflexivity in research, autoethnography, practitioner-based research, eating disorders, addictions, cross-cultural research, maternal wellbeing and eating behaviours, mother-infant mealtime interactions, transgenerational trauma, the therapeutic alliance, co-occurring traumatic brain injury and drug and alcohol use and developing a head injury speech analysis case finder with embedded artificial intelligence.

Accreditation

MA Psychotherapy and Counselling has received British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) accredited course status which, on successful completion, will allow you to be added to their voluntary assured register of practitioners.

Over the first two years you study nine modules: four theory and four concerned with development as a reflective practitioner, plus research methods. In the third year, you have the opportunity to undertake small-scale research.

The teaching is all on one day each week (either a Tuesday 2023 or Thursday 2022) for all modules except research methods so students can plan work around the teaching. We estimate that 2 and ½ days per week are necessary to complete the requirements of this course (teaching, private study, placement, supervision and personal therapy).

Applicants are given information about the programme curriculum on the website and at interview. This includes information which makes it clear that the MA course is BACP accredited and that, if students exit the course at Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) stage, the PgDip is not BACP accredited they will not be able to say that they have attended an accredited course.

Admissions Tutor - Rachel Casper r.casper@leeds.ac.uk

Programme Leader - Netalie Shloim n.shloim@leeds.ac.uk

The teaching day for the 2022/23 intake will be Thursday.

Course structure

The list shown below represents typical modules/components studied and may change from time to time. Read more in our Terms and conditions.

For more information and a full list of typical modules available on this course, please read Psychotherapy and Counselling MA in the course catalogue

Modules

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3

Learning and teaching

You are encouraged to develop as an independent learner and scholar. Teaching approaches emphasise reflection and reflexivity and encourage you to bring personal and professional experience into discussion as a source of critical wisdom alongside wide reading.

On this course you’ll be taught by our expert academics, from lecturers through to professors. You may also be taught by industry professionals with years of experience, as well as trained postgraduate researchers, connecting you to some of the brightest minds on campus.

Assessment

Assessments include essays, oral presentations, live skills demonstrations, audio recorded extracts from client work, and reports from supervisors and placement mentors.

Entry requirements

A bachelor degree with a 2:1 (hons) in any subject or other proof of your ability to study at Masters level.

It’s essential that students beginning our programme have already completed a level 3 certificate in counselling skills or equivalent, so we can assume this level of practice and knowledge of the professional context of counselling.

The level 3 course or equivalent should include 20-50 hours of practice with other students and tutor feedback.

English Language at GCSE grade C or equivalent, or IELTS overall score 7.

Two satisfactory references, one of which must normally be an academic reference.

A level of maturity associated with personal reflection on a variety of adult and childhood experiences and developed interpersonal skills, to be assessed at interview.

Satisfactory police clearance. We’ll send you a form for this.

Opportunities for the accreditation of prior learning and prior experiential learning exist through the School's credit accumulation and transfer procedures.

Disclosure and barring screening

All successful applicants will also need to pass disclosure and barring screening.

The University has a policy statement on students with criminal records. For the vast majority of students who are resident in the UK the record will be checked via the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).

The DBS check can only include background checks on your time in the UK. A criminal record check from other countries in addition to the UK DBS check may be required. Abroad this may be referred to as a "Certificate of Good Conduct" (CoGC), but the name varies.

Any offer of a place to study Psychotherapy and Counselling MA conditional upon a satisfactory confidential occupational health assessment, which will include a health questionnaire, and if necessary further telephone consultation and/or an appointment with an occupational health clinician. Screening for serious communicable disease, (Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, HIV, tuberculosis (TB) and a review of immunisation status and needs, which includes COVID-19, will also be arranged before beginning your studies.

English language requirements

IELTS 7.0 overall. For other English qualifications, read English language equivalent qualifications.

Improve your English

International students who do not meet the English language requirements for this programme may be able to study our postgraduate pre-sessional English course, to help improve your English language level.

This pre-sessional course is designed with a progression route to your degree programme and you’ll learn academic English in the context of your subject area. To find out more, read Language for Science (6 weeks) and Language for Science: General Science (10 weeks). 

We are now offering online pre-sessionals alongside our on-campus pre-sessionals.  To find out more, read Online Academic English pre-sessional (10 weeks) and Online Academic English pre-sessional (6 weeks).

Read about differences between our online and on-campus summer pre-sessionals.

If you need to study for longer than 10 weeks, read more about our postgraduate pre-sessional English course.

How to apply

The application deadline is 6 June 2022.

Interview dates: to be confirmed.

Find out more about how to apply.

Apply

Admissions policy

School of Healthcare Postgraduate Admissions Policy 2022

Fees

• UK: £16,000 (total)

Read more about paying fees and charges.

Additional cost information

There are additional costs for supervision (minimum 18 hours) and personal therapy (minimum 70 hours) payable directly to the practitioners concerned. Fees may vary from approximately £40-50 per hour. You are required to become a student member of BACP (currently £80 per year) and to take out professional liability insurance for your practice, the cost of which depends on the amount insured (estimated at £75 per year).

There may be additional costs related to your course or programme of study, or related to being a student at the University of Leeds. Read more about additional costs.

Scholarships and financial support

If you have the talent and drive, we want you to be able to study with us, whatever your financial circumstances. There may be help for students in the form of loans and non-repayable grants from the University and from the government.  Find out more at Masters funding overview.

Postgraduate Student loans
Students enrolling on the MA are eligible for a Postgraduate Student loan. Students who have applied for a PG loan do not have to pay 50% fees up front at registration but are able to pay their fees in three instalments over the academic year to match loan payments. Full details on how to apply for a Postgraduate Student loan can be found here.

Many of our graduates go on to combine counselling and psychotherapy with their existing professions, such as nursing or education. Some continue to work in a voluntary capacity to build sufficient supervised client hours to join the advanced category of individual BACP accreditation, while others set up in private practice.

Our graduates are highly sought after by employers within the region, many of whom are closely associated with the course as practice providers or supervisors. Many of our graduates have gone on to hold positions of responsibility as counsellors or psychotherapists within the NHS and voluntary bodies, and some have returned to us to undertake PhD research or teaching.

Careers support

We encourage you to prepare for your career from day one. That’s one of the reasons Leeds graduates are so sought after by employers.

The Careers Centre and staff in your faculty provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.

Work placements are a necessary part of this course (100 client counselling hours must be experienced). It’s your responsibility to find a placement and it will be unpaid.