Postgraduate Diploma in Counselling Psychology - AUT University

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The postgraduate programme in psychology provides a pathway towards registration as a Counselling Psychologist in New Zealand (subject to New Zealand Psychologists Board approval). Counselling Psychology is a sub-specialty within psychology that focuses on health and well-being, and collaboration between psychologist and client to achieve desired mental health outcomes.  Counselling Psychologists acknowledge the importance of medical, psychosocial and cultural perspectives in understanding and explaining both the formation of mental illness and problem behaviour, and in understanding, explaining and implementing the treatment and caring regimes to sensitively address illness and problem issues.

For Counselling Psychologists research and practice are not distinct activities. Counselling Psychology is committed to building on the concept of scientist-practitioner by producing

• Practitioners informed by research findings
• A science informed by practice issues

The pathway to full registration (subject to NZPB approval) is articulated by the following three years of study:

1. Bachelor of Health Science (Honours in Psychology)
2. Master of Health Science in Psychology
3. Postgraduate Diploma in Counselling Psychology

Together these qualifications provide a three-year postgraduate programme in Counselling Psychology.

Students entering this programme require:

• An undergraduate degree with psychology as a major
• A minimum of a B grade point average in psychology papers
• A strong foundation in research papers
• Undergraduate studies in psychopathology, abnormal psychology or equivalent

Provided students meet the entry requirements, they may enter the postgraduate programmes at any one of the following levels eg. Entry at Masters level will require a minimum of an Honours degree in Psychology.  This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Bachelor of Health Science (Honours) in Psychology (AK3662) 120 points

588632 Integrative Research Methods (20)
589302 Programme Planning & Evaluation (20)
588666 Dissertation (40)
589555 Psychological Theory and Practice (40)

Master of Health Science in Psychology (AK3485) 240 points

Bachelor of Health Science (Honours) in Psychology (120)

AND:
589614 Psychological Assessment and Diagnosis (20)
589615 Psychological Intervention (20)
589616 Practice Research Project (60)
589617 Supervised Practicum (20)

OPTIONAL PAPERS ARE:
589750 Theories in Counselling Psychology* (20)
589751 Assessment in Counselling Psychology* (20)
589752 Supervised Practicum A* (40)
589753 Supervised Practicum B* (40)

* Only offered to Psychology students who have completed the requirements for this programme.

Postgraduate Diploma in Counselling Psychology (AK1232) 120 points

589750 Theories of Counselling Psychology (20)
589751 Assessment for Counselling Psychology (20)
589752 Supervised Practicum A* (40)
589753 Supervised Practicum B* (40)

Papers in the Masters of Health Science in Psychology and the Postgraduate Diploma in Counselling Psychology are offered in integrated form, allowing students to complete these two degrees in two years of full-time study or three years of part-time study. Intending part-time students will be required to study in full-time pattern for the first semester of their 5th year.

Within this subject area other relevant optional papers may be undertaken with the approval of the Associate Dean Postgraduate. Optional papers may be selected from other relevant subject areas.

Applications need to be lodged by COB on Friday October 31st 2008 for those considering entry into the programme in 2009.

Postgraduate research in psychology: current topics researched…

• Psychiatric recovery & peer support
• Transcultural mental health
• The WHOQoL – research and development of an internationally established quality of life measure
• The WHOQoL and happiness
• Ethnic/national identity and well-being
• Physical activity and well-being (among the young and not so young)
• Post-traumatic recovery- the role of individual and collective memory
• Depressive symptoms among women presenting to hospital emergency departments
• Operant learning in a videogame environment
• The value of Dielectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) in a drug rehabilitation programme
• Body image and interpersonal functioning
• Training in Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT): How do trainees change?
• The decision not to have children
• Children's voice in family disputation
• Core representational tasks in psychological practise

…employing a range of investigatory methods including data gathering, descriptive & multivariate analyses, ethnography, grounded theory analysis, Leximancer ™ and discourse analysis.