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Thinking about Studying Counselling or Psychotherapy?
If you are thinking of a
career in counselling or psychotherapy, you may well be confused
with the plethora of courses on offer.
Remember that the profession of counselling and psychotherapy is not
regulated by law and therefore there is not one course or
qualification you need in order to be recognised as a professional
in this field.
As you will have read, PACFA was formed with the intention of
unifying the various professional associations already in existence
in 1998 and of incorporating new ones that emerged later and that
met the stringent ethical, structural and training requirements
established by PACFA. As an umbrella organisation it has set a
minimum training standard that all of its member associations have
agreed to comply with.
That means that if you are wanting to come under the PACFA umbrella,
you will need to study a course that meets the minimum PACFA
standards, and is recognized by the PACFA Member Association you
wish to join.
The PACFA Minimum Training Standards include the following criteria:
Members must have completed, over a minimum of two years, 200 hours
of and .
a course of study in counselling or psychotherapy over at least two
years duration;
including at least 200 hours person-to-person psychotherapy and/or
counselling training;
50 hours of supervision relating to 200 hours of client contact;
minimum of 10 hours of supervision relating to 40 client contact
hours (within the training program).
Note: These 10 hours are part of the 50 hours of supervision).
Please refer to the full training standards.
You should look at the list of member associations and see which
one(s) you would be likely to want to join, given your location and
modality of work. You should contact the association with the
details provided and speak directly with them about your longer term
goals and the course(s) you are considering with that in mind. The
Member Association should be able to advise you whether the course
you are considering is recognized by them for full membership.
Once you are a member of one of the Member Associations, and have
gained sufficient further training and experience, you can consider
applying for membership of the PACFA National Register. See Register
eligibility criteria and National Register.
If you need further assistance, please contact the PACFA office.
Courses in Psychotherapy and Counselling
PACFA is beginning the process of accrediting courses, however at
present we are unable to provide a list of PACFA accredited
courses until the accreditation process has been completed.
PACFA Policies and Papers
Please view the PACFA Resources webpage for a comprehensive list of PACFA documents available to download.
PACFA eNews
Subscribe to the free electronic newsletter,
PACFA eNews for
information on all PACFA activities. |
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