Practitioner Certificate in Reflective Therapeutic Practice

The Practitioner Certificate in Reflective Therapeutic Practice is a one-year course of both taught and individual study. Prospective students will already be qualified, experienced and practising counsellors and psychotherapists, who wish to enhance their qualification and clinical practice by undertaking this Practitioner Certificate. The course is non-modality specific and is therefore open to counsellors and therapists of all orientations.

The importance of inquiry as a general philosophical position is central to our approach at Metanoia and is particularly reflected in this programme of study. A basic stance of curiosity is crucial to what we teach and model in this training. Our overall aim is to support and develop the student’s capacity for reflection and reflexivity in relation to their clinical work and at one and the same time to enhance the student’s ability to position these capacities in theoretical knowledge.

The Practitioner Certificate in Reflective Therapeutic Practice involves the student in a personally relevant clinical inquiry and enables them to explore their inquiry in a structured manner through Action Research principles. In this way it is envisaged that this programme of study will lead to the student’s engagement with higher levels of practice and thinking. It is also hoped that some of these enquiries may go beyond the individual consulting rooms of those students and permeate the wider field.

*Please note this Practitioner Certificate can also be studied as a BSc (Hons) programme. For further information please contact Thilisa Hamilton.

Entry Requirements

The course is open to qualified counsellors and psychotherapists who are registered with one of the accrediting bodies, namely BACP or UKCP.

Philosophy of the Training Programme

The importance of inquiry as a general philosophical position is central to our approach at Metanoia. Practitioners need to be interested at the deepest levels in what their clients are bringing for exploration and the ways in which they, as clinicians, can develop and enhance their capacity to engage with these explorations. The Practitioner Certificate in Reflective Therapeutic Practice, with its focus on reflective inquiry, seeks to support the student’s in depth engagement with these explorations.

Aims of the course

The primary aim of the training is to provide a learning environment within which clinicians can reflect upon their clinical practice and engage with the questions which arise as a natural part of this reflection. In particular, and given the centrality of the intentional use of the relationship and of the self of the psychotherapist or counsellor in contributing to successful outcomes, we place particular emphasis on an exploration into how to use oneself as a means of maintaining and advancing this relationship. In this way the overall aims of the programme are to enable candidates to develop:

• A spirit of curiosity and inquiry - how to think about "what works" and for whom;
• The capacity for a critical engagement, evaluation and inquiry into their clinical work;
• The capacity to critique and update theory in the light of experiences in practice;
• And demonstrate a knowledge of and application of theory and inquiry into ethical, effective practice;
• A critical appreciation of broad social, cultural and political domains as they impinge on theory, practice and thinking, together with a commitment to best practice and anti-oppressive approaches in clinical work;
• And demonstrate a commitment to in-depth personal and professional growth, enabling the emphasis on self-reflection and self-awareness and an increasing sensitivity to one’s own processes, the processes of the client, and the processes between oneself and the client.

Training programme design

The Practitioner Certificate in Reflective Therapeutic Practice is a part-time training that takes place over the course of one academic year.

The Reflective Inquiry Modules consist of three different modules held over 8 taught units. These modules prepare the student to undertake a literature review, then to take part in a reflective inquiry into an aspect of their clinical work and additionally supports them whilst they do so, and then helps them to make meaning of and present their findings through a 2000 word Reflective Inquiry Essay, and Reflective Inquiry Oral Presentation. The eight units will encompass the following:

Units 1 and 2: Developing an area of inquiry

In these units we will introduce and explore action research principles and students will be assisted to build upon these as a means of developing an initial question upon which they will begin their reflective inquiry.

Unit 3: Literature reviews

In this unit we will discuss the importance and use of literature searches as a means of assisting the student to locate their chosen areas of study into the wider counselling field and explore how to conduct such a search and then how to critically review and present the findings.

Unit 4: Locating the area of inquiry into a wider context

In this unit students will be assisted to plan the initial stages and organisation of their Reflective Inquiry Project. Students will be assisted to locate their chosen areas of study into the wider counselling and psychotherapy field and explore possible ethical and professional practice issues, along with their management, that the inquiry may raise.

Unit 5: Exploring the initial findings

In this unit students will be assisted to reflect upon the initial findings that have come out of their reflective inquiry and to identify both how these findings give rise to further reflective enquiries and how to plan these further enquiries.

Unit 6: Making sense of the findings

In this unit students will be assisted to make sense of the findings that have come out of their reflective inquiry and to look at ways in which they can present the various inquiry cycles that they have undertaken.

Units 7 and 8: Student presentations

In these units, students will present their findings, via an oral presentation and be assessed on this. Each presentation will last 30 minutes with 15 minutes for questions, followed by a 15 minute assessment by the assessment panel.

Successful completion of all components of the course will result in the award of a Practitioner Certificate in Reflective Therapeutic Practice.

On completion of the programme, successful candidates will be able to:

• Conduct independent enquiries into their clinical work, which leads to enhanced clinical practice;
• Operate reflexively in both personal and professional arenas, enabling a professional awareness and willingness to communicate with other professionals in the field;
• Critically assess the complex nature of clinical work and demonstrate the ability to work effectively and ethically with such processes;
• Develop and demonstrate a knowledge of and application of theory and inquiry into ethical, effective practice;
• Locate professional clinical practice in the broader domains of social, cultural and political dynamics in a way which fosters anti-oppressive practice and inclusion;
• Appreciate the importance of personal development in the context of professional practice and understand the importance of on-going support and collaboration in this work.

Course Dates:

2012: 22nd/23rd September, 26th October, 23rd November,
2013: 22nd February, 22nd March, 25th/26th May

Times:

9.30am - 5.30pm each day

Costs:

£1120 (Metanoia Members) £1280 (Non-Members) £75 Essay Submission Fee.