HPY306 - Applied Counselling Skills (Intermediate)
Unit details
| Year | 2027 unit information |
|---|---|
| Enrolment modes | Trimester 2: Burwood (Melbourne), Waurn Ponds (Geelong), Online Trimester 3: Online |
| Credit point(s) | 1 |
| EFTSL value | 0.125 |
| Unit chair | Trimester 2: Robyn Moffitt |
| Prerequisite | HPY210 |
| Corequisite | Nil |
| Incompatible with | Nil |
| Educator-facilitated (scheduled) learning activities - on-campus unit enrolment | 1 x 2 hour on-campus seminar per week with compulsory attendance requirement. |
| Educator-facilitated (scheduled) learning activities - online unit enrolment | 1 x 2 hour online seminar per week with compulsory attendance requirement. |
| In-person attendance requirements | On-campus students will be required to attend, in-person, at least 8 of the 10 two hour weekly seminars to obtain a Pass or above in the unit. Online students will be able to meet this requirement through online attendance. |
| Typical study commitment | Students will on average spend 150 hours over the trimester undertaking the teaching, learning and assessment activities for this unit. 1 hour online self-paced interactive learning each week will provide students with the theoretical background for practical counselling skills taught in seminars. Weekly seminars will support students to develop applied counselling skills. These seminars will focus on demonstrating and practising counselling activities in dyads and triads and preparing students for the assessments. |
Content
Designed to help make you work-ready, students in this unit will learn about the key theories of counselling, including psychodynamic, existential-humanistic, cognitive, and behavioural approaches. Students will critically appraise and compare the origin of these theories, their proposed mechanisms of change, and the specific intervention techniques aligned with each theory. The unit also has a strong focus on practical counselling skills, which are common across all approaches. Students will further develop their counselling micro-skills, their sensitivity to culturally diverse client populations, and will be introduced to more complex skills, including case formulation. The unit also includes a self-reflective element and will provide an opportunity for students to explore their own emerging counselling approach and orientation. We would recommend this unit to anyone considering client work in a community or mental health setting.
This unit builds upon the foundational knowledge obtained in the pre-requisite unit HPY210 Applied Counselling Skills (Introductory) (this unit used to be called Coaching and Counselling for Behaviour Change).
Learning outcomes
| ULO | These are the Unit Learning Outcomes (ULOs) for this unit. At the completion of this unit, successful students can: | Alignment to Deakin Graduate Learning Outcomes (GLOs) |
|---|---|---|
| ULO1 | Demonstrate the basic counselling micro-skills required to build a therapeutic relationship, including active listening, reflecting content and feelings, asking questions, and summarising. | GLO1: Discipline-specific knowledge and capabilities GLO2: Communication GLO3: Digital literacy GLO6: Self-management GLO7: Teamwork GLO8: Global citizenship |
| ULO2 | Describe and differentiate the basic principles and techniques of existential-humanistic, psychodynamic, cognitive, and behavioural approaches to counselling. | GLO1: Discipline-specific knowledge and capabilities GLO2: Communication GLO4: Critical thinking |
| ULO3 | Critically appraise, evaluate, and compare the key counselling approaches as they relate to case formulation across a range of contexts. | GLO1: Discipline-specific knowledge and capabilities GLO3: Digital literacy GLO4: Critical thinking GLO5: Problem solving GLO6: Self-management |
| ULO4 | Develop self-awareness via reflexive and reflective practice about philosophical position, theoretical orientation, and personal values in the context of professional counselling. | GLO1: Discipline-specific knowledge and capabilities GLO2: Communication GLO4: Critical thinking GLO5: Problem solving GLO6: Self-management GLO8: Global citizenship |
Note – From 2026, Deakin commenced introducing Graduate Attributes (GAs), which define the distinctive characteristics of a Deakin graduate. You may notice some units still refer to Graduate Learning Outcomes (GLOs) during this transition period.
Assessment
| Assessment description | Student output | Grading and weighting (% total mark for unit) | Indicative due week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment 1: Counselling Roleplay (Individual) | Recorded video, annotated transcript, and checklist | 35% |
|
| Assessment 2: Case Formulation Visualisation (Individual) | Case Formulation Visualisation and text-only file | 35% |
|
| Assessment 3: Theoretical Orientation Self-Reflection (Individual) | 1000 words | 30% |
|
The assessment due weeks provided may change. The Unit Chair will clarify the exact assessment requirements, including the due date, at the start of the teaching period.
Hurdle requirements
- Satisfactory completion of activities focused on micro-skills and case formulation skill development, including participation in roleplay activities, in at least 8 of the 10 two hour weekly seminars, to obtain a Pass or above in the unit.
Learning resource
The texts and reading list for HPY306 can be found via the University Library.
Note: Select the relevant trimester reading list. Please note that a future teaching period's reading list may not be available until a month prior to the start of that teaching period.
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)
To fully engage with Deakin's learning experiences, students must be able to access and use internet-connected devices as outlined in computing requirements at Deakin.
To support student success at Deakin, we have a bring-your-own-device (BYOD) learning environment that acknowledges that students and educators bring with them the digital tools they regularly use to complete academic tasks. These tools stay with you beyond the classroom, helping you to keep learning, explore ideas more deeply, and connect with knowledge in ways that matter to you.
Students requiring a loan device should visit our Loan Laptop webpage or students requiring longer-term assistance should visit our Student Financial Assistance webpage.
Unit fee information
Fees and charges vary depending on the type of fee place you hold, your course, your commencement year, the units you choose to study and their study discipline, and your study load.
Tuition fees increase at the beginning of each calendar year and all fees quoted are in Australian dollars ($AUD). Tuition fees do not include textbooks, computer equipment or software, other equipment or costs such as mandatory checks, travel and stationery.
For further information regarding tuition fees, other fees and charges, invoice due dates, withdrawal dates, payment methods visit our Current Students website.