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Course Outline

COU202 Counselling Integrative Practice

Course Coordinator:Katrina Andrews (kandrews1@usc.edu.au) School:School of Law and Society

2025Semester 2

UniSC Sunshine Coast

UniSC Moreton Bay

 Blended learning Most of your course is on campus but you may be able to do some components of this course online.

Please go to usc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.

What is this course about?

Description

This course has 4 aims: to review the knowledge and skills taught in all the pre-requisite courses; to consolidate the basic person-centred microskills; to apply these basic person-centred microskills to various populations and counselling frameworks; and to encourage integrative thinking in their emerging counselling identity and practice.  Success in this course ensures the student is ready for success in their placement courses in the following year.

How will this course be delivered?

Activity Hours Beginning Week Frequency
Blended learning
Learning materials – Weekly 1 hour asynchonous learnign activities to delivery the weekly learning objectives, via recorded lectures, videos, interactive activities, discussion forums. 1hr Week 1 12 times
Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Weekly 2 hour on campus tutorials to consolidate learning each week, and provide space for skills practice with peer/tutor feedback 2hrs Week 2 10 times
Seminar – Online Learning Activity facilitated by the tutor. 1hr Refer to Format Once Only

Course Topics

  • Ethical Codes of Conduct and Practice
  • Person-Centred Counselling as a counselling philosophy
  • Group Counselling
  • e-therapy
  • Strength based approaches
  • Cognitive Behaviour Therapy Approaches
  • Counselling adult populations
  • Counselling children and youth
  • Counselling diverse populations
  • Integrative Counselling Identity and Practice

What level is this course?

200 Level (Developing)

Building on and expanding the scope of introductory knowledge and skills, developing breadth or depth and applying knowledge and skills in a new context. May require pre-requisites where discipline specific introductory knowledge or skills is necessary. Normally, undertaken in the second or third full-time year of an undergraduate programs.

What is the unit value of this course?

12 units

How does this course contribute to my learning?

Course Learning Outcomes On successful completion of this course, you should be able to... Graduate Qualities Completing these tasks successfully will contribute to you becoming...
1 Demonstrate their consolidating ability to critically reflect on own identity and practice for life long learning Empowered
Sustainability-focussed
2 Demonstrate their consolidating knowledge regarding working with children, youth, and adults with various complaints Empowered
3 Demonstrate their consolidating knowledge and skills applying person-centred counselling skills with CBT, Group, Strength-based Models, to improve mental health and wellbeing in clients, using practice-based evidence principles. Empowered
Ethical
4 Articulate an emerging integrative counselling identity and counselling practice Creative and critical thinker
5 Demonstrate a mature ethical mindedness Ethical
6 Demonstrate mature academic integrity skills Ethical
Sustainability-focussed

Am I eligible to enrol in this course?

Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.

Pre-requisites

COU100, COU101, COU176, COU180, (COU200 or COU265), enrolled in AR375

Co-requisites

Not applicable

Anti-requisites

Not applicable

Specific assumed prior knowledge and skills (where applicable)

Not applicable

How am I going to be assessed?

Grading Scale

Standard Grading (GRD)

High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL).

Details of early feedback on progress

Students will be encouraged to engage in reflective practice from week 2 within the LMS.  The tutor will provide feedback to students during these early weeks regarding their reflective writing, and comprehension.

Assessment tasks

Delivery mode Task No. Assessment Product Individual or Group Weighting % What is the duration / length? When should I submit? Where should I submit it?
All 1 Activity Participation Individual 10% 
Course duration
 Throughout teaching period (refer to Format) In Class
All 2 Artefact - Creative, and Oral Individual and Group 30% 
20 slides for 20 minutes.
 Week 7 Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check
All 3 Journal Individual 35% 
2000 words
 Week 11 Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check
All 4 Artefact - Professional Individual 25% 
1000 - 1500 words
 Week 13 Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check
All - Assessment Task 1:Participation
Goal: 
Students will actively participate for a minimum of 80% of their on-campus tutorials. Failure to meet the minimum participation requirement will result in a failed grade for this task.
Product: Activity Participation
Format: 
Tutor to assess and record participation each week, in LMS
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1 
Demonstrate professional dispositions through tutorial participation
 5
Generic Skills: 

                        

                    

                

                

                    

                        

                            
                                All - Assessment Task 2:Narrated PPT Presentation
                            
                        

                        

                            Goal:
                            
Present an emerging integrated professional identify and practice via narrated ppt presentation.

                        

                        

                            Product:
                            Artefact - Creative, and Oral
                        

                        

                            Format:
                            
In groups, students are to create a PPT presentation with narration which summarises their collective comprehension of counselling modalities (PCT, Strength-based, CBT, Group, others) and their application to various populations (adults, children & Youth, diverse) or issues (e.g., addictions). They then complete this presentation with each summarising their own emerging counselling identity, as well as their own emerging integrative practice, supported by literature.
The finished presentation is downloaded as an MP4 file for submission via submission link online.

                        

                        

                            Criteria:
                            
                                

                                    
                                        

                                            No.
                                            
                                            Learning Outcome assessed
                                        

                                    
                                    
                                            

                                                1
                                                
As a group, students have an emerging appreciation of each of the counselling modalities they have been exposed to prior to this course, and are able to critique the strengths and weaknesses of each

                                                
                                                        3
                                                
                                            

                                            

                                                2
                                                
As a group, students are able to critically discuss evidence-based treatments for the various issues and populations they have been exposed to prior to this course, critiquing their strengths and weaknesses of each

                                                
                                                        2
                                                
                                            

                                            

                                                3
                                                
Individually, each student has demonstrated ability to integrate all their learnings to date, and articulate an emerging professional counselling identity

                                                
                                                        1
                                                        4
                                                
                                            

                                            

                                                4
                                                
Individually, each student has demonstrated ability to integrate all their learnings to date, and articulate an emerging professional counselling practice

                                                
                                                        1
                                                        4
                                                
                                            

                                            

                                                5
                                                
As a group, students demonstrate ability to prepare a professional PPT presentation, conforming to APA 7th ed. conventions.

                                                
                                                        6
                                                
                                            

                                    
                                

                            		
                        

                        

                            Generic Skills:
                            
Communication, Problem solving, Applying technologies, Information literacy

                        

                    

                

                

                    

                        

                            
                                All - Assessment Task 3:Weekly Critical Reflections
                            
                        

                        

                            Goal:
                            
Students are to critically reflect, in a mature manner, their role play practice each week, increasing their awareness of self and and their counselling practice.

                        

                        

                            Product:
                            Journal
                        

                        

                            Format:
                            
From Week 5, students will be engaging in regular role play triad practice, consolidating their counselling skills and increasing their counselling awareness via peer and tutor feedback. After each tutorial, the student is expected to reflect on their role play practice, strictly using the Kolb experiential learning model to guide their thinking. At week 11, the collection of reflections are collated in an APA 7th ed. formatted written assignment, including a conclusion paragraph which alludes to their areas of growth during the semester as well as areas needing further development. This document is then submitted online via plagiarism checkers.

                        

                        

                            Criteria:
                            
                                

                                    
                                        

                                            No.
                                            
                                            Learning Outcome assessed
                                        

                                    
                                    
                                            

                                                1
                                                
Demonstration of their ability to apply critical thinking retrospectively to their weekly role play practice, articulating how each practice is developing their professional identity and practice.

                                                
                                                        1
                                                        4
                                                
                                            

                                            

                                                2
                                                
Demonstration of their emerging ethical mindedness, by critiquing about whether their chosen therapeutic approach to the tutorial role play was driven by evidence-based literature or not.

                                                
                                                        5
                                                
                                            

                                            

                                                3
                                                
Demonstration that they are considering feedback given to them in all courses up to this one, and thus deliberately improving their academic writing and integrity skills, using APA 7th ed. conventions.

                                                
                                                        6
                                                
                                            

                                    
                                

                            		
                        

                        

                            Generic Skills:
                            
Problem solving, Organisation, Information literacy

                        

                    

                

                

                    

                        

                            
                                All - Assessment Task 4:CV and Selection Criteria
                            
                        

                        

                            Goal:
                            
Students to deeply consider their learning through the semester, and create a CV that reflects their own emerging counselling identity accurately and comprehensively. This will be accompanied with responses to common selection criteria for a hypothetical counselling role. Finally, a cover letter to the contact person is to be included. This document will be useful for them when applying for agencies for their placement experience during the next year of their studies.

                        

                        

                            Product:
                            Artefact - Professional
                        

                        

                            Format:
                            
This document will be a written assignment, in professional resume formatting, and to industry standards. It will be submitted as a single document (cover letter, CV, selection criteria) online via the LMS.

                        

                        

                            Criteria:
                            
                                

                                    
                                        

                                            No.
                                            
                                            Learning Outcome assessed
                                        

                                    
                                    
                                            

                                                1
                                                
Resume (CV) has been formatted professionally, succinctly, and is an accurate summary of the students own professional goals, experience, education, and other important details.

                                                
                                                        4
                                                
                                            

                                            

                                                2
                                                
Demonstrate their ability to respond to selection criteria using the STAR technique (when applicable) to evidence their knowledge and skills in the area

                                                
                                                        1
                                                
                                            

                                            

                                                3
                                                
Demonstrate ability to write a convincing cover letter that succinctly summarises their professional identity and practice, as well as any details important for the employer to know, that is not reflected in the CV and selection criteria.

                                                
                                                        1
                                                        4
                                                
                                            

                                            

                                                4
                                                
Demonstrate emerging academic integrity skills and written communication skills

                                                
                                                        6
                                                
                                            

                                    
                                

                            		
                        

                        

                            Generic Skills:
                            
Communication, Organisation

                        

                    

                

        

    

    

        

            

                
Directed study hours

                
A 12-unit course will have total of 150 learning hours which will include directed study hours (including online if required), self-directed learning and completion of assessable tasks. Student workload is calculated at 12.5 learning hours per one unit.

            

        

    


    

        

            

                
What resources do I need to undertake this course?

                

                    Please note: Course information, including specific information of recommended readings, learning activities, resources, weekly readings, etc. are available on the course Canvas site– Please log in as soon as possible.
                

            


            

                
Prescribed text(s) or course reader

                    
There are no required/recommended resources for this course.

            

        


        

            

                
Specific requirements

                    
Not applicable

            

        

    


    

        

            
How are risks managed in this course?

            
Health and safety risks for this course have been assessed as low. It is your responsibility to review course material, search online, discuss with lecturers and peers and understand the health and safety risks associated with your specific course of study and to familiarise yourself with the University’s general health and safety principles by reviewing the online induction training for students, and following the instructions of the University staff.

        

    


    

        

            

                
What administrative information is relevant to this course?


                
Assessment: Academic Integrity

                

                    Academic integrity is the ethical standard of university participation.  It ensures that students graduate as a result of proving they are competent in their discipline.  This is integral in maintaining the value of academic qualifications. Each industry has expectations and standards of the skills and knowledge within that discipline and these are reflected in assessment.
                

            

            

                

                    Academic integrity means that you do not engage in any activity that is considered to be academic fraud; including plagiarism, collusion or outsourcing any part of any assessment item to any other person.  You are expected to be honest and ethical by completing all work yourself and indicating in your work which ideas and information were developed by you and which were taken from others. You cannot provide your assessment work to others. You are also expected to provide evidence of wide and critical reading, usually by using appropriate academic references.
                

            

            

                

                    In order to minimise incidents of academic fraud, this course may require that some of its assessment tasks, when submitted to Canvas, are electronically checked through Turnitin.  This software allows for text comparisons to be made between your submitted assessment item and all other work to which Turnitin has access.
                

            

        


        

            

                
Assessment: Additional Requirements

                
Eligibility for Supplementary Assessment

Your eligibility for supplementary assessment in a course is dependent of the following conditions applying:
(a) The final mark is in the percentage range 47% to 49.4%; and
(b) The course is graded using the Standard Grading scale

            

        


        

            

                
Assessment: Submission penalties

                
Late submissions may be penalised up to and including the following maximum percentage of the assessment task’s identified value, with weekdays and weekends included in the calculation of days late:
(a) One day: deduct 5%;
(b) Two days: deduct 10%;
(c) Three days: deduct 20%;
(d) Four days: deduct 40%;
(e) Five days: deduct 60%;
(f) Six days: deduct 80%;
(g) Seven days: A result of zero is awarded for the assessment task.
The following penalties will apply for a late submission for an online examination:
Less than 15 minutes: No penalty
From 15 minutes to 30 minutes: 20% penalty
More than 30 minutes: 100% penalty

            

        


        

            

                
SafeUniSC

                

                    UniSC is committed to a culture of respect and providing a safe and supportive environment for all members of our community. For immediate assistance on campus contact SafeUniSC by phone: 07 5430 1168 or using the SafeZone app.  For general enquires contact the SafeUniSC team by phone 07 5456 3864 or email safe@usc.edu.au.
                

            

            

                

                    The SafeUniSC Specialist Service is a Student Wellbeing service that provides free and confidential support to students who may have experienced or observed behaviour that could cause fear, offence or trauma.  To contact the service call 07 5430 1226 or email studentwellbeing@usc.edu.au.
                

            

        


        

            

                
Study help

                

                    For help with course-specific advice, for example what information to include in your assessment, you should first contact your tutor, then your course coordinator, if needed.
                

                

                    If you require additional assistance, the Learning Advisers are trained professionals who are ready to help you develop a wide range of academic skills. Visit the Learning Advisers web page for more information, or contact Student Central for further assistance: +61 7 5430 2890 or studentcentral@usc.edu.au.
                

            

        


        

            

                
Wellbeing Services

                

                    Student Wellbeing provide free and confidential counselling on a wide range of personal, academic, social and psychological matters, to foster positive mental health and wellbeing for your academic success.
                

                

                    To book a confidential appointment go to Student Hub, email studentwellbeing@usc.edu.au or call 07 5430 1226.
                

            

        


        

            

                
AccessAbility Services

                

                    Ability Advisers ensure equal access to all aspects of university life. If your studies are affected by a disability, learning disorder mental health issue, injury or illness, or you are a primary carer for someone with a disability or who is considered frail and aged, AccessAbility Services can provide access to appropriate reasonable adjustments and practical advice about the support and facilities available to you throughout the University.
                

                

                    To book a confidential appointment go to Student Hub, email AccessAbility@usc.edu.au or call 07 5430 2890.
                

            

        


        

            

                
Links to relevant University policy and procedures

                

                    For more information on Academic Learning & Teaching categories including:
                    
    
                        
  • Assessment: Courses and Coursework Programs
    • 
                        
  • Review of Assessment and Final Grades
    • 
                        
  • Supplementary Assessment
    • 
                        
  • Central Examinations
    • 
                        
  • Deferred Examinations
    • 
                        
  • Student Conduct
    • 
                        
  • Students with a Disability
    • 
                    

                

                

                    For more information, visit
                    https://www.usc.edu.au/explore/policies-and-procedures#academic-learning-and-teaching
                

                

            

        


        

            

                
Student Charter

                

                    UniSC is committed to excellence in teaching, research and engagement in an environment that is inclusive, inspiring, safe and respectful.  The Student Charter sets out what students can expect from the University, and what in turn is expected of students, to achieve these outcomes.
                

            

        


        

            

                
General Enquiries

                
    
                    
  • 
                        In person:
                        
      
                            
    • 
                                UniSC Sunshine Coast - Student Central, Ground Floor, Building C, 90 Sippy Downs Drive, Sippy Downs
                            
      • 
                            
    • 
                                UniSC Moreton Bay - Service Centre, Ground Floor, Foundation Building, Gympie Road, Petrie
                            
      • 
                            
    • 
                                UniSC SouthBank - Student Central, Building A4 (SW1), 52 Merivale Street, South Brisbane
                            
      • 
                            
    • 
                                UniSC Gympie - Student Central, 71 Cartwright Road, Gympie
                            
      • 
                            
    • 
                                UniSC Fraser Coast - Student Central, Student Central, Building A, 161 Old Maryborough Rd, Hervey Bay
                            
      • 
                            
    • 
                                UniSC Caboolture - Student Central, Level 1 Building J, Cnr Manley and Tallon Street, Caboolture
                            
      • 
                        
    
                    
    • 
                    
  • 
                        Tel:+61 7 5430 2890
                    
    • 
                    
  • 
                        Email:studentcentral@usc.edu.au
                    
    • 
                

            

        

    







    

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