Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (Top-Up)

Do you have a background in counselling or psychology? Would you like to learn how to help people challenge negative thinking so they can approach situations more positively?

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) helps people focus on current issues so they can find practical solutions that help them feel better now. A cognitive behavioural therapist helps people change how they feel and act so they can deal with issues such as anxiety, stress, depression and phobias.

On this Cognitive Behavioural Therapy DipHE, you'll learn the practical knowledge and interpersonal skills you need to pursue a career as a cognitive behavioural therapist.

In year 1, you'll develop foundational counselling skills and explore all the counselling approaches available to practitioners, including gestalt and humanistic counselling.

In your second year, you'll focus on developing the practical skills you need as a cognitive behavioural therapist. This includes putting what you learn into practice by conducting 100 hours of supervised therapy. You'll also develop skills you need to work with different types of clients and learn about mental health issues.

After the course, you could top up your diploma to a Bachelor's degree. You could also work as a cognitive behavioural therapist in areas such as education, the police service, the prison service and the voluntary sector.

Alternative courses
You can specialise in other types of counselling and therapy on our BSc (Hons) Humanistic Counselling and BSc (Hons) Gestalt Counselling top-up degrees.

What you'll experience

On this course you'll:

• Learn advanced cognitive behavioural therapy skills, building on the knowledge you developed on your DipHE

• Develop advanced research skills on a research project that aligns with your interests and career ambitions

• Apply your knowledge and skills with at least 100 hours of supervised counselling on a placement in the community

• Learn from experienced, industry-trained staff who've worked in organisations or run their own private practices

• Build a foundation to help work towards a further professional accreditation with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) following completion of the course

• Develop transferable skills you can apply in all aspects of your life and career in areas such as problem solving, communication, group working, planning, effective feedback and IT

• Study at South Hampshire College Group - Eastleigh Campus with access to University of Portsmouth support and services

• Apply for membership of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and get access to member resources including journal subscriptions, free courses and job boards

Careers and opportunities

The coronavirus pandemic and increased awareness in society about mental health have boosted the demand for counselling and therapy services. As a counsellor specialising in cognitive behavioural therapy, you can have a significant positive impact on people's health and wellbeing, and help take the pressure off other health services such as GPs and hospitals.

Public, private and charity sector settings you could work in after the course include:

• Education

• Alcohol and drug services

• Eating disorder services

• Mental health services

• GPs

• Police and prison services

Core modules:

• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Advanced Skills (40 credits)
• Professional Practice Placement (40 credits)
• Research Project (40 credits)
  There are no optional modules on this course.

Changes to course content:
We use the best and most current research and professional practice alongside feedback from our students to make sure course content is relevant to your future career or further studies.

Therefore, course content is revised and regularly reviewed. This may result in changes being made in order to reflect developments in research, learning from practice and changes in policy at both national and local levels.

On this counselling diploma, you'll be assessed through:

• Essays
• Live skills assessments (role play scenarios)
• Individual and group presentations
• Portfolios of evidence
• Case studies
• Personal learning journals
• Professional requirements (a 'Fitness to Practice' assessment)
• Supervised work-based learning

You’ll be able to test your skills and knowledge informally before you do assessments that count towards your final mark.

Feedback is central to this course. You'll get feedback on all practice and formal assessments so you can improve in the future, as well as on your application for the 'Fitness to Practice' assessment. You'll also practice giving feedback during live skills assessments, where you'll receive feedback from your peers, as well as the assessment tutor.