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Advanced Counsellor and Psychotherapist QLS Level 4
Open Study College

Study anytime, anywhere. Expert tutor support. Flexible payment plans.

Summary

Price
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£339 inc VAT (was £389)
Offer ends 25 August 2026
Finance options

Ease the cost of your course with our customised payment plans. We have a range of flexible...

Study method
Distance learning
Duration
1 year · Self-paced
Qualification
No formal qualification
Achievement
Endorsed by The Quality Licence Scheme
Certificates
  • Certificate of Achievement in Advanced Counsellor and Psychotherapist Level 4 - Free
Assessment details
  • Assessment (included in price)
Additional info
  • Tutor is available to students
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Overview

Develop your ability to survey a range of differing situations, understanding the problem and its severity.
Examine the factors that lead to the issue and how it develops, and become familiar with the models, types of therapy and related theories.
This in-depth course will also explore the regulation of the profession and how trainees and qualified counsellors will be affected. You will also be given information on how to set up your own practice.
Counsellors encourage clients to explore their feelings, understand their situations better and make positive changes to their lives.

Whilst excellent communication and interpersonal skills are an essential prerequisite for counselling, (as you must be able to listen, set goals and explore development) this course supports you in building your counselling skills and acquiring the information on how to set up your own practice.

All course materials will be delivered to you by post or via email, so it couldn’t be easier. Our experienced and friendly tutors will help you every step of the way by email.

This course is approved by the ACCPH (Accredited Counsellors, Coaches, Psychotherapists and Hypnotherapists), at the end of this course students will be able to join and become a member of the ACCPH. The ACCPH is an independent self-regulated professional body for counsellors, psychotherapists and hypnotherapists.

What is a psychotherapist?
A psychotherapist is someone who will use talk therapy to help their clients manage with acute trauma, mental illness, or even general emotional unrest. They don’t just help with depression and anxiety, but also things like general daily overwhelm and grief. They will do this through talk therapy and will engage in a discussion about their clients problems, help them understand what they’re going through, and offer a solution to the problem.

Achievement

Certificates

Assessment details

Assessment

Included in course price

The Advanced Counsellor and Psychotherapist course is assessed by a series of written assignments, which are submitted to and marked by your tutor. There is no external examination required.

Description

Unit 1 - Defining counselling and psychotherapy
Theoretical perspectives
Development of counselling and psychotherapy
Similarities and differences between counselling and psychotherapy
Counselling and psychotherapy in context

Unit 2 - Core values and skills in counselling and psychotherapy
Building the client-therapist relationship
Competency skills
Communication
Applications of skills
Transference and counter transference
Monitoring generic skills

Unit 3 - Models and approaches in counselling and psychotherapy
The psychodynamic approach
Humanist/person-centred approach
Personal awareness
Experiential focusing
Behavioural and cognitive approaches
Using behavioural methods
The systems model
The psychosocial/life stage model

Unit 4 - Counselling specialities
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)
Assessments Strategies and Skills in CBT
Relationship counselling
Family counselling
Bereavement counselling
Addiction counselling

Unit 5 - Psychotherapy specialities
Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP)
Brief therapy
Transactional analysis (TA)
Gestalt therapy

Unit 6 - Practitioner strategies
Business issues
The therapy contract
The psychotherapists responsibilities
Health, safety and regulations
Client assessment

Awarding body

This course has been endorsed by the Quality License Scheme for its high-quality, non-regulated provisions and training programmes.

This course and/or training programme is not regulated by Ofqual and is not an accredited qualification. Your training provider will be able to advise you on any further recognition, for example, progression routes into further and/or higher education. For further information please visit the learner FAQs on the Quality Licence Scheme website.

The Quality License Scheme’s endorsement involves robust and rigorous quality audits by external auditors to ensure quality is continually met. A review of courses is carried out as part of the endorsement process.

Course duration

You may start at any time and have a full year to complete your studies. We suggest that the course will take approximately 140 hours to complete. This is more than enough time to give you flexibility and work at your own pace without the pressure of deadlines.

Course duration

You may start at any time and have a full year to complete your studies. We suggest that the course will take approximately 140 hours to complete. This is more than enough time to give you flexibility and work at your own pace without the pressure of deadlines.

Study method

You will study this course by distance learning, which will enable you to learn when and where you want. You can study from home or at work, it is completely up to you. All your materials will be posted or emailed to you. You will also receive tutor support by email, so help is only a click away!

Course outcome

At the end of this course, successful learners will receive a Certificate of Achievement from the Quality License Scheme and a Learner Unit Summary (which lists the components the learner has completed as part of the course).

Requirements

There are no specific entry requirements for this course.

Career path

You could take a look at our other counselling courses, or you could further your education by studying a counselling degree at university. If you want to work in counselling following your qualification, here are just a few of the jobs you could explore depending on your credentials:

Adult psychotherapist
Child and adolescent psychotherapist
Counsellor
Family and systematic psychotherapist

Questions and answers

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Legal information

This course is advertised on Reed.co.uk by the Course Provider, whose terms and conditions apply. Purchases are made directly from the Course Provider, and as such, content and materials are supplied by the Course Provider directly. Reed is acting as agent and not reseller in relation to this course. Reed's only responsibility is to facilitate your payment for the course. It is your responsibility to review and agree to the Course Provider's terms and conditions and satisfy yourself as to the suitability of the course you intend to purchase. Reed will not have any responsibility for the content of the course and/or associated materials.

FAQs

Study method describes the format in which the course will be delivered. At Reed Courses, courses are delivered in a number of ways, including online courses, where the course content can be accessed online remotely, and classroom courses, where courses are delivered in person at a classroom venue.

CPD stands for Continuing Professional Development. If you work in certain professions or for certain companies, your employer may require you to complete a number of CPD hours or points, per year. You can find a range of CPD courses on Reed Courses, many of which can be completed online.

A regulated qualification is delivered by a learning institution which is regulated by a government body. In England, the government body which regulates courses is Ofqual. Ofqual regulated qualifications sit on the Regulated Qualifications Framework (RQF), which can help students understand how different qualifications in different fields compare to each other. The framework also helps students to understand what qualifications they need to progress towards a higher learning goal, such as a university degree or equivalent higher education award.

An endorsed course is a skills based course which has been checked over and approved by an independent awarding body. Endorsed courses are not regulated so do not result in a qualification - however, the student can usually purchase a certificate showing the awarding body's logo if they wish. Certain awarding bodies - such as Quality Licence Scheme and TQUK - have developed endorsement schemes as a way to help students select the best skills based courses for them.
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