Module Directory

This module provides students with the opportunity to develop and demonstrate the personal capacities needed to take up the role of psychodynamic counsellor.

It concentrates on the ability to reflect on their own experience as a key element in psychodynamic work. It gives them opportunities to take ownership of their own learning experience and to take responsibility for themselves as learners, members of a group and a potential clinician. It encourages the awareness of the conscious and unconscious elements in themselves and between them and others as a way of understanding all human relationships and interactions.

The aims of the module are:The aims of the module are:

• To develop better understanding of ourselves as individuals, as learners and as members of a group


• To develop understanding of the role of the unconscious in individuals and in interactions between individuals


• To develop the capacity for reflective practice


• To understand the importance of reflective practice in the psychodynamic approach


• To develop the capacity for reflective practice in working with clients and in supervision as a psychodynamic practitioner


• To develop the qualities needed in a psychodynamic practitioner

By the end of the module you should be able to:

1. reflect on your own experience


2. reflect on your own learning journey


3. use reflective thinking in the approach to clinical work


4. use reflective thinking in the supervision relationship


5. move into the clinical role effectively

Key Skills:

1. capacity to take up a professional role


2. ability to communicate feelings and experiences effectively


3. reflective capacity


4. self-awareness


5. interpersonal communication

Employability Skills:

1. capacity to take up a professional role


2. ability to communicate feelings and experiences effectively


3. reflective capacity


4. self-awareness


5. interpersonal communication

For those aiming to progress into year 2 of the MA Psychodynamic Counselling, there is an expectation that students will enter their own psychodynamic/psychoanalytic personal therapy by the beginning of the Summer Term at the latest. This will provide a further arena for personal development. Please consult the handbook for details on the choice of therapist/counsellor.

There will be seminars on the personal qualities required for ethical and effective counselling.

A seminar will be held to prepare for the reflective report.

Tutorials will devote time to reflect on the student's learning journey.

Learning log
Students are expected to keep a learning log in which they keep a record of important learning moments during the course. These could be moments of theoretical, personal or professional insight, or experiences of theoretical, personal or professional frustration and difficulty. The log is private and will not be assessed, but tutors reserve the right to request evidence that the log has been kept and that entries have been made.

Students should aim to make an entry at least once every week.