Any counsellors about - how on earth does a counsellor qualify?

I get where you're coming from, but everybody has to start somewhere

I would hope / imagine that, as in most fields, NQ deal with easier cases at first, to build experience

OP, if you can find a specific niche area, that might help. I met someone who was v niche and had no shortage of business

Edgehill university do a 2 years masters level course and the entry requirements are pretty broad for degrees/experience they will accept.

www.edgehill.ac.uk/course/psychotherapy-and-counselling-contemporary-creative-approaches/

I'm in Scotland and did a level 10 diploma (honours degree) several years ago though I'd now suggest a level 11 (masters degree) if you plan for BABCP accreditation down the line. I would recommend go for as high a qualification as possible.
I will say it's the best job I've ever had and I love what I do. But having said that it is also the hardest thing I've done and the training is not easy. Wishing you the best with it and enjoy your journey.

Exactly. If you access counselling through an organisation you may well be allocated to someone in the latter part of their training. They will be supervised and will have to be deemed fit to practise by their training provider. If you're only prepared to settle for a qualified counsellor then you have the option of approaching one in private practice and paying accordingly.

Unless newly qualified counsellors "practise" on human beings, how do any of them ever get experience?

Not many courses are BACP accredited, as I found out when I researched it all six years ago. But an accredited course is generally better than one that isn't.

I don't know if OP is clear on this, but there's an accreditation process of membership after you've qualified which will enhance your job prospects, as a PP says:

https://www.bacp.co.uk/membership/accredited-membership/

This is separate from the issue of BACP accredited courses.

If you follow the CPCAB qualification route, find a training provider which provides the BACP accredited level 4. Not all level 4 qualifications do this.
You can still practise as a counsellor without accreditation but many jobs require this as a minimum.
Or you will need to complete a further accreditation process in order to be a full accredited member of the BACP.

I wouldn’t want a counsellor who had just completed a course to be practising on me! You are messing with people’s lives, it isn’t just a career.

I did the foundation degree modules with the OU and then levels 4 and 5, it's the 100 hours supervised placement that matters though, a level 4 without it wouldn't qualify you to practice privately.

No, the Level 3 is a one day or evening course that takes one academic year to complete, though there's some centres that fast track it and you do two evenings over five months. There's probably some places where you can do the diploma full-time, but I've not heard of any. The Diploma's are usually part-time and take at least two years to complete. My Masters, for a BACP accredited course, took three years to complete, and part-time.

Is it possible to go straight in full time?

Do you mean the training or the work?

Do bear in mind that most counsellors are self-employed and have to find their own clients. It's not a career to enter if you want to make big bucks. I don't know many people who make a living out of it (in order to support themselves without a partner.)

You have to promote yourself and run it as a business, unless you manage to find work in an organisation.

As an example I knew someone who did 15 hours a week (3 hours a day) and she said that was as much as they could manage, because of the intensity of it, the added time for record keeping, their own supervision, etc.

@Quickquestion10 The friends I have who do this have Masters in Psychotherapy and have sometimes studied (as well) through established counsellor-training organisations. One friend trained in her 60s, after being in science all her life. I know she had to do 400 hours of counselling (volunteer/ low fee) before she was up to BACP standard.

You can qualify at one of four levels, from level 4 - 7. It's unusual not to have a Level 3 certificate before you start a qualifying course, but it does happen, as with the PP before me:

https://www.bacp.co.uk/careers/careers-in-counselling/training/

I did Levels 2, 3 and 7.

Most people do levels 3 and either 4 or 5. You're looking at spending a minimum of £6K.

https://www.cpcab.co.uk/qualifications/

I agree it is very confusing. I was lucky enough to go straight to level 4 as my degree was in psychology… but I don’t think the whole course can be online as you need practical experience doing “fake” counselling sessions etc. you also need private therapy yourself. And supervised placements…