Professional Placements

If you are working towards qualification or professional accreditation as a counsellor, you may want to consider an Associate placement in our Professional Placement Program.

Although we are unable to offer these posts as remunerated opportunities, we do offer regular in-house no-cost supervision for all your work with the service, as well as the opportunity to gain experience in a friendly and supportive team of experienced therapists in a thriving service which holds BACP Accredited Service status.

What CAPS offers to those on our Professional Placement:

The potential to accrue counselling hours towards qualification or professional accreditation
The experience of working as part of an established, busy, dynamic, accredited therapy service
An opportunity to work with a wide range of clients and a variety of issues as presented by students and staff in Higher Education
Regular in-house supervision (at no charge) and a separate line manager for any non-clinical/administrative issues
Invitations to in-house training events throughout the academic year (at no charge)
The opportunity to experience and be part of facilitated peer group case discussion
Helpful reception/administrative and IT support throughout (at no charge)
A well-appointed, dedicated therapy room to work in (at no charge) (with some capacity to work remotely after fully onboarded)
Access to a range of related professionals (such as Mental Health Nurses, Sexual Domestic Violence Adviser, Wellbeing Practitioners from a range of training backgrounds)
A full induction into the procedures and systems of CAPS and Wellbeing and Student Support with top up ad hoc support as required

What does the Professional Placement require of the Associate?

Ability to work with the diverse range of clients from the University of Warwick student cohort
Aptitude for engaging in dynamic, effective working alliances; creating appropriate therapeutic contracts, including predominantly focussed, brief work
A commitment to offer at least one day per week (or equivalent) during University academic term times and vacations throughout the academic year, to include up to 5 client-contact hours, and an hour for administration or supervision
A willingness to work and engage with a multi-model team in the specific organisational context of Wellbeing and Student Support
Associate professional placement requirements for eligibility:
- Generally we require you to have approximately 100 hours of prior experience of face-to-face (or online via video call) counselling with individual clients (we would recommend that a significant proportion of the work is with adult clients) but there is some flexibility in this figure
- Completed/engaged with a recognised professional qualification in counselling to Diploma/Foundation/Masters Degree level or equivalent

NB It is important that applicants who have any ongoing affiliation with the University of Warwick expain how they will manage any boundary conflict.

Please note: to be eligible to apply for a placement position, you do need to have some experience of working in contracted counselling hours. This is not suitable as a first counselling placement.

For more details or to discuss your suitability, email samantha.tarren@warwick.ac.uk

FAQs

Q: What is the nature of the work?

A: Although the therapy contracts tend to be brief and focussed, the work is often profound and impactful as students tend to engage quickly with the complex concepts of therapy and tend to want to dive in to the work and understand their issues at a deep level. Please attend a webinar for more detail.

Q: If I'm interested, what are the next steps?

A: If you are sure you meet the eligibility criteria and you have checked all the FAQs to ensure you are still interested in pursuing an Associate placement, you will need to complete a 'Registration of Interest' so we have your details on file. (If we don't have a vacancy immediately, we can contact you when one arises). We will contact you when we are recruiting and may invite you to a live webinar to find out more details about the opportunity. You will then be sent an application to be completed and, if shortlisted, we will invite you in to meet with us for a brief interview and to complete an IT skills activity. If successful, you will be offered a placement, subject to suitable references. NB we view this as a 'two-way' process, so there is plenty of opportunity to make sure this is the right placement for you at the right time. You will be required to sign an honorary agreement and will be given a full induction when you start.

Q: How does a placement in CAPS align with a UKCP accreditation pathway?

A: CAPS is a BACP accredited service however students and trainees following a UKCP accreditation pathway are welcome to apply for a professional placement. Supervision during your placement is provided by a BACP accredited therapist. It is important to note that UKCP supervision requirements (ratio of 1:6) cannot be provided by CAPS and should therefore be fulfilled outside the service through a private UKCP supervisor. Students in this position have found it helpful to boundary what to bring to in-house supervision and what to take to their external supervisor. Please note that specific client/case management issues should be kept in-house in line with service confidentiality. It is suggested that UKCP supervision can be used as a place to explore your own process and any broader themes that emerge.

Q: Can I work integratively in a short-term therapy model?

A: Students training in a range of different modalities are accepted onto our professional placement programme, including those on an integrative pathway who may include psychodynamic theory in their clinical practice. Although cases will vary, short-term therapy can involve working with the unreal relationship (transference/countertransference) and unconscious processes (defence mechanisms, dreams etc.).

Q: Is it necessary to work in the professional placement during university academic vacations as well as term times?

A: CAPS offers an all-year-round therapy service for students, so professional placements work in vacations as well as term-times and can therefore build up their contact hours at a faster rate. Annual leave time can be negotiated (preferrably to coincide with univeristy vacation times). The Clinical Psychology placement is available from October to March.

Q: How do I know if working as an Associate in Higher Education is right for me?

A: We offer a webinar session for potential professional placements to outline the expectations of the professional placement opportunity. Once you have registered your interest, we will let you know the date of the next webinar.

Also, we recommend reading Short-term Counselling in Higher Education: Context, Theory and Practice edited by David Mair (Publisher:Taylor & Francis Ltd; ISBN: 9781138794139) published November 2015.

The HE context is unique in that it means you will be required to 'think university support' rather than solely 'think individual client' and you will have to liaise with other support services across the university. You will be asked to consider your suitability in the application form and also at the interview.

Q: Is there the opportunity to take on paid work after a professional placement?

A: A placement can offer you a way to develop your therapy experience so you will be in a strong position to apply for paid posts, either in Warwick Wellbeing and Student Support or any other organisation. The skills acquired through the placement may allow you to demonstrate a range of sought-after competencies such as a capacity to work to brief, focussed contracts and to work efficiently with a range of presenting issues.

Q: Is there any reimbursement for expenses for placements?

A: Unfortunately we cannot offer any out of pocket expenses such as reimbursement of parking fees (NB paid staff also have to pay their own parking expenses) or travel costs.

Q: What times of the year do you recruit?

A: We usually recruit during spring and summer for placements starting in October. Occasionally we may have an opening for a placement during the academic year; this will be detailed on the website. If you have contacted CAPS during the academic year and expressed an interest, we may contact you directly to see if you are eligible and still seeking a placement.

Q: Do I have to offer a whole day per week as an Associate?

A: Generally, yes. There may be some flexibility in the start/finish times. We commit a lot of resource to supporting and developing Associates in the professional placement programme and feedback from previous Associates indicates that a whole day each week allows for the an appropriate embedding in to the service and a useful pace of clinical hours accrual.

What does a typical day's schedule look like?

A: The day is very structured which helps the containment of the varied and full client contact. Each day everyone will generally be scheduled with one new client, so case management skills are developed quickly, but there's plenty of support with this from the whole team. NB we are not able to offer Associate placements on a Tuesday.

Time	Elected day
9.00am	Arrive
9.15am	Client 1
10.15am	Client 2
11.15am	team time
11.30am	Client 3
12.30pm	Lunch
1.30pm	Client 4
2.30pm	team time
2.45pm	Client 5
3.45pm	Supervision/admin*

CAPS will endeavour to be as flexible as possible to set up a specific day of the week that is suitable. There is space to indicate your availability on the application form - we then match your availability with room and supervisor availability to draw up a schedule for the academic year.

Q: CAPS offers therapy groups. Are Associates involved?

A: Our therapy groups are experiential - as distinct from psychoeducational workshops - and as such need significant group conducting experience to facilitate so Associates would not be expected to be involved.

Q: If I have a connection with the University of Warwick, am I eligible to apply for a placement?

A: Any boundary issues have to be carefully considered. For example, if you are employed by the University of Warwick in a different capacity, or are a student with the university, or you have family members that work at the University, this would need to be considered and discussed at interview.

"CAPS has been a fantastically supportive and nurturing environment to work in while also challenging me to reach my full potential.”

"There is such a wealth of experience and willingness to help and support. I felt a part of the team within a few weeks"

"I was surprised by the sheer volume and intensity of the caseload – taking on new clients every week initially felt overwhelming but once I got into the rhythm of it, it felt much more comfortable and manageable."

"I have really valued the open-door policy to discussing concerns and the wider teams "

"One of the most invaluable aspects of my placement was having access to regular clinical supervision in which I could discuss client cases (including any uncertainties and issues) with my assigned supervisor in an in-depth way"

"I have been struck by the professionalism of the team and the pride in the service that we provide to students"

"brief therapy work is just as valid and not devoid of relationality by any means"

"A genuinely therapist focussed place to work, which in turn helps you offer your best to the student cohort that access the service."

"CAPIT has a comprehensive set of guidelines (in regard to booking client appointments, dealing with late cancellations, escalating in case of risk, etc.) which made the clinical work feel manageable, contained, and safe."

"... I found CAPIT to provide an optimal scaffold and structure for individuals starting out in their journey as a psychotherapist. I have learnt an awful lot, both about myself personally and in the professional context, and I wish anybody starting their placement there the best of luck and encourage them to make the most of the brilliant opportunities and learnings provided."