Training Institute

Welcome to the Cork Counselling Services Training Institute. Watch our introductory video here! Our aim is to educate and train students so that they attain professional counselling standards reflecting best practice nationally and internationally. We aim to foster personal responsibility, ethical and social awareness and inclusive practice in our students. We look to aid students in the development of this professionalism by mutually creating an active learning environment which is inclusive, supportive and constructively challenging”.

10 Good Reasons To Train With Us

1. We are rooted in community with 40 years counselling and  27 years training experience and the best training team in Ireland! (probably).

2. Our courses are accredited and regularly audited by IACP and/or Coventry University to ensure top quality training to international standards.

3. Unlike other colleges, our teaching is practice-based. Its a non-profit, values-based counselling organisation with in-house placement opportunities and guidance on employability.

4. Our learning is experiential and applied, with small group sizes, tailored for the optimum group experience – diverse and inclusive. We focus on a small number of programmes, not loads.

5. We offer state-of-the-art venues, mostly in clinical or retreat settings, with privacy and comfort always guaranteed. There are several residential workshops which bond groups through challenging themes.

6. We offer flexible full-time and part-time study options, with incremental learning opportunities from Certificate to Honours Degree.

7. Our trainers are practising and working within recognised codes of ethics and professional practice.

8. We offer you the possibility to train for a new career while maintaining your current employment.

9. The courses offer a unique opportunity to reclaim joy, wonder and creativity in your life with space and attention given to fun and celebration.

10. We run an extensive city centre counselling library which is available for use and study by all students. We also have access to online libraries and databases.

Supervision, Train-the-trainer, Internships

If you are already qualified we offer supervision for counsellors, psychotherapists, psychologists and supervisors. The Institute is also running a two-year Certificate programme for qualified counsellors who wish to become counselling trainers. It also offers a Postgraduate Internship for graduates working towards accreditation. For details on any of these programmes please contact us.

History of The Training Institute

Since its foundation Cork Counselling Services Training Institute has been providing professional training, supervision, and placements for third level students.  Early training programmes included a two-year Certificate programme in basic counselling and communication skills, and a full-time internship. Cork Counselling Services Training Institute also delivered a series of seminars for a GP training scheme and Bachelor of Arts Degree in Applied Psychology. In the 1990s The Centre began to work with the Irish Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (IACP) and it developed its own Diploma programme. Our Diploma in Counselling was one of the first professional training courses to be recognised by the IACP in 1996.

Over time interest in our training programmes has flourished and The Training Institute expanded into the comprehensive range of courses in counselling that we offer today.  Other developments have seen the Institute design the format for practice hour placements so that students have the option of completing their practice hours by placement at Cork Counselling Services or at placements around the country. This has provided ease of access to students who travel long distances to training.