UCL or University of Edinburgh

[b_r_um]

Can you elaborate on those Master’s-level counseling jobs? Taken straight from Edinburgh’s website:

While the MSc in Counselling Studies is not a qualification to practice as a counsellor or psychotherapist, it introduces you to the skills of effective listening as well as the concepts which underpin person-centred and psychodynamic practice, and it can act as a foundation for further counsellor training and education or as a complement to existing practitioner qualifications.

UCL too positions its program as an additional qualification for people working in non-counseling areas, or as a preparation for a PhD in clinical psychology. Not as a stand-alone counseling credential.

The programme provides career development training for doctors, psychologists and practitioners in social work and education who intend to focus and develop their careers in the areas of child mental health.

Recent graduates have gone on to Clinical Doctorates in Psychology or had opportunities for progression in their current careers.

@collegemom3717

Not the UK options in particular, but the pathways: doing counseling directly with patients vs conducting research (theoretical or applied) are different trajectories.

Of course. But a research-oriented education does not automatically lead to a research career. In the US, many aspiring clinical psychologists who are confident that they only care about patient care apply to research-based PhD programs nonetheless. There are good reasons for doing that and the pros and cons of the different educational paths would certainly merit an extended discussion.