Academic Associate - Counselling

The Team

Counselling sits within the School of Education, Language and Psychology. Our programmes and our philosophy as a subject area sit firmly in a humanistic tradition. Our reputation is based on a successful history that spans almost 40 years of offering humanistic counsellor training that has a national acclaim for excellence. Our provision incorporates a BA in Counselling and Mental Health, and postgraduate courses including the PG Dip/MA in Humanistic Counselling and Person-Centred Experiential Counselling for Depression both of which are accredited by the BACP. We also run a Certificate in Counselling Skills and a range of short CPD courses focused on working with Children and Young People. An integral part of our subject area is the YSJ Communities Centre where we offer a community facing counselling service, CPD activities and undertake research. We work collaboratively with partners a wide range of placement providers across the city of York and further afield. Our commitment to social justice is at the heart of all that we do. 

The Role

Our team is expanding, and we are seeking to recruit an enthusiastic Academic Associate to undertake a PhD looking at what therapeutic support is available, and might be developed for trans, non-binary and gender non-conforming people. The role is designed to provide an opportunity for a mix of teaching and research. You will be part of the wider counselling team and undertake teaching across a variety of settings, including small group skills sessions/seminars, lectures, assessments, and marking. 

As part of our commitment to providing an inclusive working environment, consideration is given to all requests for job share or flexible working arrangements. Any appointment will be conditional upon acceptance to a PhD programme at York St John University. 

Required Skills and Experience

The successful candidate will hold a professional qualification and be a member of a relevant professional body, such as BACP, NMC or SWE. 

The successful candidate will hold an honours degree (2:1 or above) and a postgraduate masters degree (or working towards this) from a UK HEI, or an internationally recognised equivalent. The degree must be in a discipline that is relevant to the research.

Key attributes

• Knowledge and experience to teach on counselling and mental health modules
• Understanding of trans, non-binary and gender non-conforming contexts, experiences and complexities
• Ability to engage in creative, participatory and inclusive research methodologies
• A proven ability to work well both independently and with others in a research environment
• A high standard of written English and the ability to communicate clearly in both academic (within the university setting) and non-academic contexts (with community groups) where and when appropriate

The Research

This project seeks to better understand trans, non-binary and gender non-conforming experiences in counselling and mental health settings. A particular focus will be in developing training or a toolkit for the sector which takes a trauma-informed approach. We are looking for a candidate who will be able to take the lead and steer this project in a community-informed direction.

We anticipate this would be pursued using Participatory Action Research and coproduction methodologies. It is hoped that the research will not only feed into the body of literature concerned with supporting individuals from this community but also service development for the York St John Communities Centre.

Main Supervisor/contact for further details: Dr Penn Smith p.smith2@yorksj.ac.uk 

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