The School Counsellor in Training Sponsorship program supports approved teachers to train to become a school counsellor.
Eligible teachers will have completed a three or four year sequence of Australian Psychology Accreditation Council (APAC) accredited undergraduate program or Graduate Diploma program, within the previous five years, with a Grade Point Average of no less than 5.5 in core level 2 & 3 psychology subjects (introductory psychology subjects do not form part of the GPA calculation).
If you have completed a three year sequence of APAC accredited psychology studies, you will be sponsored for two years to complete your Masters of Psychological Practice.
If you have completed a four year sequence of APAC accredited psychology studies, you will be sponsored for one year to complete your Masters of Professional Psychology.
School counsellors in training receive:
- full-time teaching salary
- tuition fees paid
- paid accommodation expenses to attend compulsory face-to-face university intensives where overnight accommodation is necessary
- a Master of Psychological Practice (School Psychology) or Masters of Professional Psychology from Charles Sturt University upon successful completion of the course
- a permanent school counselling position in a NSW public school in an area of workforce need.
Application Requirements
To apply, you will need to:
- be an Australian citizen or permanent resident
- hold a current NSW driver's licence
- be an approved teacher with the NSW Department of Education for full-time employment
- have, within the previous five years, completed a three or four year Australian Psychology Accreditation Council (APAC) accredited undergraduate program or Graduate Diploma program, with a minimum Grade Point Average of no less than 5.5 in core level 2 and 3 psychology subjects (introductory psychology subjects do not form part of the GPA calculation)
- if currently completing a three year sequence of undergraduate psychology, not have more than two subjects to complete in trimester 3, 2023
- meet Charles Sturt University's entry requirements into the Master of Psychological Practice (School Psychology) or the Masters of Professional Psychology (School Psychology), including Charles Sturt University’s independent application, interview and referees report process. Advice on applying for entry into the Masters program will be provided during the Department’s merit selection process
- be willing to accept an appointment as a permanent full-time school counsellor in a NSW public school in an agreed location on completion of your studies for a minimum period of two years.
Agreed locations
As part of the application process, you will be asked to select either 'Anywhere in the State' or individual school education areas where you would like to be appointed on completion of your studies.
If you select to be appointed 'Anywhere in the State', you are agreeing to be appointed to a school in one of the following school education areas: Albury, Armidale, Bankstown, Batemans Bay, Bathurst, Blacktown, Bondi, Bourke, Broken Hill, Campbelltown, Central Coast, Clarence/Coffs Harbour, Deniliquin, Dubbo, Fairfield, Granville, Griffith, Hornsby, Lake Macquarie, Lismore, Liverpool, Maitland, Moree, Mount Druitt, Muswellbrook, Newcastle, Northern Beaches, Orange, Parramatta, Penrith, Port Jackson, Port Macquarie, Queanbeyan, Ryde, Shellharbour, St George, Sutherland, Tamworth, Taree, Tweed Heads/Ballina, Wagga Wagga, Windsor or Wollongong.
You may choose to select one school education area from the following list of priority areas of workforce need: Albury, Armidale, Bathurst, Bourke, Broken Hill, Deniliquin, Dubbo, Griffith, Moree, Mount Druitt, Orange, Queanbeyan, Tamworth, Taree or Wagga Wagga.
You could also select a minimum of three or more individual school education areas, from either Sydney metropolitan areas of workforce need and/or rural or remote areas of workforce need.
The metropolitan areas of workforce need are: Bankstown, Blacktown, Campbelltown, Fairfield, Granville, Liverpool, Mount Druitt, Parramatta, Penrith, Ryde and Windsor.
The rural or remote areas of workforce need are: Albury, Armidale, Batemans Bay, Bathurst, Bourke, Broken Hill, Clarence/Coffs Harbour, Deniliquin, Dubbo, Griffith, Lake Macquarie, Lismore, Maitland, Moree, Orange, Port Macquarie, Queanbeyan, Shellharbour, Tamworth, Taree, and Wagga Wagga.
Priority will be given to candidates who are prepared to work in high priority areas of workforce need.
Further information
Additional program information can be found in the FAQ’s.
Contact the Student Wellbeing Recruitment Team via swr@det.nsw.edu.au or phone 1300 32 32 32 (option 3, 3, 4).