About Educational Counselling
Frequently Asked Questions
If I complete this program, do I automatically become a Certified
Canadian Counsellor with the Canadian Counselling Association?
The M.Ed. in Educational Counselling is designed to satisfy requirements
to become a Certified Canadian Counsellor if you entered the program
with some psychology background, but it is not guaranteed. You should
consult the CCA website (http://www.ccacc.ca/)
for details on course requirements and the application process.
The site will also give you details on the benefits of becoming
a Certified Canadian Counsellor.
What sorts of jobs are available to me with an M.Ed. in Educational
Counselling?
Please follow the links on this site to the article entitled A
Portrait of Counselling for a published article that provides a
rich account of the job opportunities for our graduates.
Is this program mainly for people hoping to work as school counsellors?
If you read the above mentioned article, you'll see that
while about a quarter of our graduates work in schools, the majority
find employment elsewhere. The program is not specifically tailored
to counselling in schools, but has more of a general counselling
orientation. The program is designed to give students a broad orientation
to the field of counselling and to help them develop skills that
can be used in a variety of work settings, including, for example,
community agencies, educational settings (like university and college
counselling centers as well as schools), and Employee Assistance
Programs (EAPs).
Why must some students take Education courses in order to be admitted?
Students without a background in Education are asked to take some
additional courses in what is called the “Extended Program” (EP). Courses in the EP are drawn from the M.Ed. course bank, and
the're intended to introduce students without a B.Ed. to basic
educational theories and practices. If you have taken courses or
have work experience that is closely related to education, you can
request a reduction in the number of EP courses at the time of admission.
Note that if you do not agree with the EP requirements you are assigned
at the time of admission, you can appeal the decision to the Director
of Graduate Studies in the Faculty, but only before you accept the
offer of admission.
Can I take courses off campus?
Yes, some courses offered at other universities qualify as optional
courses in the M.Ed. program. You are permitted to take up to a
maximum of two courses of your M.Ed. program elsewhere. However,
you must get permission from the Director of Graduate Studies at
least one month prior to the beginning of the course. Many of our
students take courses at St. Paul University in its Pastoral Counselling
program, which can be reached by a shuttle bus from the University
of Ottawa campus.
Where can I work on a computer on campus?
There are a number of computer labs available to students on campus.
Graduate students in Education have access to a computer lab on
the third floor of Lamoureux Hall, where they can get assistance
from graduate student assistants who specialize in various software
applications. The lab includes a meeting area as well.
Can I go on to a Ph.D. with my M.Ed. in Educational Counselling?
At present, the faculty of Education at the University of Ottawa
does not offer a Ph.D. program in Educational Counselling. In some
cases, students interested in pursuing Ph.D. studies in counselling
enroll in the Ph.D. in Psychopedagogy and fashion a program of studies
focused on counselling-relevant courses. Students who have not completed
a research-based Masters (thesis track) such as the M.Ed. are required
to compete an “interim report”, which is a substantial
research project, in order to qualify for entry into the Ph.D program.
Most, but not all, counselling Ph.D. programs elsewhere require
a Masters thesis for entry.
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