Counselling - D6003
Professional entry master's degree
If you are passionate about helping people and want to make a positive difference in the lives of others, this is the course for you.
The Master of Counselling at Monash provides a professional qualification and offers a combination of theory and professional experience, providing you with the knowledge and skills to begin a rewarding career as a counsellor.
The course is suited to people from a variety of professions, such as human resources, health, social welfare and education. It is taught by leading academics with extensive experience working as counsellors and psychologists.
You'll acquire specialised knowledge and skills in professional counselling practice, which you will be able to apply to diverse settings and contexts.
You will engage with highly qualified and dedicated teaching staff who will use their extensive experience working as professional counsellors or psychologists to illustrate theoretical material and who will help you apply this to real-world counselling practice in a variety of settings.
You will develop expert knowledge about counselling practice with individuals, couples, families and groups, and will acquire skills and expertise in contemporary evidence-based counselling approaches in order to conduct assessments and interventions with diverse populations.
You will also master a range of professional skills and develop your own counselling style through 200 hours of professional experience, which includes 100 'contact' hours (e.g. face-to-face, couple, family and group counselling) and 100 'non-contact' hours (e.g. observation, case notes, meetings, administration).
The Counselling Placement Team source many placements and communicate these opportunities to students. Please note most placement providers will require you to submit an application and/or attend an interview to secure the placement. If you are located interstate, overseas or rurally you will be required to source your own placements, under the guidance of the Counselling Placement Team.
Graduates work in a variety of fields, including careers counselling, education, child and family services, health policy, family counselling, health-services management and rehabilitation counselling.
This course is accredited in Australia by the Australian Counselling Association (ACA) and the Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia (PACFA).
At a glance
Course Details
Location |
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| Note: | Students enrolled in the Multi-modal delivery mode must attend an intensive school on the designated campus for both EDF5060 and EDF5063. The Hong Kong and Singapore course offerings are delivered through our partner Kaplan. For information about course delivery, applications and fees please visit the Kaplan Hong Kong or Kaplan Singapore website. The multi-modal offering at Clayton is only available to domestic applicants who reside within Australia. |
Duration |
1, 1.5, or 2 years full-time depending on prior qualifications. See entry requirements. |
Start date |
Semester 1 (February), Semester 2 (July) |
Qualification |
Master of Counselling |
Entry Requirements
You need to satisfy the following entrance requirements to be considered for entry to this course.
Minimum Entry Requirements (Domestic students)
Qualifications
Entry level 1: 96 points to complete | An Australian bachelor degree (or equivalent) with at least a high credit (65%) average. |
Entry level 2: 72 points to complete | An Australian bachelor degree (or equivalent) with at least a high credit (65%) average and a minimum of two years of full time equivalent relevant professional experience Or An Australian bachelor degree (or equivalent) in a related discipline including social work, psychology or counselling with at least a high credit (65%) average Or A four-year Australian bachelor honours degree or an Australian graduate certificate or an Australian graduate diploma (or equivalent) with at least a high credit (65%) average Or An Australian master's degree (or equivalent) with at least a high credit (65%) average. |
Entry level 3: 48 points to complete | An Australian bachelor degree (or equivalent) in a related discipline including social work, psychology or counselling with at least a high credit (65%) average and a minimum of two years of full time equivalent relevant professional experience Or A four-year Australian bachelor honours degree or an Australian graduate certificate or an Australian graduate diploma (or equivalent) with at least a high credit (65%) average and a minimum of two years of full time equivalent relevant professional experience Or A four-year Australian bachelor honours degree or an Australian graduate certificate or an Australian graduate diploma (or equivalent) in a related discipline including social work, psychology or counselling with at least a high credit (65%) average Or An Australian master's degree (or equivalent) with at least a high credit (65%) average and a minimum of two years of full time equivalent relevant professional experience Or An Australian master's degree (or equivalent) in a related discipline including social work, psychology or counselling with at least a high credit (65%) average. |
English requirements
Applicants must also meet the English language requirements.
University entrance requirements
Minimum entrance requirements for admission to Monash University Australia.
Extra Requirements
On-campus study requirement for online Clayton students
The unit, EDF5063 Contemporary counselling approaches, requires compulsory attendance at an intensive school on the Clayton campus. See the unit handbook entry for more information.
Professional experience
This course requires you to complete 200 hours of professional experience. This includes a minimum of 100 hours client contact in which you will apply and develop your counselling skills and 100 non-client hours. While completing these mandatory hours, you will receive 25 hours of supervision from experienced practitioners.
Before participating in professional experience in any setting, you must:
- meet specific security clearances (eg. Working With Children Check) that apply in the state/territory/country where the professional experience is being undertaken
- complete professional experience orientation provided by the faculty.
The counselling placement team source many placements and will communicate these opportunities to you. Please note that most placement providers will require you to apply and/or attend an interview to secure the placement. You may have the opportunity to self-source placements. If you are located interstate, overseas or rurally, you are particularly encouraged to do this, under the guidance of the counselling placement team.
For advice on professional experience intervention, support, and unsatisfactory progress, refer to the Professional experience intervention and support policy.
Professional experience expenses
You are responsible for all uniform, equipment, travel, accommodation and any other expenses incurred during professional experience and will be notified regarding purchase arrangements upon commencement.
Inherent requirements
To complete your degree, you will need to demonstrate that you have the abilities, knowledge, and skills to achieve specific core learning outcomes, these are called inherent requirements.
Find out more about inherent requirements for this course.
The course structure and progression map can be viewed in the Handbook.
Making the application
Future students
Course start dates
Semester 1 (February), Semester 2 (July)
Application dates
Please submit your application during relevant application dates:
- Semester 1, 2026 intake:
30 May 2025 – 31 October 2025 - Semester 2, 2026 intake:
1 February 2026 – 30 April 2026
How to apply
Apply directly to Monash using course code D6003.
Please apply early
We have limited places in this course. In addition, we have limited places available for interstate applicants. Admission into the course is competitive and is based on academic merit. Your application will be assessed once applications have closed. It is essential that you submit your application and all required documentation by the closing date, so that your application is considered. If we receive a high volume of applications, we may need to close applications early. We encourage you to apply early.
Offers cannot be deferred
If you receive an offer for this course, you will not be able to defer your offer to a future intake, due to the selection process and quotas.
Self assess for credit eligibility
Check for study credit using the "Credit search" link on the Credit for prior study page.
Fees
Fees are subject to change annually.
Full fee
Fees are per 48 credit points which represents a standard full-time course load for a year. The fees for 2026 are:
A$35,400
Fee assistance
As a full fee-paying student, you may be eligible to apply for the optional FEE-HELP to assist you to pay all or part of your tuition fees.
Fee information specific to this course
Domestic students in this course may apply for Austudy payments from Centrelink / the Department of Human Services. See the Austudy site for details.
*Additional eligibility criteria apply.
Scholarships
We offer over 360 types of scholarships, valued at up to $280,000. Some scholarships offer one-off payments while others continue for the length of your course. Learn more about Monash Scholarships.
Other costs and fees
For information on other study costs and fees, see other study costs.