From Student to Therapist: Building Your Professional Identity Early On.
I get a lot of questions from students about I got into the field, and what they can do to make themselves more employable. I also get a lot of questions from graduated counsellors who are struggling to get their foot in the door. In this blog post I draw on my personal experience to share some practical tips for developing your professional identity earlier, rather than later. Because you are not just a ‘student’. You are a counsellor-in-training.
I also touch on something useful that helps me to navigate imposter syndrome.
Let’s look at your professional identity and find ways to build confidence, credibility, and competency.
Shift Your Mindset: Not ‘Just’ A Student
Yes, you are a student. Of course. But you are also a counsellor-in-training. It’s easy to develop imposter syndrome (and you will) and fall into those thought traps of “I’m just”, “I’m only”, “I’m not ready”, or “I can’t”. These thoughts can keep us stuck in a passive place, when what we want to be doing is taking a more active and directive role in our professional development. So, step one is adopt the mindset that you are a counsellor-in-training and you have some power and control in the direction your studies and professional opportunities take. Claim your space as a developing professional. Begin showing up as that. Be that how you hold yourself in conversation, how you write emails, or how you allow yourself to take part in professional growth events that you would usually avoid because you are “just a student”.
Below I am going to list out some ways to take on and develop this professional identity.
“What we want to be doing is taking a more active and directive role in our professional development.”
1. Take advantage of any and all opportunities your university has for professional development.
These do not have to be confined to your discipline (be that counselling, psychology or something else). See what awards, bursaries, academic clubs, learning opportunities and events the university offers. A degree can only teach us so much. Get outside the classroom (and textbook) and take advantage of programs and events that help you develop professional skills.
A few examples include: Volunteering opportunities posted by your university, free public lectures, calls for research assistants by faculty members, joining committees and clubs and engaging in their events, taking part in any mentoring programs offered at your university, and getting actively involved with health and wellness events your university hosts.
The more diverse the better. We want to hone skills that boost our confidence, make us feel more capable and competent, and add to our resourcefulness.
“Networking does not have to only be about attending planned events and conferences, and awkwardly mingling over bad coffee and cold sandwiches.”
2. Volunteer
I cannot recommend this one enough. Again, this does not have to be confined to your course requirements or even to your discipline. When we volunteer our time anywhere, we improve our communication skills, learn how to network, interact with diverse people, and learn from others. There are ways now to volunteer digitally if you can’t find local in-person opportunities. You can commit to volunteering regularly and long-term, or do it for a few hours here and there.
A counsellor-in-training may not be able to volunteer in an actual mental health setting as a clinician, but they can volunteer in other roles. Learning to work the phones, do intakes, take referrals etc. are all valuable skills. Check out your local community centre for opportunities, or ask one of your tutors or lecturers if they have any ideas. Or, challenge yourself and call/email some local businesses directly.
Some areas where volunteer hours can help with your professional development as a counsellor/therapist include: Mentoring, tutoring (also, what a great way to revise what you know), working with young people, court support work, working with homeless communities, social media content creation for a not-for-profit, the disability sector, age care sectors, helping to plan or organise local mental health events, or working hotlines such as Lifeline that also provide valuable training and support.
Heck, volunteer with mental health charities at their Bunnings Sausage Sizzle fundraisers. It’s minimal time/effort and you get to meet local practitioners and make valuable contacts for the future.
Volunteering is also a GREAT way to work out what you DO NOT want to do. If you have an idea that you don’t want to work in a certain area or with a certain age group, for example, what a great way to get a taste of what it would be like before completely discounting it.
Bonus: Volunteering looks great on your CV as it shows future employers that you take initiative by being an active agent in your own professional and personal development.
3. Start a Peer Supervision Group.
You are literally in the prime location (university) to create your own peer supervision group. Peer supervision is great as it allows you to debrief, learn and share discipline-specific content, with people who get it. In your case, it might be with people who are also counsellors-in-training - so you have a shared experience. Getting together with a small group on a regular basis to share and debrief (about client work, theoretical content, or study) is a useful way to develop professionally. In a peer-supervision group there is generally no leader, no hierarchy. You can meet in-person or online. As you move through your study and career, consider always having a peer-supervision group you attend. These help you stay connected and you learn new things from colleagues. Talking about cases and theories and ethical dilemmas and all that stuff will also help you to get BETTER at talking about it. You will learn to comfortably put language to all that you are learning. This will help boost your confidence and your level of competency.
4. Network!
I know. Networking is scary. The thought of attending that event alone, showing up to a room filled with people who all seem to know each other… scary! This is where we can let our nerves get the best of us. But in doing so we are also letting that idea of being “just” a student also get the best of us! No. You are a counsellor-in-training and you have the right to be in these spaces too. I wager you that every experienced professional in that room thinks it’s amazing that you, a current student, are so excited about this industry that you are taking an ACTIVE role in your own learning and development. They want you there.
But networking does not have to only be about attending planned events and conferences, and awkwardly mingling over bad coffee and cold sandwiches.
Let’s explore some other, more organic, ways to make connections with peers:
1. Reach out to a professional you admire, and invite them to coffee (your shout).
2. Email those people or companies that are doing the work you want to be doing. Introduce yourself, and ask if it’s okay for you to pop in and see their space and have a brief chat.
3. Invite your favourite lecturer or supervisor to coffee (even if it’s in their office - take the coffee to them!).
4. Join online therapy communities, and engage.
5. Volunteer.
6. Attend your local online or in-person Mental Health Professional Network (MHPN) meetings.
7. Attend your Australian Counselling Association (ACA) or PACFA or other governing body chapter meetings. If you haven’t joined as a student member yet, consider it.
8. Go to local wellness, medical, and mental health events, and actually talk to the stall holders.
9. Make friends. Convert a ‘contact’ into a genuine friendship.
10. Join a peer supervision group (or start one).
11. Start or join a therapist book club.
13. Reconnect with people you have already met in the industry.
***I know… my coffee addiction is coming through strong in this one.
5. Reflective Practice
Allow professional development and personal development to connect. Keep a reflective practice journal. Go to your own therapy. Get your own professional supervision (individual or group). Integrate feedback you receive. When we reflect on our practice we become better practitioners. Keep this up and it will be a practice that benefits you throughout your whole career.
Reflective practice can also help you find a theoretical orientation that feels right for you. This theoretical orientation can, and likely will, change. Having a sense of what underpins your practice and perspective as a counsellor is key to a strong professional identity.
When it comes to your CV and job interviews, it is also beneficial to know what you are talking about. You will undoubtedly be asked questions about how you handle ethical dilemmas and how you maintain your own self-care. Having a good, solid reflective practice in place gives you a genuine place to come from to approach these questions.
6. Diversity is where we thrive
Early on, as a counsellor-in-training and as a new graduate working their first few jobs; look for ways to diversify your skills. I did this intentionally by working in a sector that I had zero initial interest in, but one that I knew would be relevant to many of my clients over my career (Alcohol and Other Drugs). I loved that work and still see it in my clients. I knew it was an area where I needed to build my skills, to be a better counsellor in the long-term. I also took a job working in crisis, self-harm and suicide prevention. Another job that has been foundational to my skillset as a counsellor.
Again, even though I am not specifically in that sector now, I work with these issues almost every day. The other theme I worked with was Trauma. These initial jobs helped to prepare me to be able to support a wide range of clients. In these roles I also was able to upskill in facilitating group therapy, workshops and psychoeducation seminars. All valuable skills that helped build my competency and confidence, and develop my professional identity.
The Take Away
The roles I’ve taken on, from operating my own private practice to volunteering, have opened doors to professional development opportunities I never would have imagined at the start. Looking back, I can see that it wasn’t about doing “everything,” but about saying yes to a range of experiences. The variety of things I did on and off of campus helped me to build confidence, skills, and connections; which ultimately supported me in securing my first job. Some people find one area they love early on and stay there - and that’s fantastic. For me, gaining a wide mix of experiences early helped me feel more prepared and adaptable. By the time I graduated from my Master’s, I’d developed contacts through networking, sharpened my skills through diverse roles, and actively sought opportunities outside of what university alone provided. Those steps helped me feel “future proofed” — at least as much as we can ever be, and eventually led me to my current role, which feels like a dream job (even though it’s still early days!).
These diverse experiences - from networking to reflective practice to volunteering to looking for university-led professional opportunities - helped shape the foundations of my theoretical orientation and philosophy as a counsellor. The roles I worked have helped to shift, hone and strengthen that. I know who I am professionally, and what guides me, and THAT is one heck of an antidote for imposter syndrome!
My path won’t be everyone’s. And, I still have a long path ahead of me as I continue to grow and learn. But if you can take away one thing that helps you shape and build your own professional identity, let me know in the comments.
It can feel bleak at times - whether you are studying and are full of imposter syndrome, or you’re job seeking and doubting yourself. You’ve got this! You can do it. There are things that are always out of our control, but we can choose to focus on the things we can control. We can be active and intentional in how we learn, grow and develop.
BONUS:
7. Remind yourself that you do not need to know it all, ever.
You are a human who is learning, and growing. If you’re lucky, you always will be. We are all at different stages of our life, study and career. People will not expect you to know it all or have it all sorted. You are allowed to be a counsellor-in-training who is still finding their professional identity, and still learning. One day you won’t be the ‘newbie’ or the ‘young grad’ but will be that person who a counsellor-in-training reaches out to for guidance or support - and won’t they be lucky to have you!
