Postgraduate Certificate in Supervision of Applied Psychological Practice

Differences from 2016/17 to 2021/22

General Regulations

  • 1. The Oxford Institute of Clinical Psychology Training shall have power, on behalf of the Medical Sciences Board, to admit students for the Postgraduate Certificate in Supervision of Applied Psychological Practice.

  • 2. The Oxford Institute of Clinical Psychology Training shall make a return to the Registrar by the end of the first week of Michaelmas Full Term, showing the names of all persons admitted in that term as students for the Postgraduate Certificate in Supervision of Applied Psychological Practice, and the Registrar shall keep a register of such students.

  • 3. The Medical Sciences Board shall have power, on the recommendation of the Oxford Institute of Clinical Psychology Training, to remove temporarily or permanently the name of a student from the register. This power shall include cases where students have been found under the procedures of the course guilty of gross misconduct or in breach of relevant regulations, codes or standards of their associated professional or registration body.

  • 4. Students will hold a professional postgraduate qualification as an applied psychologist, or as a qualified psychotherapist or counsellor with an Honours degree, or another relevant professional qualification in health and social care or education, and will be registered with a professional body as deemed appropriate by the Oxford Institute for Clinical Psychology Training. Students will have been professionally qualified for at least one year and will have experience of providing clinical supervision, or exceptionally will be at the point of taking on clinical supervisory responsibilities.

  • 5. The Oxford Institute of Clinical Psychology Training shall have power, on behalf of the Medical Sciences Board, to elect for the supervision of the programme a Steering Committee to arrange teaching, assessments and other instruction.

  • 6. Every student must follow a one year course of study on a part-time basis, and attend teaching days which will normally take place monthly, as determined by the programme timetable. The programme commences in October and runs until September of the following year.

  • 7. Students shall normally be required to attend a minimum of 10 of the 13 teaching days across the programme.

  • 8. Students will be required to undertake a minimum of 40 hours of clinical supervision of their own supervisees (on an individual, group or peer basis) during the duration of the programme, and arrangement of this prior to joining the programme shall be the responsibility of each student.

  • 9. Students will be required to receive regular supervision themselves for their own professional practice, and arrangement of this prior to joining the programme shall be the responsibility of each student.

  • 10. Students who are unable to attend the minimum number of teaching days, or to complete the minimum number of clinical supervision hours will be able to defer completion of the course until the following year, until the programme requirements have been satisfied. Subject to the provisions of clauses 3, 6, 7, and 8 above, Students for the Postgraduate Certificate in Supervision of Applied Psychological Practice may hold that status for a maximum of two years.

  • 11. The Proctors shall be responsible for overseeing the proper conduct of the examinations for the Postgraduate Certificate in Supervision of Applied Psychological Practice. They shall have power to investigate any concern regarding the conduct of any candidate for the examination and to impose any penalty equivalent to that which may be imposed upon a member of the University in similar circumstances.

  • 12. An appeal against a decision of the Board of Examiners for the Postgraduate Certificate in Supervision of Applied Psychological Practice must be made to the Complaints && Academic Appeals Panel of the Oxford Institute of Clinical Psychology Training in the first instance, through procedures laid down in the course handbook. A candidate who is dissatisfied with the decision of the Institutes Complaints && Academic Appeals Panel may submit an appeal through the Universitys Procedures for Handling Complaints (including Academic Appeals) laid down and published by the Proctors under section 22 of Statute IX.

  • 13. Should any Students for the Postgraduate Certificate in Supervision of Applied Psychological Practice have access to University services and facilities, they will be required to observe the appropriate statutes, regulations, and/or rules governing the use of such services and facilities. The Proctors shall have power to investigate any alleged breaches of those statutes, regulations, and/or rules and to deal with the matter and impose any penalty equivalent to that which they would have been empowered to impose upon a member of the University in similar circumstances.

Special Regulations

  • 1. Students shall follow a course of training in the supervision of applied psychological practice. This training is designed to provide a thorough grounding in the understanding and application of supervision theory, drawing on the evidence base, and to provide opportunities to develop key supervision skills. A number of theories, models and frameworks will be covered, as well as a critical review of the evidence base for supervision. Key concepts and principles will be reviewed including effective supervisory relationships, ethical issues, power and difference in supervision. There will be opportunities to practice important supervision skills such as developing supervision contracts, assessing competence and giving feedback, as well as promoting learning and reflective practice. There will be opportunities for students to learn from programme staff and from one another. Methods of learning will incorporate a combination of didactic lectures, small and large group discussion, experiential exercises (including role play and personal reflection), self-assessment and facilitated supervision groups. The details and format of the training will be notified to students by the Course Director, prior to the commencement of the course.

  • 2. Candidates shall be examined in all of the following ways:

    • (a) One 4,000 word essay on an aspect of supervision covered in the curriculum. The essay must be submitted in March on a date to be specified in the programme Handbook.

    • (b) Recording of supervision (video or audio) with a 2,000 word critical commentary and completed outcome measure of the supervisory relationship. The recording and accompanying material must be submitted in July on a date to be specified in the programme Handbook.

    • (c) Reflective log (3,000 words) of supervision practice and learning and development as a supervisor, including a record of the number of supervisory hours undertaken as a supervisor and as a supervisee. The log must be submitted in September on a date to be specified in the programme Handbook.

  • 3. Guidelines for the preparation and submission of all assessed work will be included in the programme Handbook.

  • 4. Candidates must pass all of the examined components in order to pass overall.

  • 5. Should they fail to reach the required standard candidates will be permitted one opportunity to re-take each of the required examined components, normally within 3 months of the original failure. Candidates failing to pass any examined component at the second attempt will normally be judged to have failed to reach the required standard for the award of the Postgraduate Certificate and will not be permitted to continue.

  • 6. Candidates shall be required to satisfy the examiners in all of the examined components within 2 years of registering for the Postgraduate Certificate.

  • 7. The required submissions must be:

    • (a) sentuploaded to the ChairUniversity ofapproved Examinersonline forasessment the Postgraduate Certificate in Supervision of Applied Psychological Practice, c/o the Programme Administrator, Isis Education Centre, Warneford Hospital, Headington, Oxford OX3 7JX platform by the required date.

    • (b) accompanied by a declaration of authorship signed by the candidate, and for assignment 2(c), must be countersigned by the candidates practice supervisor.

    • (c) accompanied by a declaration that no clinical or supervisory material has been included, without ensuring that it: (i) has been fully anonymised, (ii) does not enable identification, and (iii) has been obtained and used with consent.

    • Declarations must be submitted separately in a sealed envelope addressed to the Chair of Examiners for the Postgraduate Certificate in Supervision of Applied Psychological Practice.

  • 8. The Board of Examiners will meet three times a year, will decide upon the outcome of the examined components, and will recommend to the University the award of the Postgraduate Certificate for successful candidates.

  • 9. There is no alternative award for candidates who fail to meet the required standard or who do not complete the programme.