NCPS | I’m training to be a counsellor, should I join your…

There are lots of benefits to joining a professional association as a student. We understand it can be a very stressful time with deadlines looming, endless books to read and placements to find - we're here to provide an extra bit of support and some useful discounts and information to help along the way.

Being a member of the National Counselling Society (NCS) gives you the opportunity to join a wider counselling community outside of the classroom; a place to learn from other counsellors and receive insights into the world of counselling which you may not get from your training course alone.

In the members' area of our website you will have access to a number of things including, Good Practice Guidance documents on a variety of topics, a calendar of CPD workshops across the UK and a members' noticeboard to share news and ideas. As a member of the NCS you will also receive a monthly newsletter which is packed with articles and relevant news and announcements to keep you up-to-date.

It is important to join an association that fits with your ethos and provides you with the support you need to help you grow and develop as a counsellor. At the NCS we care about our members, who in turn care passionately about the people they support and together we are driving up standards whilst retaining the compassion and empathy that constitute great counsellors. We recognise different 'life stages' of a counsellor and we offer different levels of membership to reflect this. The level of membership relevant to those in training is 'Student' member. Once you have qualified and meet the relevant criteria you can apply to upgrade your membership to be on the NCS' Accredited Register and our friendly team can support you with this process.

You will also receive material benefits if you join the NCS as a student member, below is a sample of what you can expect:

- Access to a placement page with a list of UK-wide placement providers

- Access to a directory of discounted personal counselling

- Access to a directory of discounted supervision

- You can apply for the NUS Extra

- Receive a 20% discount on titles from

- Receive a 20% discount on Routledge's products

- Receive a 30% discount on selected titles with SAGE

- Receive discounted insurance rates

Ready to join?

You can apply for membership with the NCS today: https://www.nationalcounsellingsociety.org/become-a-member/individual-member/apply/. we aim to avoid a needlessly complicated 'tick box' style of application in preference for a more holistic approach to your experience, practice and qualifications.

Still deciding on a course?

If you are still deciding which counselling course to join, why not search for an NCS Accredited courses near you? Students on an NCS Accredited course receive discounted membership rates and a more direct route to our Accredited Register. You can search for courses here: https://www.nationalcounsellingsociety.org/become-a-counsellor.

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    Find a Counsellor

    If you're looking for a counsellor, you can search our register by location or name, and you can also check whether someone is on the NCPS accredited register.

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    Train as a Counsellor

    Use our Find a Course tool to find the nearest training providers who offer NCPS Accredited, Advanced Specialist, Quality Checked or CPD courses. These courses are currently run across the UK.

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