Blogs

Advocacy Win: Medicare Mental Health Check In Roles Now Open to ACA Counsellors

By Admin ACA posted 7 days ago
18 February 2026 The Australian Counselling Association (ACA) is proud to share ACA Level 2 (Masters * ), Level 3 and Level 4 counsellors are now eligible for roles within the new Medicare Mental Health Check In (MMHCI) initiative. The roles currently advertised are seeking core members of a newly established, national virtual mental health workforce delivering structured Low-Intensity Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (LiCBT) to Australians seeking early mental health support. Permanent, full-time roles are available. *ACA Level 2 (Masters) counsellors can apply for these roles, if they meet the prerequisite of two years experience. ...

Maximise Your ACA Member Portal

By Admin ACA posted 14 days ago
10 February 2026 The start of the year is a good time to review your ACA Member Portal and make sure your details are up to date. Your ACA Member Portal supports key features such as Find A Counsellor, private health fund applications and professional records, so keeping your information current is essential. Find A Counsellor One of the most important reasons to update your profile is visibility in the Find A Counsellor directory. If your profile is not set to visible or your details are incomplete, potential clients and referrers may not be able to find you. An up-to-date profile helps ensure your services are clearly represented. To get the ...

Member Spotlight: Tom Edwards, PhD

By Admin ACA posted 19 days ago
5 February 2026 Meet Tom Edwards, PhD Each month we spotlight an ACA member in the ACA Monthly Bulletin, our monthly newsletter. The Member Spotlight is designed to showcase the work of our members to you! We hope their stories inspire or spark interest. Let’s share our experiences within our counselling community. What motivated you to pursue a career in counselling? I became a counsellor almost by accident. At the time I was an academic researching and teaching on the neuroscience of memory but not enjoying lab work, it was socially isolating. What I noticed was that the “pracademics” in the School appeared to be the happiest. ...

Why Recruit Through the ACA Careers Centre

By Admin ACA posted 20 days ago
5 February 2026 Finding the right counsellor is all about connecting with qualified professionals who understand ethical practice, ongoing professional development, and the standards expected within the counselling profession. The ACA Careers Centre is a purpose-built recruitment platform designed exclusively for the Australian Counselling Association community. It creates a direct connection between employers and ACA-registered counsellors, making recruitment more efficient. A targeted audience of qualified professionals When you advertise through the ACA Careers Centre, your role is promoted directly to over 20,000 ACA-registered counsellors ...

Does Approved Professional Development Really Matter? An Opinion on Quality, Confidence, and Care

By Admin ACA posted 23 days ago
2 February 2026 In counselling and psychotherapy, professional development is not just a box-ticking exercise. It’s a core mechanism for ensuring safeguarding across clients, strengthening confidence in practitioners, and ensuring this profession evolves in line with the evidence, ethics, and community needs. Over the past year, significant work has been undertaken at ACA to strengthen what it means for professional development to be “ approved ”. This has included the introduction of a new learning and Ongoing Professional Development (OPD) management platform, embarking on clearer benchmarks for quality and relevance to counselling, and a more ...

ACA Announces CEO Transition in 2026

By Admin ACA posted 20-01-2026
20 January 2026 The Australian Counselling Association (ACA) is sharing an important update regarding future changes to our leadership team. Late last week, ACA CEO Jodie McKenzie advised the Board that she will not be renewing her contract for another term and intends to conclude her role on 10 July 2026, to focus on her tech start-up, Pracability, a simulated role play platform using generative AI. Jodie has served as ACA’s CEO since October 2023, and prior to that spent almost a year as Deputy CEO. Celebrating Jodie’s contribution and impact Jodie will leave her role having strengthened the association significantly, with a solid foundation ...

What To Do If You See Distressing Content Online

By Admin ACA posted 06-01-2026
4 January 2026 In today’s digital world, many of us spend a significant amount of time online for work, connection and information. While online spaces can be valuable and enriching, they can also expose us to distressing content, often unexpectedly. Violent or graphic material may appear in social media feeds, video platforms, news coverage or search results, sometimes without warning.  Exposure to confronting online content can have emotional and psychological impacts. It can trigger fear, anxiety, intrusive thoughts, distress or re-traumatisation, particularly for people with lived experience of violence ...

Member Spotlight: Deborah Stevens

By Admin ACA posted 04-12-2025
3 December 2026 Meet Deborah Stevens Each month we spotlight an ACA member in the ACA Monthly Bulletin, our monthly newsletter. The Member Spotlight is designed to showcase the work of our members to you! We hope their stories inspire or spark interest. Let’s share our experiences within our counselling community. What motivated you to pursue a career in counselling? This is an interesting question, one I ask students! I am not sure that I pursued the career in counselling as much as it pursued me! My career of choice when I finished high school was hair dressing; well it is obvious that I am not a hair dresser! In university ...

Kashish Chugh | Lessons This Year Taught Me About Holding Space - For Others, and For Myself

By Admin ACA posted 13-11-2025
13 November 2025 As the year draws to a close, I’ve been reflecting on what this journey has meant for me-not just as a counselling student, but as a person learning how to hold space gently, bravely, and honestly. If I had to summarise 2025 in one word, it would be acceptance. Not the kind of acceptance that means forgetting, moving on too quickly, or pretending things don’t hurt. But the kind that says, “I cannot control everything, and that’s okay. I can learn to live with what life brings.” This year taught me that acceptance is not defeat-it is strength without resistance. It is choosing peace in situations that refuse to change. One of ...

Member Spotlight: Mona Ardeleanu

By Admin ACA posted 05-11-2025
What motivated you to pursue a career in counselling? Before moving to Australia in 2012, I had a well-established career in Public Relations and Communications, a field that always centred on people - listening, understanding complex issues, and shaping messages that resonated. What I didn’t realise back then was how much this mirrored what I value most in counselling: creating genuine connection, hearing not just the words spoken but also the feelings underneath, and helping people communicate more openly and meaningfully. Over the years, friends, colleagues, and even strangers often confided in me, saying it felt natural and safe to share what was on ...

Research Opportunity: Supporting Muslim Clients Bereaved by Suicide

By Admin ACA posted 05-11-2025
The University of Melbourne is conducting an online survey to learn how the Australian mental health workforce can be better equipped to support Muslim clients bereaved by suicide. The survey also explores their training needs and suggestions to shape the suicide postvention training. The study has been approved by the research ethics committee of The University of Melbourne (ID 33826). Who can participate? Mental health care providers across Australia (psychologists, psychotherapists, counsellors, psychiatrists, social workers, nurses, GPs, etc.) with at least 2 years of professional practice with any client group. The survey takes 10-15 minutes ...

Health Workforce Needs Assessment Survey

By Admin ACA posted 05-11-2025
4 November 2025 The 2025 Health Workforce Needs Assessment (HWNA) Survey is open. Run annually by Health Workforce Queensland, the HWNA survey captures critical insights from health professionals across remote, rural, and regional Queensland to help address workforce challenges. The survey is open to the following health professionals providing primary care services in MM2-7 in Queensland or those employed by a general practice in MM1 with DPA status: Nurses, midwives Allied health practitioners and managers Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workers General practice and hospital managers ...

Allison Milner Memorial PhD Scholarship Open

By Admin ACA posted 05-11-2025
3 November 2025 MATES in Construction, a leading industry-backed mental health and suicide prevention organisation, has opened applications for the Allison Milner Memorial PhD Scholarship - a research scholarship dedicated to advancing mental health outcomes in high-risk industries such as construction, mining, energy, and manufacturing. This scholarship honours the legacy of Associate Professor Allison Milner, whose work reshaped how we understand psychosocial risk and workplace wellbeing. It supports a PhD candidate whose research aligns with MATES’ mission to reduce suicide and improve mental health through practical, evidence-based approaches. ...

Research Opportunity: Cultural Competence in Multicultural Counselling Contexts

By Admin ACA posted 04-11-2025
29 October 2025 Dr Mamun Ala, Senior Lecturer in HRM and Management at the Australian Institute of Business (AIB) and a registered member of ACA, is conducting a research project titled “Exploring Counsellors’ Experiences and Practices in Developing Cultural Competence in Multicultural Counselling Contexts.” This study aims to understand how practising counsellors develop and apply cultural competence when working with clients from diverse cultural, linguistic, and social backgrounds, and how these practices contribute to positive client outcomes. Dr Ala is seeking 30 ACA-registered counsellors from across Australia who have at least ...

Kashish Chugh | Festivals, Homesickness, and the Counsellor Within

By Admin ACA posted 20-10-2025
20 October 2025 October feels different when you’re away from home. Back in India, it’s a month of noise, colour, and warmth—Diwali lights filling every corner, the smell of sweets in the kitchen, and laughter echoing through the house. Here in Australia, the world feels quieter. I miss helping my mum decorate, shopping with my dad, and simply being part of all the little things that make home, home. There are moments when I feel helpless watching it all through a screen. Yet there’s also gratitude. Gratitude for the people around me who’ve become like family, for friends who understand, and for the chance to recreate pieces of my world here—lighting ...

Understanding the National Standards: Resources and Opportunities for ACA Members

By Admin ACA posted 13-10-2025
13 October 2025 The Australian Counselling Association (ACA) is proud to celebrate the formal endorsement of the National Standards for Counsellors and Psychotherapists in Australia by the Hon. Mark Butler MP, Minister for Health, Disability and Ageing. This historic milestone unifies the counselling profession under a single, nationally approved framework, providing clarity, consistency, and recognition across qualifications and practice. For ACA members, this moment reflects the strength of our collective advocacy and the vital role counsellors play in supporting communities across Australia. But what do the National Standards mean for you ...

New National Standards Unite and Strengthen Australia’s Counselling Workforce

By Admin ACA posted 13-10-2025
Media Release For Immediate Release Brisbane, 13 October 2025 The Australian Counselling Association (ACA) welcomes the formal endorsement of the National Standards for Counsellors and Psychotherapists in Australia by the Minister of Health, Disability and Ageing, the Hon. Mark Butler MP. This significant decision represents a major milestone in the formal recognition of counselling by the Australian Government. For the first time, counsellors and psychotherapists are unified under a single, approved set of professional standards – a development that will strengthen the profession and enhance public confidence in counselling services nationwide. ...

Member Spotlight: Tamara Young

By Admin ACA posted 30-09-2025
Meet Tamara Young Each month we spotlight an ACA member in the ACA Monthly Bulletin, our monthly newsletter. The Member Spotlight is designed to showcase the work of our members to you! We hope their stories inspire or spark interest. Let’s share our experiences within our counselling community. What motivated you to pursue a career in counselling/psychotherapy? I am a proud Gamilaraay and Bigambul Aboriginal woman with Irish heritage and the Founder of Wonky Lines Counselling. With a background shaped by lived experience of Intergenerational Trauma and Systems Trauma, I am extremely passionate about reframing stories from struggle to strength. ...

Perception of AI Tools Among Therapists and Counsellors

By Admin ACA posted 30-09-2025
Perception of AI Tools Among Therapists and Counsellors Murdoch University are inviting qualified counsellors/therapists to participate in this study. Your professional perspective is valuable in helping us better understand the role of AI tools in therapy. The purpose of this project is to explore how counsellors and therapists perceive the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools in therapeutic settings. For this project, AI refers to computer-based systems that use data analysis and pattern recognition to perform tasks requiring human-like decision-making in mental health practice, supporting, automating, or enhancing assessment, therapy, and ...

Kashish Chugh | Research Meets Counselling: Why Self-Reflection Matters

By Admin ACA posted 15-09-2025
Kashish Chugh is a dedicated student counsellor navigating her final year of studies. Throughout 2025, we will follow Kashish’s journey as she balances academics, practical experience, and personal growth on her path to becoming a professional counsellor. Through her monthly blog, she will share insights, challenges, and valuable lessons, offering a real and relatable perspective on life as a final-year counselling student. Stay tuned for an inspiring year ahead! Kashish Chugh | Research Meets Counselling: Why Self-Reflection Matters When I chose the research pathway in my Master of Counselling, I wasn’t sure how closely it would connect to ...