Counselling
Frequently Asked Questions
When should I see a counsellor?
Can I choose to see a male or female counsellor?
What should I do if I am experiencing a personal crisis?
Do I need to be a student to see a counsellor for personal counselling?
Is there a cost to see a counsellor?
What hours are the counsellors available?
Do I need to book an appointment?
How long do appointments take? How frequently can I make appointments?
Can I bring my kids or someone else with me during my counselling appointment?
For information on academic advising, please see the Academic Advising page.
What do counsellors do?
Counsellors assist current and prospective students to identify and implement educational, career and life goals. Counsellors work with individuals to help them acquire problem solving strategies, to improve communication skills and to develop decision making skills that contribute to the successful attainment of their goals.
Counsellors address emotional, social and personal aspects of the individual as well as the cognitive challenges of the educational process.
When should I see a counsellor?
Personal, emotional and academic problems are a normal part of a student's life. A student with many strengths and abilities may experience difficulties that can be effectively resolved through our counselling services. We offer professionally trained staff to assist students in coping with problem areas in their life that interfere with maximizing their academic and social potential. One of the more helpful ways of dealing with problematic situations and feelings is to talk them through with an experienced counsellor.
You are encouraged to consult with a counsellor when:
- establishing career and life goals
- encountering personal problems
- encountering barriers to personal and academic success
- requiring assistance with appeals
- withdrawing from courses/programs
Can I choose to see a male or female counsellor?
If it is important to you, then you may ask to see either a male or female counsellor. We will try to accomodate your request whenever possible.
What should I do if I am experiencing a personal crisis?
Please let us know if you are experiencing a personal crisis so that we may provide you with appropriate service.
What is career counselling?
Choosing a career can be one of the most important decisions you make. You may work with a counsellor, or an academic advisor, to plan your future. We provide a number of services that can assist you in this decision:
- career counselling
- career planning and information
- university, college and institute calendars for BC and other Canadian provinces
- information and reference materials on a wide range of career options
- information on labour market trends
- self-help guides for the job search
- information on community resources
- computer software programmes which promote self understanding and provide occupational information
- career testing
What is personal counselling?
We offer short term individual counselling to students for personal problems that are interfering with their ability to meet their educational goals. If you require assistance with any of the following issues, we encourage you to take advantage of our service:
- personal counselling
- coping strategies/stress and anxiety management
- adjustment concerns - assertiveness/procrastination
- financial/legal/marital and relationship issues
- loneliness
- depression
- eating problems
- cultural/ethnic concerns
- separation/loss
- student appeals and complaints
Is counselling confidential?
Yes, what you discuss with a counsellor is confidential, barring exceptional circumstances. This means that parents, teachers, friends and others cannot be given any information revealed by you without written consent to release information. However, there are situations where this is not the case. The exceptional circumstances where confidentiality may be breached are outlined in our confidentiality commitment. Please see the Counselling & Confidentiality page for more information.
Do I need to be a registered student to see a counsellor for personal counselling?
Yes. However, anyone can access career counselling.
Is there a cost to see a counsellor?
No. Our counselling and advising services are offered free of charge. There may be a small fee for optional testing services that are part of career counselling.
What hours are counsellors available?
Our hours of operation are posted on the Counselling - Contact Us page
Do I need to book an appointment?
Yes, for personal and career counselling an appointment is required.
How long are appointments? How frequently can I make appointments?
Personal counselling appointments are one hour in length the first time you meet with a counsellor. If you continue to access counselling services, one hour appointments are scheduled two weeks apart. You and your counsellor may decide that 30 minute appointments work best for you. You may also decide that more time between appointments works better for you.
Career counselling appointments are 30 minutes in duration.
How do I make an appointment?
To book an appointment, please see the campus specific information on the Counselling - Contact Us page.
Can I bring my kids or someone else with me during my counselling appointment?
We suggest that you do not bring anyone with you to personal counselling appointments. You are free to bring whomever you would like to career counselling appointments.