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Unit of study_

PSYC4005: Coaching Skills for Work and Life

2025 unit information

Coaching skills are now an essential part of the contemporary workplace. Research shows that the ability to coach self and others is one of the most important skills for employees, managers and leaders. However, to date, opportunities for learning evidence-based coaching skills at universities has been very limited. By completing this unit you will develop a solid understanding of the psychology of coaching in the workplace, in organisations and in relation to personal life matters and the ability to apply such theories in real life situations. We will explore the theoretical foundations of the psychology of coaching including self-regulation theory, goal theory, change theory and solution-focused approaches to coaching and show how to apply these to real-life issues and goals. Students will leave with a portfolio of applied coaching skills, the ability to conduct both formal and informal coaching conversations, the ability to evaluate and create conceptually coherent coaching processes and having experienced a personal coaching program. Active learning in the form of peer coaching is central to this program and will guide students to integrate their developing knowledge, skills and values about coaching in ways that question and build understanding. Students need to be prepared and willing to engage in peer coaching conversations.

Unit details and rules

Managing faculty or University school:

Science

Study level Undergraduate
Academic unit Psychology Academic Operations
Credit points 6
Prerequisites:
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(144 cp of which a minimum needs to be 24 cp of 3000-level or 4000-level units of study) or (12 cp PSYC3XXX)
Corequisites:
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None
Prohibitions:
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PSYC4721 or PSYC4722
Assumed knowledge:
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Students should have the ability to read and interpret findings from scientific research, and have a basic familiarity with the empirical process

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

  • LO1. Appraise the social and theoretical development of personal and professional coaching and its utility in the workplace.
  • LO2. Distinguish coaching from therapy, counselling, consulting, training and mentoring.
  • LO3. Critically evaluate and classify models and approaches to coaching.
  • LO4. Generate coaching plans and conduct coaching sessions
  • LO5. Develop advanced communication skills for application across a variety of areas of life and work

Unit availability

This section lists the session, attendance modes and locations the unit is available in. There is a unit outline for each of the unit availabilities, which gives you information about the unit including assessment details and a schedule of weekly activities.

The outline is published 2 weeks before the first day of teaching. You can look at previous outlines for a guide to the details of a unit.

Session MoA ?  Location Outline ? 
Semester 2 2024
Normal day Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney
Session MoA ?  Location Outline ? 
Semester 2 2025
Normal day Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney
Outline unavailable
Session MoA ?  Location Outline ? 
Semester 2 2020
Normal day Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney
Semester 2 2021
Normal day Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney
Semester 2 2021
Normal day Remote
Semester 2 2022
Normal day Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney
Semester 2 2022
Normal day Remote
Semester 2 2023
Normal day Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

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Modes of attendance (MoA)

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