Why Counsellors in Alberta, BC, and Across Canada Need Advanced Clinical Assessment Training

Introduction

Across Alberta and British Columbia, counsellors are taking on increasingly complex clinical work—yet most clinicians report feeling under-trained, uncertain, or hesitant when it comes to clinical assessment. This gap isn’t due to lack of skill or dedication. It’s due to the reality that assessment is typically taught at a 3 credit foundational level course at University which provides them entry to practice. This doesn't adequately prepare counsellors to have advanced assessment skills in their practices post graduation- and many are looking for CE opportunities and supervision in this area. Combine this with misinformation about “scope of practice” often causes counsellors to avoid assessment for the most part.

ASSESS+ was created to address this problem directly.

This article explains why counsellors in AB & BC need strong assessment skills, what’s currently missing from continuing education or assessment specialization training for counsellors, and how assessment can be practiced ethically without diagnosing, regardless of provincial regulation. Assessment is already in your standards of practice.

1. Assessment Is Foundational to Ethical Counselling Practice

Every counselling interaction—formal or informal—may require some level of assessment. This includes:

• establishing a shared understanding of the client’s concerns

• gathering key clinical information

• evaluating biopsychosocial factors

• understanding risk

• forming a working hypothesis

• reviewing client outcomes

This is a lot of what assessment is.

In my opinion, how could we have ethical practices without great assessment skills? It is not diagnosis. And it is fully within counsellor scope in both provinces (refer to your respective associations standards of practice).

Yet without structured training, many counsellors feel unclear about:

• how to conduct assessment interviews

• what matters clinically

• how to organize that information into treatment

• how to build a defensible formulations

• how to provide stand-alone assessment services and write professional reports

• how to communicate findings ethically

  
  

This is exactly the type of training counsellors should receive early in their careers once they register for practice at the entry level—but almost never do. This is not for lack of trying or wanting, but because the CE courses + Supervision didn't exist for counsellors- until ASSESS+!

2. Why Alberta Counsellors Especially Need Assessment Skills

Alberta’s counselling landscape is unique. With regulation still in progress counsellors have an opportunity to continue advanced training to highlight their highly defined skills that shows parity with other mental health professionals already regulated. Until then, we have

• unclear professional titles

• inconsistent training standards

• increased public demand for quality mental health care

• interprofessional pressure

• inconsistent messaging about scope

Because of this environment, Alberta counsellors need particularly strong clinical reasoning and assessment clarity to ensure:

• defensible practice

• ability to show parity for practice and scope with other mental health professionals when regulation happens

• show clear knowledge in communication with other professionals

• strengthen ethical boundaries around clinical assessment

• continue to show strong client outcomes

Assessment skills support counsellors in navigating this evolving system with confidence.

3. Why BC Counsellors Need Assessment Training

British Columbia’s regulatory framework restricts diagnosis to psychologists and physicians. This leads many counsellors to mistakenly assume:

• “assessment = diagnosis”

• “I shouldn’t use structured tools”

• “Assessment isn’t for counsellors”

This is incorrect.

Counsellors in BC can absolutely:

• gather structured assessment data

• use a variety tools

• perform outcome measurement

• conduct clinical formulation

• communicate structured clinical findings

• make recommendations and provide professional reports

• use assessment within counselling or as a stand-alone service

What they cannot do is diagnose—unless the future regulation allows for that.

The absence of diagnostic authority does not remove the need for assessment skills.

4. Graduate Programs Do Not Teach Advanced Assessment

Across Canada, counselling programs provide foundational assessment information. In practice counsellors need additional training in:

• clinical assessment theory

• advanced case formulation methodology

• structured/unstructured/semi-structured interview techniques

• psychometrics

• Level A /B/C tools

• ethical assessment communication with clients

• ethical assessment documentation

• report-writing

• scope-safe assessment practice

• how to offer assessment services in their practices

Most counsellors graduate with strong relational skills and assessment foundations but without the advanced assessment training that ASSESS+ provides for complex clinical work and stand-alone services. ASSESS+ Level 1 Advanced Clinical Assessment was created to solve this gap.

5. Assessment Builds Confidence & Clinical Strength

Counsellors with strong assessment skills report:

✔ increased confidence in clinical decisions✔ stronger sessions due to clearer direction✔ better communication with clients✔ more accurate case formulations✔ clearer treatment planning and referrals✔ reduced anxiety around “doing assessment wrong”✔ more professional credibility ✔ increased practice revenue options ✔ increased ability to provide clients with in-depth insight and growth opportunities.

Assessment is ultimately about clarity—for both clinician and client.

6. ASSESS+: Training Designed Specifically for Counsellors

ASSESS+ is the first training pathway in Canada built for counsellors, not psychologists.

Created by Dr. Erinn Bailey-Sawatzky, ASSESS+:

• is scope-aligned

• avoids diagnostics until regulation enables it

• focuses on practical, ethical, and advanced assessment

• teaches structured reasoning

• builds confidence, clarity, and competence

  
  

This training gives counsellors more advanced assessment skills than they were never taught in grad school but need every day in practice.

7. Where to Start: Level 1 – Clinical Assessment Foundations

Level 1 teaches:

• assessment vs diagnosis

• structured data gathering

• ethical scope boundaries

• case formulation methods

• Level A/B/C orientation

• risk assessment clarity

• communicating findings and professional report writing

• clinical decision-making

• outcome measurement

It is required before continuing into advanced ASSESS+ programs.

After you obtain your Level 1 certificate, you can also access Dr. Erinn to see if she is a good fit to also provide assessment supervision to you to ensure you meet your standards of practice not just around advanced training, but also supervision in new practice areas!

👉 Start Level 1: Clinical Assessment Foundations

8. Conclusion

Counsellors in Alberta and BC deserve assessment training that matches the complexity of their work and allows them to obtain continuing education/competency credits. ASSESS+ fills a critical gap in counsellor education, empowering clinicians with ethical, structured, clear, scope-safe assessment skills.

Your clients deserve this level of clarity. And so do you.

👉 View the ASSESS+ Program Courses

Beautiful AB and BC Landscape where mental health needs of the populations are high, and so are counsellor's skillsets!