This is a technical question that can help you assess the candidate's experience in practising different therapy methods to see which suits them better. Their role as a counsellor involves listening to people, helping them open up and then offering competent advice.  As they answer the question, the candidate should:

• Discuss several methods that they use
• Recognise the importance of many or all therapeutic approaches
• Talk about their own way of blending several therapy methods

Client confidentiality is essential to prevent the leaking of sensitive details about a patient, which can compromise their recovery plan or put them at various forms of risk. When answering this question, the candidate should talk about:

• What they do to ensure that a client feels confident 
• How they handle the client's sensitive information
• The proactive methods they use to protect patient details

This question allows you to assess a candidate's self-awareness and whether they possess strong characteristics that make them suited to the job of a therapist. You can also discover more about the candidate's personality and maturity. Some of the top qualities they can mention include:

• The ability to listen with empathy and without passing judgment
• Honesty and patience
• Introspection, emotional intelligence and self-reflection

This question lets you know more about a candidate's therapy tactics. It also allows you to find out if their skills can be beneficial to your organisation. When answering, the candidate should:

• Include a specific example
• Explain the problem they faced at the time
• Demonstrate how they achieved the results they needed

This question seeks to find out more about a candidate's successful counselling stories and how they have helped to fuel their passion for the profession. It gives them chance to show that they put effort into their career and are ready to go the extra mile to help their patients. As they answer, the candidate should:

• Summarise specific cases without breaking client-counsellor confidentiality 
• Show how they helped a client change their perspective
• Show how the experience fuelled their drive to get better at therapy

This question allows you to find out what the candidate will do when they encounter a client with a problem that they cannot handle. They need to have a way of handling such a patient without making them feel as if they have an unsolvable problem. The candidate can answer the question by:

• Acknowledging the client's needs
• Talking about their process for making a referral
• Insisting that even though they have failed, they can still help the patient

The candidate will encounter many patients with a wide range of problems, including people handling serious life changes. Although some matters can be extremely concerning, therapists must learn to separate their work and personal life. When answering this question, the candidate should:

• Show that they are compassionate
• Acknowledge that being a therapist can challenge their mental health
• Offer an example of work-life balance

This question lets you find out about a candidate's work structure and counselling routine, which ensures that they help clients in the best possible manner. They can explain how they do things in a particular way and why they feel the process they implement is most effective. As the candidate answers, they should:

• Offer a typical routine
• Show how it ensures a patient is fully taken care of
• Prove that their schedule works for them and their patients

You should ask this question to assess whether the candidate is familiar with the fundamental practice of mental health specialists. They will use DSM principles almost every day during their work as a therapist. The candidate's answer should include:

• What the DSM is
• How to apply the DSM in the work of a mental health professional
• Align their answer with the specific skills listed in their CV

Therapists often work closely with Psychiatrists to help their patients. This question allows you to ascertain whether a candidate can accept seeking advice from Psychiatrists for the benefit of their patients. In their answer, the candidate should:

• Differentiate the two professions
• Explain how the two professions interact
• Explain how they can work with Psychiatrists to help a patient