Year One / Level 3 Coaching and Mentoring for Neurodiversity

Course Outline

Thank you for taking the time to review the course and consider the ADHD Foundation for your future career pathway. Here are some commonly asked questions about the course you may like to know before submitting your application to study with us.

What are the aims and objectives of the course?

The aims and objectives of the course are to deliver a neurodiversity focussed, coaching and mentoring course. The objectives are to provides learners with the required knowledge, skills and understanding to effectively coach or mentor others, particularly those with neurodiverse (ND) needs, within an organisational context.

Who is this qualification for?

This level 3, entry-level qualification is for people who are interested in learning about coaching and mentoring, specifically with neurodiverse populations and wish to commence learning the skills required to become a qualified coach, with additional neurodiversity expertise. It is also appropriate for those who already work in a therapeutic capacity, but do not hold specific knowledge or skills required to work with a neurodiverse client group and engage in coaching and mentoring conversations. This level 3 course forms the first year of the coaching and mentoring diploma, specific to neurodiversity and forms the pre-requisite course for the second year, level 5 coaching and mentoring certificate or diploma award.

What are the key competencies I will learn and be assessed against in year one of the course?

The key competencies for the course are listed below:

• 3.1. Understand what constitutes ADHD and neurodiversity more widely,

• 3.2. Have a comprehensive understanding of good practice in coaching and mentoring,

• 3.3. Be able to undertake coaching and mentoring in an organisational context,

• 3.4. Undertake an extended period of coaching and mentoring,

• 3.5. Be able to reflect on coaching and mentoring skills with individuals,

• 3.6. Be able to apply the above sensitively and safely with an ND population.

Who will be teaching me on the course?

The current course team comprises of Chartered Psychologists, teachers, university academics and key opinion leaders in the field of neurodiversity. Coaching seminars are delivered by accredited coaches and coach mentors, who are qualified to guide student coaches through these conversations.

Who will be supervising my coaching skill development?

All students are expected to engage in supervision to become an accredited coach. This consists of 3x30 minute session with an academic supervisor (i.e., one supervision session) and a coach supervisor (i.e., two supervision sessions) who will secure your competencies against three agreed targets. These sessions comprise of 1. Pre-coaching supervision, 2. ‘In’ coaching supervision, and 3. How to conclude the coaching relationship. All students must engage in these supervision sessions to be awarded their final awards or certificates at the end of this level 3 course.

What are the assignments?

The assignments for each of the five units are devised with the key competencies and standards in mind for a level 3 coaching and mentoring course. Therefore, student coaches will be expected to submit written work in the form of essays, recorded coaching sessions, alongside critical reflections on coaching practice.

To cover the wider knowledge around understanding good practice in coaching in relation to neurodiversity, we reserve the right to change assignment methods based on student feedback, but these assignments usually take the form of awareness posters, development plans, portfolios and/ or multiple-choice question exams. We do not advocate for the inclusion of timed essays into our curriculum unless explicitly asked to do so by our accrediting bodies.

What will be expected of me during the course?

It is expected that students attend at least 80% of the live taught content to absorb the knowledge presented by the team through Guided Learning Hours(GLH). It is expected that students engage with the taught content and information which is posted on the forums, in line with our code of conduct policy. To be able to pass an assignment, significant additional time is expected of students in line with Total Qualification Time (TQT).

Our accreditors estimate TQT time outside of direct tuition to be 97 hours for an award, and 130 learning hours for a certificate. Therefore, to be awarded either qualification, students must devise, submit original content, and pass each unit. Without a pass for each element against original content, the ADHD Foundation cannot award students their chosen qualification.

What will I gain by the end of this course and who is the course accredited by?

By the end of the course, you will know what it takes to becomes an effective coach, understand how coaching works, learn a recognised coaching model, and the tools and techniques to support it. You will be able to put your new skills into practice, carry out supervised coaching sessions, and be able to analyse coaching performance to improve your own ability when conducting your own coaching and mentoring sessions.

At the end of this course, you willreceive a transcription of your learning and certificate issued by the ADHD Foundation. We have sought and acquired membership of Continued Professional Development (CPD), and we are now registered educational providers. Recognition for the number of teaching and learning hours will be accredited by CPD.

Furthermore, the current course materials have been mapped against the national standards by City & Guilds and ILM and the course, when completed, demonstrates full coverage of Level 3 coaching and mentoring standards. The ADHD Foundation will send all completed student evidence up to City & Guilds/ ILM for certification against the standards, at which point they will issue additional certificates to recognise your efforts on the course.

To strengthen this accreditation further, we have shared the full suite of policies and procedures with the assessment team for full centre approval status. The outcome of this process will be confirmed to us within 8-10 weeks' time of the date of this document.

What can be expected of the ADHD Foundation throughout the course?

The ADHD Foundation are committed to providing high quality teaching and learning, at a price that is considered competitive in the marketplace, delivered by staff who are qualified to teach and supervise coaching and mentoring at the appropriate level, with an effective Learning Management System (LMS) in place. The ADHD Foundation reserve the right to change the teaching team, supervision delivery, assignment delivery, LMS, and/ or accrediting bodies to offer its’ students the optimal teaching delivery and experience while on the course.

What is the full diploma course structure?

*Student coaches may seek a coaching and mentoring award or certificate at the end of the course depending on whether 6 or 12 hours of recorded coaching has been submitted for assessment respectively. Please also see section 6 for further details around Guided Learning Hours (GLH) versus Total Qualification Time (TQT).

Further contact information

If you have any further comments or queries, please do not hesitate to contact the coaching team on: [email protected] or click on the button below.

Thank you for taking the time to read this information and we look forward to welcoming you on to the ADHD Foundation Coaching Course.