School Counsellor Interview Questions
School counsellors provide vital emotional and psychological support to students, working alongside teachers and parents to address wellbeing, behavioural challenges and safeguarding concerns. The ideal candidate combines therapeutic skills with an understanding of the school environment.
Key skills to assess
Behavioural Questions
4These questions explore how the candidate has handled real situations in the past. Past behaviour is one of the strongest predictors of future performance.
Describe your approach to building trust with a reluctant or withdrawn student.
Assesses engagement techniques and patience with young people
Tell me about a time a student disclosed something that required a safeguarding referral. How did you handle it?
Evaluates safeguarding knowledge and procedural competence
Tell me about a case where you worked with a parent to support their child. What made the collaboration effective?
Reveals ability to engage parents as partners in student wellbeing
Describe your experience delivering group sessions or wellbeing workshops in a school setting.
Evaluates preventative work skills and group facilitation experience
Situational Questions
4Present hypothetical scenarios to understand how the candidate would approach challenges they are likely to face in the role.
A teacher tells you they are concerned about a student but the student insists everything is fine. What do you do?
Tests approach to indirect referrals and student autonomy
A student tells you they are self-harming. Walk me through your immediate response and next steps.
Evaluates crisis intervention knowledge and safeguarding protocol adherence
You discover that a popular teacher is making comments that negatively affect a student mental health. How do you address this?
Tests professional courage and ability to raise concerns diplomatically
A parent requests access to their child counselling notes. How do you respond?
Tests knowledge of confidentiality, Gillick competence and professional boundaries
Technical Questions
4Assess the candidate's domain expertise, tools proficiency and problem-solving ability with role-specific questions.
What therapeutic modalities do you use and how do you adapt them for different age groups?
Assesses clinical skill range and developmental awareness
How do you manage confidentiality in a school setting where teachers and parents want to know what the student has shared?
Tests understanding of confidentiality boundaries in educational contexts
How do you evaluate whether your counselling sessions are making a positive difference for a student?
Assesses outcome measurement and reflective practice
What is your approach to working with students who have been referred but do not want to attend counselling?
Tests ethical practice and respect for student agency
Competency Questions
3Measure specific skills and competencies against the requirements of the role using structured, evidence-based questions.
How do you prioritise when you have more students needing support than you have capacity for?
Assesses caseload management and triage judgement
How do you maintain your own wellbeing given the emotional demands of this role?
Evaluates self-care awareness and professional sustainability
What role do you think a school counsellor should play in the wider school community beyond one-to-one sessions?
Assesses understanding of whole-school wellbeing contribution
Interview tips for this role
- Check their counselling qualifications, registration body membership and DBS status before the interview.
- Ask for a brief demonstration of how they would open a first session with a new student. This reveals their relational style.
- Safeguarding questions should be scenario-based and detailed. Generic awareness is not enough for a school-based role.
- Look for candidates who understand the unique dynamics of working within a school, including relationships with teachers, parents and senior leadership.
Frequently asked questions
What qualifications should a school counsellor have?
School counsellors should hold a recognised counselling qualification at diploma level or above and be registered with a professional body such as BACP, UKCP or NCS. Experience working with children and young people is essential and an enhanced DBS check is mandatory. Some schools also require a teaching or education background.
How many students can a school counsellor realistically support?
This depends on session frequency and whether the role is full or part-time. A full-time counsellor typically sees 15 to 20 students weekly for individual sessions while also delivering group work and consultations. Overloading beyond this risks burnout and reduced effectiveness. Discuss realistic capacity expectations openly during the interview.
Should school counselling be confidential from parents?
Counselling confidentiality in schools is complex. Students, particularly those of Gillick competent age, have a right to confidentiality within clearly defined limits. Safeguarding concerns always override confidentiality. The counsellor should explain these boundaries to students at the start of every therapeutic relationship. Ask candidates how they navigate this balance.
Need questions tailored to your specific job?
Our AI interview question generator creates custom questions based on your exact job description. Completely free, no sign-up required.