RMIT University, Counselling Service: 6 A.C.T. Conversations

This audio e-learning program aims to provide RMIT University students with the emotional intelligence skills to support them in:

• completing study assessment tasks in a disciplined and stress-free manner
• starting and sustaining enjoyable relationships with their peers and friends
• conducting a meaningful and valued life while studying at University
• participating in group assessment projects in a fulfilling and confident manner
• living a balanced and enjoyable life!

The program uses concepts from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, but is not meant to take the place of counselling, psychotherapy or a mental health service (see disclaimer below).

What's in it?

The program comprises six sessions of between 15 and 50 minutes duration. Each session includes a conversational mini-lecture and several practical exercises.

How do I use it?

You can stream the audio through any PC connected to the Internet. There may be breaks in the audio though if you are on a dial-up connection. If you prefer you can download the audio materials to your computer and listen to them there or on a portable MP3 player (more information).

Start anywhere

The program is written in a sequence, but you can start with any of the six sessions depending on your interests and needs. Some sessions refer to material covered in other sessions, but we have tried to keep that to minimum. Each session deals with a single concept, but the concepts in Acceptance and Commitment Training are all closely related and work together.

Practise, practise, practise.

This is an experiential, capability-building program. Completing the program is not about learning information but about developing new awareness, perceptions and behaviours. It is about 'knowing how' not 'knowing that'. There is no endpoint to learning these skills - however much you practise them, you can always improve. So to get the most you can out of the program, you must practise the exercises. You will find that you will get a benefit from doing some exercises once and won't need to do them again. With others, especially the mindfulness exercises in session 4, you may wish to make a habit of them, just as you would with a physical exercise regime.

The Sessions

DISCLAIMER: Six ACT Conversations is intended solely as a skill-building educational program, not as a substitute for routine or urgent psychological or psychiatric care, treatment or consultation. Students with psychological or personal problems are urged to seek a consultation with the RMIT University Counselling Service, or from their own physician, or from appropriate health care professionals. Suggestions and exercises in this program should not be construed as professional opinions aimed at establishing a diagnosis or course of treatment. Diagnosis and treatment are complex and require comprehensive face-to-face assessment, often over long periods of time. Individuals under active treatment should not construe information contained in this program as replacing or superseding recommendations of their counsellors or mental health professionals. Rather, information in this program may serve as a point of discussion between clients and their individual clinicians. Similarly, clinicians should recognise that suggestions made in this program, without benefit of direct assessment, are not intended as a replacement for direct consultative recommendations.