The titles side by side
Four titles people often weigh against each other, with what the official pages say about each. Read across a row for one title, or down a column to compare.
| Title | On Ahpra’s register? | How the official pages describe the work |
|---|---|---|
| Psychologist | Yes. Psychology is one of the professions on Ahpra’s Register of practitioners. | Specialists in mental health whose care is built on psychotherapy and structured psychological methods. They aren’t medical doctors, so they don’t prescribe medicines. |
| Psychiatrist | Yes, as a medical practitioner. Medical practice is on Ahpra’s list. | Doctors who have trained further in mental health. They diagnose and treat mental illness, and can prescribe medicines. |
| Counsellor | No. Counselling is not among the professions Ahpra registers. healthdirect names professional bodies that check their members are trained. | Therapists who work through life’s challenges with you in conversation, helping you find ways forward and build skills for solving problems. |
| Life coach | No. Coaching is not among the professions Ahpra registers. | Not described. Coaches don’t appear in healthdirect’s list of mental health professionals. What a coach offers is whatever the agreement with them says. |
What sits behind the title “Psychologist”
According to the Psychology Board of Australia, every generally registered psychologist has met a minimum standard of education and training and been assessed as suitable for that registration. Eligibility takes six years of education and training in sequence.
Some psychologists also hold an area of practice endorsement. The Board explains that there are nine approved areas of practice, each with a title protected under the National Law (“Health Psychologist” is one). To use one of those titles, a psychologist needs a qualification the Board has approved for that area, plus supervised practice in a registrar program the Board has approved.
What sits behind “counsellor”
healthdirect notes that counsellors and psychotherapists in Australia need training to practise, and that professional bodies confirm their members’ training and skills. Its examples are the Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia, the Australian Register of Counsellors and Psychotherapists, and the Australian Counselling Association.
What sits behind “coach”
None of the official health pages linked here describes a register or a training standard for coaches. So a coach’s training and experience are things to ask about, person by person, and the agreement is where what they offer gets written down. Turn 3 covers what to ask and what to read before you sign.
Checking a health title on Ahpra’s register
- Search the register. Ahpra’s Register of practitioners covers every registered practitioner in its listed professions, and a name on it means that person may practise.
- Read the details, not only the name. Limits on a practitioner’s work, whether from their type of registration or from conditions, also show on the register.
- Try the registration number. Someone may be registered under a name other than the one they usually go by, so Ahpra suggests asking for the registration number and searching by that instead.
- Still can’t find them? Ahpra’s number for a confidential conversation about the register is 1300 419 495. It also keeps lists of practitioners whose registration has been cancelled and of those who have formally agreed not to practise.