Indigenous-Identified Professional Counsellor Position

Toronto Metropolitan University; Toronto; On-site; CAD 82,000 - 189,000; Full time

Job summary

Toronto Metropolitan University in downtown Toronto invites applications for a career-stream Indigenous-Identified Professional Counsellor. The role supports Indigenous students and TMU community through counselling, psychotherapy, crisis intervention, and referral to campus and Indigenous-specific supports.

Requirements include a minimum Master's degree in Counselling Psychology or Social Work and at least five years post-graduate experience; doctoral candidates welcome without minimum years.

Qualifications

• Masters or higher in Counselling Psychology or Social Work with post-graduate clinical experience.
• Indigenous knowledge of healing practices and Indigenous worldviews.
• Ability to provide trauma-informed counselling and crisis intervention.
• Experience in program development or coordination in a post-secondary setting.

Responsibilities

• Provide counselling and psychotherapy to Indigenous and other TMU students.
• Deliver individual and group counselling, crisis intervention, case management, and referrals.
• Collaborate with GMISS and other Student Wellbeing units and OVPS.
• Demonstrate culturally grounded approaches to wellness and healing.

Skills

Trauma-informed care

Crisis intervention

Indigenous knowledge

Interpersonal skills

Education

Master's degree in Counselling Psychology or Social Work

Doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology welcome

Tools

AEDP

EMDR

Job description

Indigenous-Identified Professional Counsellor Position

Located in downtown Toronto, the largest and most culturally diverse city in Canada and on the territory of the Anishinaabe, Mississaugas and Haudenosaunee Peoples, The Centre for Student Development and Counselling at Toronto Metropolitan University invites applications for a career-stream position as a Professional Counsellor, effective 11 January 2027, subject to final budgetary approval.

This position is restricted to candidates who self-identify in the Applicant Diversity Self-ID questionnaire in the recruitment portal, as First Nations, Métis, Inuit people of North America (Turtle Island) and who subsequently successfully complete an affirmation process at TMU. As part of the application process candidates will be invited to provide relevant documentation (for example, a First Nation Band Card) to support the claim of Indigenous identity and participate in a discussion with the University’s Indigenous Human Resources Lead in order to share relevant information about their lived experience.

We highly encourage Indigenous applicants to apply for this position and other upcoming non-designated Professional Counsellor positions.

Indigenous counselling offers trauma-informed care guided by Indigenous ways of knowing and being that is grounded in a holistic relational approach to mental health and wellness. It recognizes and respects the diversity amongst Indigenous peoples. It highlights the importance of traditional Indigenous supports, including ceremony, Traditional Healers, Elders, and Knowledge Keepers, while also drawing on appropriate Western therapeutic approaches. We welcome applicants whose counselling practice recognizes the interconnectedness of community, land and the intellectual, physical, emotional, cultural, spiritual and relational dimensions of wellbeing.

The successful candidate will support both Indigenous students and the wider TMU student community by providing counselling and psychotherapy to students experiencing a range of mental health and wellness concerns. These include but are not limited to anxiety, depression, trauma and the impacts of colonialism, grief and loss, social and interpersonal relationships, family dynamics, identity, and other concerns affecting student wellbeing and academic success. Services may include individual and group counselling, crisis intervention, case management, and referrals to appropriate campus, community, and Indigenous-specific supports. This role also contains a component of community support, relationship building, and prevention work in collaboration with Gdoo-maawnjidimi Mompii / Indigenous Student Services (GMISS) and other units within Student Wellbeing and the Office of Vice-Provost Students (OVPS).

Candidates must hold a minimum Master's degree in Counselling Psychology or Social Work with a minimum of 5 years postgraduate experience in individual therapy, group therapy, crisis intervention, and program development. Candidates holding a doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology or a related discipline, are also welcome to apply without the minimum 5 years postgraduate experience.

Candidates shall provide evidence of:

• Lived experience and/or demonstrated knowledge of Indigenous worldviews, cultures, histories, contemporary experiences, and approaches to health and wellness, and strong ties to First Nations, Métis and/or Inuit communities.
• Knowledge of and respect for Indigenous healing practices and supports, including the roles of Elders, Knowledge Keepers, Traditional Healers, ceremony, community, land, and other culturally grounded approaches to wellness.
• Demonstrated ability to incorporate Indigenous approaches to healing and wellness, alongside Western therapeutic approaches where appropriate.
• Strong generalist counselling skills and an ability to work with a diverse client population in a brief/short-term goal-directed therapy practice model.
• Training and demonstrated practice in evidence-informed therapeutic modalities, including trauma-informed approaches and modalities such as AEDP, EFT, DBT, EMDR, or other relevant approaches.
• Effective use of clinical judgment and decision-making skills to deliver counselling and crisis intervention services for students, including risk-assessment, complex case management, outreach and referrals.
• Strong interpersonal skills with an understanding and use of professional boundaries, roles and responsibilities, and strong collaboration and conflict resolution skills.
• Effective written and verbal communication skills.
• Experience in program development/coordination and developing and delivering community level initiatives
• An ability to function independently and as part of multiple teams, working with other student well-being staff who will be delivering programs to TMU students.
• An ability to effectively prioritize and ensure the completion of assigned work, to change priorities as the need arises, and to work efficiently.
• Experience, or demonstrated capacity to excel, in a post-secondary setting
• Membership, in good standing, of a regulatory college that is responsible for regulating the act of psychotherapy in the province of Ontario.

Our committee recognizes that scholars have varying career paths and that career interruptions can be part of an excellent record. Candidates are encouraged to provide any relevant information about their experience and/or career interruptions.

The salary range for this position is $81,834.08 to $188,997.76 per annum, commensurate with qualifications.

Working at TMU

Serving a highly diverse student population of over 45,000, TMU offers more than 100 undergraduate and graduate programs that integrate theoretical and practical learning. Distinguished by a professionally focused curriculum and a strong emphasis on excellence in teaching, research and creative activities, TMU is a vibrant, urban university known for its culture of innovation, entrepreneurship, community engagement and city building, reflected in its award-winning architecture.

At the intersection of mind and action, TMU is on a transformative path to become Canada’s leading comprehensive innovation university. Our new academic plan, Transformative Futures offers an exciting roadmap towards our ongoing pursuit of academic excellence and addressing the complex and evolving challenges of our time.

At the heart of TMU’s remarkable achievements and its ambitious aspirations are its students, faculty and staff. Committed to a people-first culture, the university prides itself on offering exceptional benefits and perks, celebrating the achievements of its faculty and staff and maintaining its unwavering commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion, including its ongoing commitment to Truth and Reconciliation, confronting Anti-Black Racism and accessibility for persons with disabilities. Among its many recognitions is being ranked number one on the Forbeslist of Canada’s Best Employers for Diversity. We invite you to explore employment at TMU as well as our community of diverse faculty and staff networks.

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About Student Integrated Health & Wellbeing

The Student Integrated Health and Wellbeing includes the Medical Centre, Centre for Student Development and Counselling, and Health Promotion Programs. In Student Integrated Health and Wellbeing, a comprehensive, holistic model of health is engaged to support students’ health and wellbeing. The Medical Centre provides health care services on campus including assessments, immunizations, physicals, and more. The Centre for Student Development and Counselling offers free, confidential counselling services from a team of professional counsellors and counselling interns. Using a personalized care model, the team works with students to develop a personal wellbeing plan, and services offered including group and one-on-one care. Finally, Health Promotion Programs shares health tips and strategies to students at TMU and runs the peer support program, because healthy students make better learners.

Contacts

Any confidential inquiries about the opportunity can be directed to Clara Tam, Director, Student Integrated Health & Wellbeing, at [e-mail].

Indigenous candidates interested in learning more about working at Toronto Metropolitan University are welcome to contact James McKay, Indigenous Human Resources Lead, at [e-mail].

For any confidential accommodation needs in order to participate in the recruitment and selection process and/or inquiries regarding accessing the Recruitment Portal, please contact [e-mail].