The Undergraduate Diploma in Coaching: We coach you to become the coach you want to be

Coaching has taken off exponentially in the worlds of business and education. It’s increasingly common for executives or students today to seek out the assistance of a coach, or to experience coaching as part of a personal development process. But there is still a fairly widespread misunderstanding about what coaching actually is, says Dr. Gillian Stevens of the University of Cambridge Institute of Continuing Education (ICE).

Gill is the Course Director and tutor for the ICE Undergraduate Diploma in Coaching and has been a professional coach herself for many years. People still struggle to grasp what coaching is for, and how it differs from things like counselling or therapy, she says.

“At its core, coaching is about helping someone to work through an issue or a challenge and move towards a goal or aspiration. It’s about facilitating an individual’s thinking to help them get to the desired outcome. But it’s not the same as therapy!”

There are overlaps, but where therapy tends to focus on the past, coaching has a forward-facing dynamic, she explains. 

“Coaching acknowledges the complexity of people’s past, but essentially in coaching we look forward to the future by helping to define and then achieve future goals.” 

Coaching is not about giving out advice or telling people what to do. It’s more about enabling people to unearth their own insights and understanding, and find their own solutions. 

“The best coaches are not advice-givers. They are listeners,” says Gill. “The key skills in coaching are really around empathy and active listening. It’s also about having the capacity to create a psychologically safe space; a place where people feel that they can be vulnerable and open enough to explore their challenges and find their own answers.” 

People typically seek out the help of coaches when they find themselves at a crossroads in their personal or professional lives – at some inflection point where they need to stop and explore ideas and options before making a key decision. This might be a moment of critical personal or career change, and it’s very important that they engage with a coach who can “hear” them, and provide the neutrality they need to find their own way forward, says Gill. 

The Diploma in Coaching is for coaches looking to really hone these skills. 

“The course is designed for those who’ve already had some coaching experience in the real world and who are ready to dig deeper into, among other things, the psychological dimensions of the coaching relationship established between coach and client.” 

Over three terms, the course integrates theory and practice across the “domains of psychology, self-development and change,” challenging participants to build their own self-awareness as they progress, says Gill. The learning experience meshes the theoretical with the practical as students explore how to create a safe, objective environment and reflect on their personal role as enabler, she adds. 

“We begin by unpacking the psychological aspects, then we take a deep dive into each student’s personal ‘niche’ as a function of developing self-awareness, before moving on into the practice of coaching and its role in the change process. Students will have the chance to deepen their coaching practice as part of the course, and they use this experience to add depth to their written, academic assignments.” 

People are drawn to the course from a breadth of cultures, educational backgrounds and experience, though they have one thing in common: a desire to help others. 

“Our students are very diverse in terms of their profiles and in terms of how they view coaching. Some are intellectually drawn to specific models of coaching – models that focus on the person, or models that are more solution-oriented, for instance. Other students are looking to set up their own consultancies and are quite dynamic about their professional goals. It’s a real mix, but at its core, coaching is for people who want to make a positive difference to the outcomes of others.” 

Ken is an executive coach based between the UK and Italy. 

His coaching career began 35 years ago, following a stint in teaching English as foreign language. Despite his experience, he has had bouts of what he calls “imposter syndrome.” He sought out the  Undergraduate Certificate in Coaching as a way of consolidating his expertise, and lending structure to his understanding. He was also drawn to the opportunity of hands-on, applied practice in the company of experts.

The experience, he says, changed him as a person.

“From the very start, you learn to stop being judgmental and to build far greater introspection into what you do and how you serve the client. There’s also a fantastic dynamic within the cohort that comes from coaching your peers and being coached by them. The experience brings you to a point where you discover things about yourself that you have never truly realised. And that’s huge.” 

Giving 100% to the course can be transformational, says Ken. And while the experience can be challenging at the time, the depth of the learning remains long after the course ends. 
 
“It has genuinely changed me and the way that I coach others. Since taking this course, a regular client of mine has experienced this transformation too. I’ve coached him intensively over the last six months, and he has been promoted twice in that time. He has benefitted hugely from my personal development as his coach.”

Ken’s only regret is that the course actually came to an end. He became “hooked,” he says, on the experience.

“I can’t recommend this course enough. And I’d recommend it to anyone. As an experience it’s been genuinely life-transforming and the impact is enduring. I don’t think our tutors have any idea just how incredibly impactful this course is!”

Participants leave the course and pursue different goals. Some decide to continue their studies and others will go straight into coaching practice on completion. For all, there has never been a more compelling time to commit to coaching as a discipline, says Gill. 

“The impact of the pandemic has been huge and there has been a real toll on people’s wellbeing. I think we are seeing coaching and other practices that optimise mental health becoming increasingly prioritised across the board. That means that it’s a truly exciting time to be involved in this fascinating world.”

For anyone contemplating taking her course, her advice would be: “just do it – you will learn a lot about yourself!”

“This is a safe, neutral space to hone your knowledge and abilities as a coach. And it’s an open and welcoming environment. In a sense you end up living the coaching experience yourself,” she laughs. “Effectively, we coach you into becoming the coach you want to be!”

Learn more

Find out more about our Undergraduate Certificate and Diploma in Coaching.