Understanding the first year of novice school counsellors

Abstract Previous research shows that the first year of a school counsellor’s career is one of the most critical stages. However, despite this importance, there is a limited number of studies that examine what novice school counsellors experience during their first year. The primary purpose of this qualitative study is to examine in detail the common experiences of novice school counsellors who have worked the first year of their professional career and to explore comprehensive themes regarding these experiences. Following a purposive sampling strategy, 33 school counsellors who started their profession in 19 different cities of Turkey were interviewed. As a result of the thematic analysis, five major themes emerged describing the first-year experiences of school counsellors: ‘Introduction’, ‘Fighting against Prejudices’, ‘Organising Counselling Service Room’, ‘Incongruence between Training and Work Definitions’, and ‘Longing for College Years’.