Jordan

In 1969, the counselling profession began to gain its recognition as a professional field in Jordan when the Ministry of Education established the department of guidance and counselling. At that time, “counselling was initially introduced to the public school system by appointment of six staff members in six high schools in the city of Amman” (Farah, 1992, p. 18). Farah (1992) also explains that during this phase, there were less than 100 counsellors available in the country. Counsellors were known as social workers and their services were limited to high school pupils (Farah, 1992). From 1980 to 1990, the number of counsellors began to increase. During this phase, there were around 500 counsellors in the country (Farah, 1992). Farah (1992) further explains that two counselling programs were also established where a “bachelor’s degree, post graduate diploma, or master’s degree in counselling” (Farah, 1992, p. 19) is offered. 

Additionally in 1987, the Ministry of Education began to set standards of employment for school counsellors in which the applicants needed to at least have an “M.A. diploma, bachelor’s degree in counselling, or bachelor’s in psychology” (Farah, 1992, p.19; Ministry of Education, 1989). Resulting from the increase in mental health education in Jordan, counselling services are offered to more than just high school students. A wide range of counselling services are now being offered in the country including adult counselling and family and marriage counselling (Farah, 1992). Thus, the counselling profession is continuing to develop in the country.