About

REAL Career Guidance is a Guidance Counselling service with an educational, training and consultancy side to its business. Sallyann Alexander is the founder of the business and has a longstanding business background in people management and international recruitment for a multinational, having also worked on a self-employed basis. In addition, she is experienced in working with adults in a guidance capacity in the community and voluntary sector as well as in further and higher education settings.   She currently works part-time in an Adult Guidance role with South Dublin County Partnership around her growing guidance private practice and consultancy work.

Sallyann supports non-traditional students, women and men returners and marginalised groups in society with re-entry to employment, education and training.  In addition she offers post primary/post Leaving Certificate students support which is supplementary to the school guidance system. Furthermore, she also helps individuals to adequately prepare for a Return to Education and Learning (REAL) and for academic success. Her ideology and approach is rooted in the principles of community development in terms of responding in a way which both empowers individuals and encourages them to take responsibility.  This happens in a supportive environment which upholds dignity and respect.

Sallyann's expertise and interest is in adult education and both wellness and addiction recovery.  She has worked as a Group Facilitator for AWARE and as an Information Officer for the Citizens Information Service.  In addition, she currently supports clients in a range of addiction services/projects and is a trained  Aiséiri  After Care Group Facilitator.  Formerly she was also a Board member of  Louth Meath Education and Training Board (LMETB), providing a voice for the voiceless, having been elected as the AONTAS female nominee of choice for the ETB elections in 2014.

• Postgraduate Diploma in Adult Guidance and Counselling (Level 9) - Maynooth University
• British Psychological Society (BPS) Certificate of Competence: Test User, Occupational Ability (psychometric testing)
• Certificate in Adult Guidance Theory and Practice (Level 8) - Maynooth University
• Bachelor of Arts (Hons) Community Studies (Social Sciences) (Level 8) - Maynooth University
• Diploma in Arts, Local and Community Studies (Level 8) - Maynooth University
• Diploma in Arts, Addiction Studies (Level 8) - Maynooth University
• Certificate in Addiction Studies (Level 7) - Maynooth University
• Diploma in Eating Disorders - ATI Psychology Academy
• Certificate in Group Facilitation (Psychotherapeutic) (Level 6) - ICHAS College

In addition to formal qualifications Sallyann has certificates and Continuous Professional Development (CPD) qualifications in a range of areas such as: Information Provision, Advice and Advocacy; Adult Literacy Tutor Training; Group Facilitation, SafeTALK and ASIST Suicide Intervention; Crisis Intervention, Mindfulness Practice, Counselling Skills, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Reality Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Brief Intervention and Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP).

She is a full member of the Institute of Guidance Counsellors and is fully insured to practice.

REAL Career Guidance seeks to provide impartial careers, education and training information, through one-to-one and group guidance sessions, in order to support people to make informed choices about education, training and career options  with their particular life circumstances in mind. The bespoke confidential service is individually tailored and available to:

- adults aged 18 years and over

- those aged over 16 who have left the school system early

- post primary/PLC students and their parents

- and anyone interested in both Community Education programmes and/or those on the National Framework of Qualifications.  

As a Guidance Counsellor Sallyann attends professional supervision, abides by a code of professional ethics and adheres to national and European guidance best practice.