Cairnmillar Institute

The Cairnmillar Institute is one of Australia’s leading centres for psychology and counselling services and an industry leader in psychology education and training. Founded by Professor Emeritus Dr Francis Macnab in 1961, the Cairnmillar Institute pioneered counselling and psychotherapy in Australia. Over this time, Cairnmillar has developed a unique mental health model – the ‘Triple Helix’ referred to as the three pillars of Cairnmillar. The three pillars of: training, research, and clinical practice are integrated through all programs and services, where each pillar reinforces and informs the other two, therefore strengthening and building our expertise in mental health. As a registered higher education and an accredited Vocational Educational and Training (VET) provider, we are focused on providing mental health training through a range of courses spanning from micro-credentials and short courses to university-equivalent degrees (Bachelor of Psychology & Counselling through to Doctor of Psychology (Clinical Psychology). For more than 60 years, Cairnmillar has been at the forefront of clinical psychology and psychotherapy services with a strong reputation for clinical excellence and community engagement. Our clinical and ‘translational’ research focuses on taking basic psychological theory and empirical findings and turning them into evaluated and applied outcomes that benefit the community. As a not-for-profit organisation and a registered health promotion charity we seek to leverage our expertise and deliver real benefits to the communities we serve, including those in regional and rural areas. One hundred per cent of all donations are directed to Cairnmillar’s no cost counselling services.