Position Name: Psychosocial Counsellor (x2)

Duty Station: Çorum, Türkiye

Duration: Date to hire- August 31, 2020 (with possible extension)

Applicaton Closing Date:  8 November 2019

Background information:

RET Turkey works on bridging the gap between humanitarian and development assistance, focusing primarily on vulnerable and marginalised youth residing within country. RET envisions a world in which vulnerable young people overcome multidimensional adversities and are capacitated to lead their own journey towards rebuilding more resilient and peaceful communities. To achieve this goal, RET relies on two decades of experience bridging humanitarian and developmental approaches to act efficiently within our main areas of interventions.

Towards that end, RET has invested in designing evidence-based cross-cutting assistance interventions that aim, among other things, at:

- Countering the marginalisation of vulnerable adolescents by endorsing“a gender-balanced approach”to youth agency pillared around: (i) cultivating leadership congruent with fostering youth peace ambassadorship; (ii) designing and administering technical and vocational capacity building modules conducive to economic integration; and (iii) supporting youth resilience and socio-educational programming (including basic education), as a conduit for conflict transformation and sustainable peace building.

- Responding to the lack of conflict mitigation mechanisms by building “cross-cultural bridges” between host and displaced communities through: (i) creating platforms for inter-communal and cross-generational dialogue and confidence building; and (ii) promoting youth civic empowerment, peer-to-peer mentoring and anti- violence advocacy initiatives that encourage social cohesion and bolster community resilience; and

- Preventing violent extremism through the: (i) promotion of democratic values and practices via educational programming and learning for responsible citizenship; and (ii) provisioning of psychosocial support and counselling.   

Since 2014, RET Turkey has been amongst the forefront responders to Syrian crisis, reaching out to over 200’000 beneficiaries, whilst implementing a broad range of interventions, in the fields of: (i) Education; (ii) Community-Based Protection, (iii) Child Protection; (iv) Livelihoods & Self-Reliance; (v) Social Cohesion; (vi) Youth Empowerment; and (vii) Institutional Strengthening /Capacity Building of local and public partners.  RET' s mission is to alleviate suffering and catalyzes sustainable development, in crises, conflicts and fragile contexts. 

Job Description

Duties and Responsibilities

• Identifying the psychosocial needs of refugee and host communities and providing psychosocial counseling for cases of protection concerns identified by social workers
• Providing psychosocial support under the supervision of Senior Experts (Gender Based Violence Specialist and Protection Coordinator) and refer to relevant services and organizations (internal and external) where necessary; to contribute to the development of effective referring techniques
• Organizing psychosocial training at the center in accordance with the RET Psycho-Education and Emotional Support Groups curriculum under the supervision of Senior Experts (Gender Based Violence Specialist and Protection Coordinator)
• Measuring and monitoring progress in the psychosocial well-being of all beneficiaries of psychosocial support sessions using participatory assessment methods such as focus groups, pre-test and post-tests, interviews, etc.
• Monitoring the progress of counselees towards psychosocial goals by using relevant tools and scales to be developed by Senior Experts (Gender Based Violence Specialist and Protection Coordinator)
• Regularly preparing reports on common psychosocial issues and needs identified during psychosocial activities
• Ensuring regular access of project data to the reporting system; To protect working notes, project forms and documents in accordance with the Law on Protection of Personal Data and the principles of Counselee's privacy
• Working in close coordination with the Protection Coordinator and Program Manager to keep records of progress in psychosocial well-being
• Attending audit sessions, follow-up meetings and personnel training
• To work in coordination with other units in accordance with the needs of the project and to generate other analyzes and reports.

Profile and Skills

• At least a bachelor's or master's degree in psychology departments
• Knowledge about Syria Crisis humanitarian principles in Turkey, conflicts, refugees,
• Experience in working with refugees
• Understand the region and society
• Excellent interpersonal communication, including the ability to work with different groups
• Excellent and dynamic facilitation skills in a group environment
• Strong organizational skills and flexibility
• Working under pressure
• Knowledge of English and / or Arabic is preferred

Note: Due to the urgency to fill this post, RET reserves the right to review the CVs on a rolling basis and selected candidates may be interviewed prior to the closing dates listed, therefore early applications are encouraged. RET is not in a position to respond to every applicant individually due to the anticipated high number of applications. Please note that only short-listed candidates will be contacted for the first interview.