Now hiring · Thornhill, Ontario
Couples Therapist Job in Thornhill & Vaughan
Couples counselling is one of the services families ask us for most, and the one we are least able to meet right now. We are looking for a therapist who does this work by choice rather than as overflow from an individual caseload: someone who can hold a room when two people are hurt and angry, and who knows the difference between refereeing an argument and shifting the pattern underneath it.
Looking for couples counselling for yourself rather than a job? Visit our couples counselling page.
- Engagement
- Fee-for-service associate (independent contractor)
- Schedule
- Part-time to full-time, evening availability matters most
- Location
- In person at our Thornhill clinic, with virtual sessions available across Ontario
- Rate
- $90–$110 per 50-minute session
About the role
Young Sprouts Therapy is a child, teen, and family practice in Thornhill serving Vaughan and York Region. Couples counselling sits alongside our family therapy and parent work, and it is a service we currently turn away more of than we can take on.
What makes this caseload distinctive is who walks through the door. A good share of the couples we see are already connected to the practice: a child in therapy, a parent in coaching, a family in the middle of an assessment. The strain shows up as co-parenting conflict, an unequal division of labour, or the particular exhaustion of raising a child with additional needs. That said, plenty of the couples we see are not parents at all, and this is not a co-parenting counselling role in disguise.
The caseload is yours to shape. If you want to work exclusively with couples, we can build toward that. If you would rather hold a mix of couples, family, and individual work, that is available too.
The couples work you would be doing
We are not a single-model practice and we will not ask you to abandon the approach you trained in. What we do care about is that you work from a model rather than from instinct alone. These are the threads that come up most in our referrals.
Gottman Method
Structured assessment, naming the patterns that predict trouble, and building repair skills couples can actually use at eleven at night. Training at Level 1 or beyond is a strong asset, and Certified Gottman Therapists are very welcome.
Emotionally Focused Therapy
Attachment-based work on the cycle underneath the argument: de-escalation first, then restructuring the bond. If you have completed an externship, core skills, or ICEEFT certification, say so in your application.
Couples who are also parents
Transition to parenthood, division of labour, a child's recent diagnosis, blended families, and couples deciding whether to separate. This overlaps with the rest of our practice more than it would at a couples-only clinic, and you would have child clinicians down the hall to consult.
If you are partway through Gottman Level 2 or an EFT externship, tell us where you are. We are glad to talk about how the caseload can support you getting there.
What you would be doing
- Provide couples counselling to partners at every stage: premarital, newly cohabiting, long-married, blended, and separating.
- Work with the presenting issues couples actually arrive with: communication breakdown, recurring conflict, trust and affair recovery, intimacy and desire differences, parenting disagreements, financial stress, and cultural or interfaith differences.
- Screen for intimate partner violence and coercive control, and recognise when conjoint work is contraindicated and what to offer instead.
- Set and hold clear policies on individual sessions and confidentiality within couples work, so nobody is surprised by how information is handled.
- Offer discernment counselling to couples who are genuinely unsure whether to stay together.
- Collaborate with our child, family, and assessment clinicians where the same family is seen across more than one service.
- Complete intakes, treatment plans, and progress notes in Jane within our documentation timelines.
- Hold a consistent weekly schedule with real evening availability, because that is when most couples can attend together.
Qualifications and requirements
- Registered and in good standing with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers as a Registered Social Worker with an MSW, or with the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario as a Registered Psychotherapist.
- Demonstrated experience working with couples, not individual therapy only.
- Training in at least one recognised couples model, such as the Gottman Method, Emotionally Focused Therapy, PACT, or Imago.
- Competent at screening for intimate partner violence and at managing a session that turns high-conflict.
- Comfortable raising and discussing sex, intimacy, and desire without deflecting.
- Current professional liability insurance and a clear Vulnerable Sector Check.
- Able to work in person at our Thornhill office. Virtual couples sessions are available across Ontario.
- Familiar with PHIPA obligations and comfortable working in an EMR. We use Jane.
Compensation
$90–$110 per 50-minute session
- $90–$110 for each 50-minute couples session. Where you land depends on your registration, your couples-specific experience, and relevant approved training such as Gottman or EFT.
- Where a longer session is clinically warranted and the couple agrees to it, we bill and pay pro rata rather than squeezing the work into fifty minutes.
- Paid monthly against completed sessions. Nothing is deducted for desk rent, admin, or platform fees. The rate you agree to is the rate you are paid.
We are happy to talk numbers on the first call. If the range does not work for your situation, tell us early rather than late.
What the clinic provides
- A steady referral stream, so your calendar fills without you having to chase it.
- Intake, scheduling, billing, insurance receipts, and follow-up handled by our admin team.
- A furnished office at 1137 Centre Street, Thornhill, set up for couples work rather than borrowed from a playroom, with free on-site parking.
- Marketing, website, and search presence, so you do not need to build a practice or a personal brand to keep your calendar full.
- A collaborative team including child clinicians, an occupational therapist, and a psychologist, which matters when you are working with parents whose children we also see.
- Genuine schedule control. You set your availability and your caseload size.
Our hiring process
We aim to move from first email to offer within three weeks. You will hear back either way.
Send us your CV
Email your CV and a short note about your couples training and the work you find most rewarding. A formal cover letter is not required.
Intro call (20 minutes)
A no-pressure conversation about what you are looking for, the caseload we can offer, and whether the numbers work for both of us.
Clinical conversation (60 minutes)
A deeper discussion with our clinical lead about how you work with couples. Expect to talk through a session that went badly, and how you handle a disclosure that changes what conjoint work is safe.
References and registration check
Two professional references, plus verification of your OCSWSSW or CRPO registration and insurance.
Offer and onboarding
We agree on rates, availability, and a start date, then set up your EMR access, room schedule, and first referrals.
How to apply
Email your CV to info@youngsproutstherapy.com with “Couples Therapist” in the subject line. Tell us in a few sentences about your couples training, the presenting issues you feel most confident with, and what you are looking for in a practice. Applications are reviewed as they arrive.
Young Sprouts Therapy is an equal opportunity employer. We welcome applications from candidates of every background, and we will accommodate accessibility needs at any stage of the hiring process under the AODA. Just let us know what you need.