| Course | NS420 Nutritional Counseling |
|---|---|
| Unit | Unit 3 |
| Paper type | Counseling session transcript |
| Length | About 930 words, 6 pages double-spaced |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Purdue University Global |
| Program | BS in Nutrition Science |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for NS420 Unit 3
Lunch in a Parked Car: A Unit 3 Counseling Session Transcript With a Home Health Aide
[Student Name]
Purdue University Global
NS420: Nutritional Counseling
Unit 3 Counseling Session Transcript
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
The client, the session and the counts are composite; the motivational interviewing text, the coding manual and the implementation intentions review cited are real.
Context
Denise is a home health aide who sees five or six clients a day across a rural county. She asked for counseling after her doctor mentioned her blood pressure. This is her second session. Excerpts below cover the main turns; routine greetings and scheduling are summarized. Counselor moves are labeled using the categories in the coding manual the course uses: open question, simple reflection, complex reflection, affirmation, summary, and giving information with permission (Moyers et al., 2016).
Opening
Counselor: "Last week you mentioned lunch was the hardest part of your day. Where would you like to start today?" [Open question]
Denise: "Lunch, I guess. I eat in the car. It's always a drive-through because there's nothing else between clients. Burger, fries, a large sweet tea. Sometimes twice a day if I miss breakfast."
Counselor: "The car has become your lunchroom." [Simple reflection]
Denise: "Pretty much. I have maybe twenty minutes, and half of that is driving."
Exploring
Counselor: "What would a better lunch look like, if the twenty minutes stayed the same?" [Open question]
Denise: "I don't know. I'm not going to pack a salad. It would be warm by noon. My car sits in the sun all day."
Counselor: "You've already thought about packing and found a real problem with it." [Complex reflection]
Note: The counselor reflects the barrier without arguing, which keeps Denise from defending the drive-through.
Denise: "Yeah. And honestly I like the drive-through. It's the only time nobody needs anything from me."
Counselor: "So lunch isn't only food. It's the one part of the day that's yours." [Complex reflection]
Denise: "That's exactly it."
The session turned when the counselor reflected that lunch was Denise's only break, because the change she chose later protected that break instead of taking it away.
Evoking Change Talk
Counselor: "What worries you about how lunch goes now?" [Open question]
Denise: "My mom had a stroke at sixty. My pressure is up. I know the salt in fries isn't helping. And the tea is like four hundred calories."
Counselor: "Your mom's stroke is on your mind." [Simple reflection]
Denise: "Every time I check a client's pressure, I think about mine."
Counselor: "You spend your day keeping other people healthy, and you want the same for yourself." [Affirmation]
Note: The affirmation names a value Denise holds rather than praising her, which the coding manual distinguishes from cheerleading.
Offering Information
Counselor: "Would it help if I shared a couple of things other people in cars all day have tried?" [Asking permission]
Denise: "Sure."
Counselor: "Some people keep a small cooler with an ice pack in the back seat. Others still use the drive-through but change one thing, like the drink or the side. What fits you?" [Giving information with permission]
Denise: "The cooler wouldn't last. But the tea, I could do unsweet. I drink it for the cold, not the sugar, really."
Planning
Counselor: "What would make that happen tomorrow?" [Open question]
Denise: "If I order it first, before I look at the menu. 'Large unsweet tea' before anything else."
Counselor: "So when you pull up to the speaker, the first words are 'large unsweet tea.'" [Simple reflection]
Note: Denise's plan has the if-then form of an implementation intention, which links a cue to an action and has been shown to help people act on goals (Gollwitzer, 1999).
Denise: "And maybe a side salad instead of fries twice a week. Not every day."
Counselor: "Two days a week, salad instead of fries, and unsweet tea every time. On a zero-to-ten scale, how sure are you that each will happen?" [Summary and open question]
Denise: "The tea, eight. The salad, maybe five."
Closing
Counselor: "You came in saying lunch is the hardest part, and you're leaving with a plan that keeps your break and changes what's in the cup. Next week, let's see how it went." [Summary]
Analysis
The tally across the forty-minute session: counselor, 19 turns and about 31 percent of words spoken; Denise, 20 turns and about 69 percent. Reflections outnumbered questions, 11 to 7, which meets the ratio of at least one reflection per question suggested for skilled practice (Miller & Rollnick, 2023). There was one closed question and no confrontation.
What went well: the complex reflection about lunch being her only break shifted the session from barriers to values. The counselor asked permission before giving information, and Denise chose from the options rather than being assigned one.
What to improve: the counselor moved to planning before exploring the salad confidence rating of five. A follow-up such as "What would move that to a six?" might have strengthened the second goal or shown it was not ready. Setting a goal at a confidence of five risks a quick failure, and a failed goal in the first week can lower a client's confidence in the whole process. In the next session, the counselor will ask about the salad goal first and invite Denise to keep it, change it or drop it. Talk time is the other point to watch. At 31 percent the counselor stayed below a third of the words, but most of her talk came in the information and planning segments, which is where a counselor most easily slides back into telling.
References
Gollwitzer, P. M. (1999). Implementation intentions: Strong effects of simple plans. American Psychologist, 54(7), 493-503. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.54.7.493
Miller, W. R., & Rollnick, S. (2023). Motivational interviewing: Helping people change and grow (4th ed.). Guilford Press.
Moyers, T. B., Rowell, L. N., Manuel, J. K., Ernst, D., & Houck, J. M. (2016). The Motivational Interviewing Treatment Integrity Code (MITI 4): Rationale, preliminary reliability and validity. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 65, 36-42. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsat.2016.01.001
NS420 Unit 3 instructions, in plain terms
Unit 3 of NS420 asks for a written transcript of a counseling session, with each counselor move labeled and a short analysis at the end. Prompts generally allow a role-play or a composite session and ask students to follow the course's coding categories. Choose a client whose concern is specific enough to produce real dialogue. Give brief context before the transcript begins. Write the exchanges as people actually speak, with interruptions and short answers, not as polished paragraphs. Label every counselor turn. Include at least one moment where the client resists or hesitates. Show information offered only after asking permission. End the session with a summary. In the analysis, count turns or words, compare reflections with questions and name one thing to improve. Most sections expect six to eight pages including the analysis.
How the NS 420 Unit 3 example is put together
The sample opens with a paragraph on Denise's job, her referral concern and the fact that this is her second visit. The transcript then moves through labeled stages: opening, exploring, evoking change talk, offering information, planning and closing. Each counselor line carries a bracketed label from the coding manual. Short notes explain key moves, such as reflecting a barrier without arguing and affirming a value instead of praising. A highlighted sentence identifies the reflection about her only break as the turning point. The counselor asks permission before mentioning coolers or menu swaps, and Denise picks unsweetened tea. A note links her ordering plan to implementation intentions. The analysis reports turns, the share of words each person spoke and the reflection-to-question ratio, then names the salad confidence rating as a missed chance.
Where the points sit in the NS420 Unit 3 rubric
Session transcripts in NS420 are typically graded on the quality of counseling shown, the accuracy of the labels and the depth of the closing analysis. Most of the marks ride on whether the counselor's moves fit the approach taught: open questions, reflections that add meaning and information shared with permission. Labels must match what the line actually does; an instructor will notice a closed question tagged as open. Realistic dialogue, including hesitation, earns credit over a session where the client agrees with everything. The analysis carries real weight, especially counts such as talk time or reflection ratios and an honest note of what to do differently. A client-chosen plan near the end shows the approach working. Citations to the coding manual and the course text, in APA 7, complete the rubric.
Common NS420 Unit 3 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Many transcripts sound scripted, with long, tidy speeches from both people. Another common problem is labeling moves inaccurately, often calling a question a reflection. Some counselors give advice early and label it as information. Clients in weak transcripts agree too readily, leaving nothing to analyze. The analysis section is sometimes a single paragraph saying the session went well. Counts are missing or not explained. A self-critique that names no specific moment earns little credit. Some writers forget to ask permission before offering ideas, which undercuts the approach they are trying to show. If you have a role-play recording or notes but struggle to turn them into a labeled transcript with analysis, a writer can help you tag each move and build the tally and critique.
Get an NS420 Unit 3 example written to your instructions
Share the client scenario the Unit 3 prompt gives, or describe a composite you want to counsel, along with the coding scheme your instructor uses. The transcript comes back numbered and annotated, with a talk-time tally and a commentary that is honest about the slips. First sample is free; turnaround is 24-48h. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Purdue University Global document.
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NS420 Unit 3 questions, answered
Should the transcript include mistakes?
Usually one or two, clearly marked and repaired. A flawless session looks invented, and it leaves the commentary with nothing to evaluate. The skill being graded includes noticing a slip, such as advice offered without permission, and recovering from it. What matters is that the annotation catches the mistake before the grader does, and that the next few lines show the recovery.
Which coding labels should the margin use?
Whatever the course text or rubric names. OARS for counselor moves and DARN-CAT for change talk are common in motivational interviewing coursework, and some instructors add labels for giving information or asking permission. Define any abbreviation once at the top. Consistency across the whole transcript matters more than the particular scheme, since graders check labels line by line.
Can the transcript be written from a role-play with a classmate?
Yes, if the prompt allows it, and a role-play often produces more natural dialogue than one written from scratch. Record only with the classmate's agreement, change any personal details they shared, and label the client as composite. The transcript can tidy false starts for readability, but the counselor's moves should stay as they happened.
Where can I find a free NS420 Unit 3 sample paper?
This page contains a full Unit 3 counseling transcript with a home health aide who eats lunch in her car, every counselor move labeled from the MITI 4 manual, and a closing analysis with talk-time counts.
How is talk time counted in the NS420 Unit 3 transcript?
The sample counts turns and estimates the share of words each person spoke in the session. Denise spoke about 69 percent of the words, which supports the claim that the client, not the counselor, did most of the work.