This study investigated the perceptions of beginning counselor trainees regarding the therapeutic effectiveness of Carl Rogers, Fritz Perls, and Albert Ellis. Twenty‐nine students viewed three stimulus films and rated the therapeutic effectiveness of the therapists. The students were subsequently rank‐ordered by their prepracticum course instructors on the basis of skill development and assigned to one of three groups (high, middle, or low.) The results of a two‐way analysis of variance revealed an overall higher evaluation for Rogers as compared to either Perls or Ellis. Further analysis revealed that the top‐ranked group of counselor trainees rated Perls significantly higher than the other two and that the bottom‐ranked group ranked Ellis higher than Perls or Rogers. Several conclusions concerning the use of stimulus films for demonstration and training purposes in counselor education