Key Considerations When Choosing a Psychotherapy Training Course

During a psychotherapy training course, you’ll gain the foundational skills, theoretical knowledge, and practical experience necessary to become a qualified psychotherapist. There are myriad courses to choose from, each with their own theoretical outlook, entry requirements, accreditation, and teaching style.

This blog explores the different types of training available, how to prepare, and key considerations to keep in mind during this decision-making process.

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Types of Training in Psychotherapy

It can be difficult to work out which courses lead to qualification as a psychotherapist (or counsellor). To dispel any confusion, here is a quick breakdown of the different training types:

Pre-qualification and foundation courses

These courses teach students entry-level skills and theoretical knowledge needed to prepare for the next stage in training (called ‘clinical training or ‘qualifying training’), where you actually start to work with patients. It is uncommon to be accepted onto clinical training without having first completed a pre-qualification/foundation course to teach you the basics. If you want to move onto the next stage of training, you usually need to be in personal therapy for a year prior to applying, with a therapist your training school has approved. Sometimes the entry requirements will state that 6 months of therapy prior to applying is sufficient, but bear in mind that places on clinical trainings can be competitive and the more personal therapy you have had the stronger your application will be.

Qualifying Training

These courses lead to qualification as a psychotherapist (or counsellor). They last a minimum of 3 years and include supervised clinical work, further theoretical teaching, and, sometimes, a psychiatric placement and an infant observation. Throughout these courses you need to remain in personal therapy. Once you have satisfied all of the training requirements, you will be able to register with a professional body like the BPC, BACP or UKCP and start practicing as a qualified professional.

Post-qualification/professional development courses

After qualifying, these courses enable psychotherapists to enhance their professional skills and develop their knowledge (we often call this: ‘continuous professional development’). All accredited therapists have to undertake around 30 hours of ongoing learning every year to maintain their registration.

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Considerations for Choosing a Psychotherapy Training Course

When choosing a psychotherapy training course, it’s crucial to consider several factors to ensure it meets your personal and professional needs. Training is a considerable financial investment, so it’s worthwhile to do your research before committing. Here are some key aspects to keep in mind when comparing the options available:

Accreditation

Always make sure the training course you choose is accredited by a reputable psychotherapy authority, such as the British Psychoanalytic Council, the Association of Child Psychotherapists, the United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy or the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy. Accreditation guarantees that the course meets the accrediting body’s academic, clinical and ethical standards. In other words, accreditation demonstrates that the course has been quality-assured.

Theoretical Approach and Teaching

Courses, and the organisations that teach them, tend to have a specific theoretical outlook. At the bpf, for example, we specialise in teaching psychoanalytic and Jungian psychotherapy. Other schools will have different theoretical approaches, such as Humanistic, Existential, Integrative, or Gestalt, to name just a few. Before choosing where to train, we recommend doing some research into the different types of psychotherapy and discovering which theories resonate with you the most. Introductory psychotherapy or counselling texts will often summarise the various schools of thought and can be a helpful starting point.

When selecting a course, it’s also important to ensure the teaching staff are professional psychotherapists who have experience in the disciplines you’re interested in. Their expertise and experience will help you to get the most out of your training.

Course Structure & Personal Therapy

Training is a marathon, not a sprint, so the structure of the training course you choose should fit around your routine and current work commitments (qualifying will take at least 4 years in most cases).

Traditionally, psychotherapy training courses are held in person, however, you sometimes have the option to study the theoretical components of a course online. Clinical seminars, where you will discuss your clinical work with your peers, still tend to be held in person.

In addition to the lectures, seminars, self-study, work with patients, an experiential group and supervision, personal therapy will also be required. Psychotherapy and counselling schools have rules about the qualifications, experience, and accreditation your therapist needs in order to work with you while you are studying. Your personal therapy usually needs to be in-person, and you need to have started therapy at least 6-12 months before starting your course; that being said, being in therapy for longer than the minimum requirement will strengthen your application.

As you can see, there are a lot of elements to juggle at once, so some serious planning will be required before starting a clinical training. In most cases, you will need to complete a Foundation Course before you can be considered for the full psychotherapy or counselling training. This is a good opportunity to test the waters and see if now is the right time to change careers.

Such is the commitment of clinical trainings, we recommend identifying a course which you gravitate towards and to spend time preparing at least a year in advance of applying. Do talk to the organisation you have chosen as you prepare to apply – they can offer you guidance on how to meet all of the entry requirements.

Unlike other disciplines, such as Psychology and Psychiatry, you don’t need to study an academic course at a university, such as a Masters or PhD, to qualify as a psychotherapist or counsellor.

This can be confusing to people. To add to the confusion, non-academic psychotherapy courses, which are instead called ‘professional qualifications’, are often still academically rigorous and taught at a post-graduate level. The main difference is the lack of a research component in a professional qualification, but you will still need to write well-reasoned, academic essays and read just as widely.

Completing an accredited, non-academic, professional training still leads to registration with a professional body like the BPC, ACP, BACP or UKCP, and allows you to practice.

Professional training courses also tend to be less expensive than academic qualifications, but the main drawback is not being able to access a government student loan so students will need to rely on self-funding, bursaries, or employer sponsorship to pay their fees.

It should be noted that, on both academic and professional qualifications in psychotherapy/counselling, you will always need to pay for your own personal therapy throughout the course (government student loans do not cover this).

Since psychotherapy is a practice-oriented profession, on training courses you will be undertaking clinical work with patients. You will meet regularly with a supervisor to discuss your work, receive feedback, and think through any difficulties that arise.

In addition to working with patients, more intensive training providers may also require you to undertake a psychiatric placement for six months and an infant observation.

Clinical experience allows you to apply theoretical knowledge in real-world settings and to develop your identity as a practitioner. The British Psychoanalytic Council, who accredit the bpf’s courses, have very rigorous standards and require trainees to work with a minimum of two patients whilst training, one for 18 months and the other for 24 months. Some courses take a different approach, instead requiring trainees to complete a certain number of placement hours (usually 100 hours) with a variety of patients.

Ongoing Support

Training to become a psychotherapist is an emotionally challenging process. It can be easy to overlook, but you should consider the support available to students throughout the course. On an accredited psychotherapy training, you should expect the following types of ongoing support:

• Personal therapy to cope with the demands of the course/clinical work
• Regular supervision with an experienced practitioner to discuss clinical work
• A personal tutor for pastoral support whilst studying

These resources will prove invaluable during the most challenging periods of your training.

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Booking a Psychotherapy Training Course in London or the North of England

Wherever you decide to study, following these guidelines will ensure you invest your money, time, and energy into a training that aligns with your professional aspirations. Here at the British Psychotherapy Foundation, we offer a vast range of psychotherapy training courses in London and the North East of England (Newcastle upon Tyne).

You can view all of our courses here.