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Home > Professional Training > Psychoanalytic Education Program
Psychoanalytic Education Program
The Psychoanalytic Education Program is a multifaceted course of
study intended to expand and refine the capacity of mental health
professionals to understand and work with patients in depth. The program
also offers valuable tools for scholars and researchers who wish to
increase their effectiveness in their own fields.
Psychotherapists who undertake psychoanalytic training dramatically
increase their ability to recognize and work with unconscious
intrapsychic and interactional phenomena, as well as the capacity to use
their own humanity as an instrument to promote the therapeutic
process.
Psychoanalytic training is comprised of three interrelated processes:
(1) a personal analysis with a training analyst; (2) clinical
experience, consisting of supervised analyses and case presentations;
and (3) theoretical and clinical course work. The goal of psychoanalytic
training is to integrate these three processes so as to foster the
student's psychological understanding and clinical effectiveness, as
well as his or her mastery of the theories and techniques of
psychoanalysis.
Personal Analysis
The personal analysis is the foundation upon which psychoanalytic
knowledge and understanding is built. It is conducted, at a frequency of
at least four times a week, by a "training analyst." Training analysts
are appointed by the American Psychoanalytic Association, based on their
expertise and immersion in psychoanalytic work, for the express purpose
of analyzing and supervising candidates (students) in psychoanalytic
training. Understanding of one's unconscious is essential if one is to
delve into the unconscious of another and thus conduct productive
therapeutic work. The training analysis and life-long self-analysis are
the means for achieving and maintaining this depth of understanding of
oneself and others.
The training analysis is a dynamic process, the duration of which
cannot be easily determined. It is, however, essential that the training
analysis be in progress during a significant part of the candidate's
experience in analyzing his or her first two cases. The training
analysis must be under way before the candidate matriculates. If
analysis with a training analyst has been completed before
matriculation, the candidate will be asked to reenter analysis.
Clinical Experience
Applicants for psychoanalytic training are expected to have a minimum
of two years of full-time clinical experience and a working knowledge of
diagnostics, psychopathology, psychodynamics, and developmental theory.
To foster the development of clinical skills, the curriculum is designed
to integrate theoretical course work with direct practice. Candidates
begin to analyze their first case after the conclusion of an
introductory quarter of basic concepts, theory of technique, and seminar
demonstrations that focus on the initial phase of analysis.
Candidates in the Adult Psychoanalytic Training Program must analyze
a minimum of three cases under supervision. Each supervised case is seen
four to five times weekly and, to qualify for credit, each must be
carried for at least 200 hours and show evidence of a psychoanalytic
process. Supervision of each of the first two cases begins at a
frequency of one hour per week, decreasing to less frequent consultation
as the candidate's ability to analyze increases. A minimum of 175 hours
of supervision is required, with at least 50 hours on each of two cases.
Theoretical and Clinical Courses
Psychoanalysis is a rich, complex, and evolving field. The Institute
for Psychoanalysis attracts candidates with a variety of backgrounds and
interests in psychoanalysis as a clinical and intellectual pursuit. The
curriculum of the Adult Psychoanalytic Training Program provides
candidates with a thorough familiarity with psychoanalytic theories of
motivation, development, and technique. The goal of psychoanalytic
education is to facilitate lively, active, and creative discussion among
candidates and faculty about the history, conduct, and controversies of
psychoanalysis. At the end of their training, candidates should be
knowledgeable about fundamental psychoanalytic ideas and be able to
think about them critically and apply them in their clinical work.
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