Introductory Course in Psychoanalytic
Psychotherapy

This three-term course is offered as an educational experience for anyone interested in psychoanalysis and in the process of psychoanalytic psychotherapy.

The course can stand on its own or serve as a preparation to training as a psychoanalytic psychotherapist. It is of value to all those interested in exploring how the mind develops and why people experience emotional difficulties. It is a useful preliminary to the LCP Qualifying Course, which leads to registration with the British Psychoanalytic Council.  The course offers weekly seminars, weekly experiential groups, tutorial support and three plenary meetings.

Course content

Seminars

Seminars will take place every Wednesday evening 7.15 to 8.30pm, except on the first evening of the course when the seminar will be from 9 to 10.15pm, preceded by an induction meeting with the course coordinator and tutors from 8 to 8.45pm.

The first term starts with four seminars offering an introduction to Freud’s theory of the unconscious, the significance of dreams, symptoms and the structure of the psychic personality. This is followed by a film on Jung: the man and his concepts and then a seminar on Freud and Jung: alliance and schism.  The last four seminars continue to introduce Jung. Themes will include his understanding of the unconscious, archetypes and individuation, and some developments made by the Post-Jungians.

The second term contains five seminars on a psychoanalytic approach to understanding infancy, early development and the foundations for later psychic life.  This is followed by four seminars on Object Relations theory introducing the contributions of major theorists including Klein, Bion, Fairbairn and Winnicott.

The third term begins with two further seminars on Object Relations.  This is followed by three sessions on psychopathology and symptoms, covering the distinctions between neurosis, borderline states and psychosis. The course concludes with four seminars on the therapeutic relationship including such topics as transference, countertransference and interpretive technique.

All the seminar leaders are experienced psychoanalytic psychotherapists.

Plenary discussions

A plenary discussion replaces the weekly seminar at the end of all terms. This is an opportunity for students to discuss their experience of the course with the tutors and the course coordinator. At the plenary at the end of the course, students have the opportunity to discuss the profession of psychoanalytic psychotherapy with tutors, the course coordinator and current trainees on the LCP Qualifying Course or recently qualified members.

Experiential group

Wednesday evenings 9.00 to 10.15pm, starting on the second week of the course.

The experiential group is an important component of the course.  The group, led by an experienced group facilitator, takes place over the three terms after the evening's seminar or the plenary sessions. Each session lasts for an hour and a quarter.  The experiential group gives students an experience of the dynamics arising within a small group. This is a useful complement to the theoretical component of the course and helps students to learn about psychological processes in the individual and between people.

Tutorial support

Students are allocated a personal tutor and can have individual tutorial support throughout the course to discuss their studies.

Written work

At the end of the year students are expected to write a 1,500 to 2,000-word essay on the significance of the course to him or her.

Certification

To be awarded a certificate, students should achieve an attendance rate of 85 per cent of the course (including attendance at the plenary discussions). They should also complete the written work, which is read by the tutor and discussed in an individual tutorial.

LCP Qualifying Course in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy

Those who take part in the Introductory Course are not guaranteed acceptance on the LCP Qualifying Course. Applications for the Qualifying Course can be made whilst on the Introductory Course or subsequently.