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POST GRADUATE TWO-YEAR PROGRAM: CHILD AND ADOLESCENT PSYCHOANALYSIS TRAINING

The Post Graduate Program is designed for advanced candidates who hold a master’s degree, and have completed training at an accredited psychoanalytic psychotherapy institute.

  • Candidates will learn the essentials of child therapy while pursuing an intensive curriculum in the theory, technique and history of child and adolescent psychoanalysis.
  • Each post graduate candidate is assigned a school or other, community placement.
  • An HFI school liaison will assist candidates with referrals,on-site education and therapeutic resources for the duration of their training.
  • Each candidate agrees to the provision of 6 clinical sessions in which 2 children are each seen twice a week, equaling 4 sessions per week, with 2 additional sessions for single case work with parents, children, or adolescents.
  • The increased frequency of sessions makes possible the intensity of connectedness found in psychoanalytic work, providing strong foundation for private practice in child and adolescent psychoanalysis.

Applicant's Requirements

Applicants should hold a master’s degree and have completed training at an accredited psychoanalytic psychotherapy institute.

In interviewing candidates, HFI looks for broad humanistic interests, seriousness of intent, good clinical skills, intellectual development, and a high capacity for empathy.

Candidates should welcome the intellectual and emotional adventure of utilizing their therapeutic skills for the benefit of young people in Harlem.

Transcripts of both academic and institute course work and at least two letters of recommendation are required. We welcome people of diverse backgrounds and do not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, national origin, age or gender.

Program Requirements

Program requirements provide a solid base for independent practice with children and adolescents. They include:

  • 6 clinical sessions per week during the academic year, with 2 patients seen twice-weekly
  • 2 years of weekly general supervision
  • 2 years of single case supervision
  • 2 years of two weekly seminars each meeting 1 1/2 hours throughout the academic year
  • 200 hours of personal psychoanalysis at a minimum of two times per week

In the final semester, candidates will present a case, in an informal collegial setting, that is drawn from a single case supervision.

With the exception of the candidate’s personal psychoanalysis and single-case supervision, all components of the program are free of cost.

Thus, training costs are kept to a minimum. A candidate will receive a certificate in child and adolescent psychoanalysis upon successful completion of the program.

Core Curriculum

HFI’s curriculum is carefully tailored to provide practicing clinicians who have little or no experience working with children and adolescents a comprehensive training in the theories and techniques of child and adolescent psychoanalysis.

During the two years of training, from September to June, the two weekly seminars will meet consecutively on an evening arranged with candidates and instructors. Drawing from drive, ego, object, self, relational, and archetypal approaches, courses will provide a comprehensive introduction to the many varieties of child and adolescent psychoanalysis. Courses cover play therapy techniques; working with parents; child and adolescent development; assessment of childhood psychopathology and diagnostic evaluation; and work with the exceptional child. Courses will also be offered in subjects of specialized interests, such as organic conditions, trauma, and childhood depression.

Additional workshops, given by leading practitioners, in their areas of specialized knowledge, will help to broaden the candidates’ areas of learning and experience.