Master’s Graduates as State-Licensed Psychotherapists, Both a Challenge and an Opportunity: Practical University Teaching Concepts in Clinical Psychology

Abstract

Psychotherapeutic training in Germany is about to be changed soon: master’s graduates in clinical psychology will be able to become state-licensed psychotherapists. It is therefore mandatory to teach basic psychotherapeutic skills at the universities. This article presents examples of application-oriented courses in clinical psychology, which have been tried and tested at the Philipps University of Marburg for years. During the practical exercises “Interventions in practice 1 and 2“, students gain initial experiences with psychotherapeutic techniques on personally relevant problems. In the case seminar, the students apply their acquired skills to treat an actual outpatient case, while translating basic psychological knowledge into an individualized treatment plan. The seminar “Different approaches to psychotherapy in practice“ offers the opportunity to explore 6 different patients coming from a variety of treatment settings. The courses are evaluated regularly. An overview of cumulated evaluations shows a high degree of student satisfaction with the course concepts. The described courses meet several requirements of the new licensing regulations, especially regarding job-qualifying and self-reflection. Necessary adjustments and additional requirements are discussed, and possible solutions are presented accordingly. If the licensing regulations are implemented as demanded, receiving a state license after the master’s degree seems justified.