Eligibility Criteria to Begin UK, ISST-Approved Schema Therapy Training Programmes
Access to UK, ISST-approved schema therapy training programmes is only open to applicants who are already qualified practitioners allowed to provide one-to-one psychological therapy to clients. Such candidates will have graduated from a counselling, psychotherapy or applied psychology training programme run by an approved professional body. The training programme will have included research and significant amounts of supervised one-to-one clinical practice within the adult population, culminating in accreditation of that regulatory body, conferring the right to practice one-to-one therapy.
The candidate, both as a schema therapy trainee and later as an accredited schema therapist must be, and then continue to be a fully accredited member of the regulatory body. That accredited the training programme they attended which in turn conferred the right to practice one-to-one therapy, and their clinical practice will continue to be regulated by it. Currently, training and regulatory bodies recognised by UK, ISST-Approved Schema Therapy Training Programmes are the BABCP, BACP and BPS. Being fully accredited to such a body before embarking on a schema therapy training programme leading to accreditation as a schema therapist will also facilitate gaining and maintaining the required Professional Indemnity Insurance. Proof of accreditation to one of these bodies will be required by the directors of training programmes and by the ISST. Psychologists should be registered with the Health Care & Professions Council (HCPC) and continue to be registered both as a trainee schema therapist and as an accredited schema therapist.
Applicants are expected to be academically capable of following the rigorous accreditation route for schema therapy and they must hold at least a bachelor’s degree in a psychology-related subject.
Approved training/regulating bodies, routes and specific requirements are listed below.
1. APPROVED TRAINING/REGULATING BODIES
a. British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP)
i UK, ISST-accredited certification programmes require applicants from the BABCP to hold full accreditation.
ii The Minimum Training Standards for accreditation of the BABCP include:
iii a minimum of 200 hours of supervised assessment and therapy during training.
iv a minimum of 450 hours professionally related training of which 200 hours should be provided directly by recognised trainers.
v Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapist (CBP) Provisional Accreditation: Provisional Accreditation as a Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapist with the BABCP means that the Entry Criteria and Minimum Training Standards for Accreditation to the BABCP have been achieved.
vi Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapist (CBP) Full Accreditation: Full Accreditation is dependent on submission, 12 months after the date of Provisional Accreditation, of an application for Full Accreditation. Full Accreditation is for a period of five years, after which, accredited members will be required to apply for re-accreditation every five years.
vii The BABCP does not require its accredited members to have undergone personal therapy.
b. The British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP)
i UK, ISST-accredited certification programmes require applicants from the BACP to hold at least Individual Counsellor/Psychotherapist Accreditation.
ii Individual Counsellor/Psychotherapist Accreditation is the basic level of accreditation and is for individual counsellors and psychotherapists who have successfully completed 450 hours of professional psychological therapy training with an integral student placement element, have been in practice for at least three years, and have accumulated a minimum of 450 hours of practice covered by at least 1.5 hours of supervision per month.
iii The BACP does not require trainees to complete personal therapy. This changed in 2005, when until then, 40 hours of personal therapy was required.
c. British Psychological Society (BPS)
i. UK, ISST-accredited certification programmes require candidates to have achieved eligibility for chartered membership of the BPS within one of the divisions listed below.
ii. 3 or 4 years full-time (or part-time equivalent) undergraduate level study culminates in the award of BSc /BA and eligibility for Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC). GBC is required to subsequently pursue applied psychology training programmes usually lasting a minimum of 2 years full-time (or part-time equivalent) at postgraduate level leading to the award of a master’s or doctoral degree and eligibility for Chartered Membership of the BPS. Eligibility for chartered membership through one of the following BPS divisions which satisfy the one-to-one supervised clinical practice requirements is necessary:
d. Clinical Psychology
i Applications from doctoral or master’s level clinical psychologists will be accepted as having met the entry requirements but will still be subject to any assessments as required by the directors of UK, ISST-approved training programmes.
ii DClinPsy / DClinPsych programmes in clinical psychology are 3-year full-time doctoral courses.
iii DClinPsy / DClinPsych programmes in clinical psychology do not specify a minimum amount of supervised practice hours but do require that “Of the total programme time (exclusive of annual leave), at least fifty per cent must be allocated to supervised clinical experience.”
iv DClinPsy / DClinPsych programmes in clinical psychology do not require their trainees to undergo personal therapy.
v Some clinical psychologists achieved their qualification before the inception of doctoral programmes and may hold a master’s in clinical psychology.
vi Clinical psychologists should be HCPC registered and provide their HCPC number and date of valid registration.
e. Counselling Psychology
i Applications from doctoral or master’s level counselling psychologists will be accepted as having met the entry requirements but will still be subject to any assessments as required by the directors of UK, ISST-approved training programmes.
ii PsychD / DCPsych / DPsychprogrammes in counselling psychology are 3-year full-time (or part-time equivalent) doctoral courses.
iii A minimum of 450 supervised practice hours are required.
iv A minimum of 40 hours of personal therapy is required.
v Master’s level programmes in counselling psychology are 2-year full-time (or part-time equivalent) courses.
vi A minimum of 450 supervised practice hours are required.
vii A minimum of 40 hours of personal therapy is required.
viii Counselling psychologists should be HCPC registered and provide their HCPC number and date of valid registration.
f. Forensic Psychology
i. Applications from forensic psychologists will be accepted as having met the entry requirements but will still be subject to be any assessments as required by the directors of UK, ISST-approved training programmes.
ii. Forensic psychology training programmes are at Masters level with an unspecified number of hours of supervised practice.
iii. Training programmes in forensic psychology do not require their trainees to undergo personal therapy.
iv. Forensic psychologists should also be HCPC registered and provide their HCPC number and date of valid registration.
g. Health Psychology/Educational Psychology/ Occupational Psychology/Sport and Exercise Psychology
Health psychology, educational psychology, occupational psychology and sport and exercise psychology programmes do not include one-to-one supervised psychotherapeutic practice hours in their curriculums. They therefore do not meet the entry criteria of ISST-accredited certification training Programmes.
h. Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner (PWP)
Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner programmes do not include training in a formal psychotherapy programme which results in accreditation by a professional body to practice independently. They therefore do not meet the entry criteria of ISST-accredited certification training Programmes.
2. OTHER UK TRAINING/REGULATING BODIES
a. British Psychoanalytic Council (BPC)
The BPC is an umbrella organisation comprising 14 member institutes, and registers their members as 'BPC registrants'. Thus, practitioners become registrants of the BPC through their membership of one of the BPC’s member institutions. The BPC does not have a category for individual membership.
b. The British Psychotherapy Foundation (BPF)
Psychotherapy training is conducted across the four psychotherapy disciplines of Psychoanalysis, Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, Jungian Analysis and Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy.
c. National Counselling Society (NCS)
The National Counselling Society was first set up in 1999 by a group of counsellors, psychotherapists, hypnotherapists and psychologists.
d. UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP)
The UKCP includes disciplines such as art therapists who have had no formal one-to-one psychotherapeutic training or supervision.
3. NON-UK ORGANISATIONS AND APPLICATIONS FROM NON-UK APPLICANTS
a Applicants from non-UK countries must meet the UK Eligibility Criteria to begin UK, ISST-Approved Schema Therapy Training Programmes.
b Applications from UK applicants who have gained their training from non-UK universities/organisations will be scrutinised on a case-by-case basis and will be required to meet the Minimum Standards as outlined below.
4. MINIMUM STANDARDS
Applicants belonging to non-approved organisations (see sections 1 and 2 above) and those trained in non-UK organisations will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the UK National Training Directors (NTDC-UK), and will be required to meet the Minimum Standards in this section. Applicants will be required to produce detailed evidence to the UK Training Programme Director and possibly later to the ISST that the training programmes they attended meet the listed criteria below and that the applicant has achieved them.
a Graduation from a counselling, psychotherapy or applied psychology training programme run by an approved professional body. The training programme should include:
b A minimum of 200 hours of supervised one-to-one clinical practice within the adult population. This should also include supervised assessment and formulation.
c A minimum of 400 hours professionally-related training of which 200 hours should be provided directly by recognised trainers.
d Completion of the training programme must have culminated in accreditation to the relevant regulatory body.
e The applicant must be a fully accredited member of that regulatory body and their clinical practice must be regulated by it.
f If accepted for training onto a UK, ISST-approved schema therapy training programme the candidate, both as a schema therapy trainee and later as an accredited schema therapist must be, and then continue to be a fully accredited member of that regulatory body and their clinical practice will be regulated by it.
g Applicants must hold at least a bachelor’s degree.
5. EXCEPTIONS FOR PRACTITIONERS WHO HOLD A CORE QUALIFICATION IN MENTAL HEALTH
Applications from mental health professionals who do not meet the above training criteria but hold a core qualification in mental health may still be eligible to join an ISST-approved training programme due to their general qualifications and experience in mental health. Such applications will be scrutinised on a case-by-case basis. These include mental health social workers, mental health occupational therapists, mental health nurses, nurse therapists, community psychiatric nurses and psychiatrists.
a. Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)
i UK, ISST-accredited certification programmes require applicants belonging to the NMC to have achieved a bachelor of mental health nursing degree (BN) or diploma if they did their training before the introduction of the degree courses. Applications from professionals belonging to the NMC not meeting the stated requirements of graduating from a counselling, psychotherapy or applied psychology training programme will be processed under the conditions of the ‘Exceptions for Practitioners who hold a Core Qualification in Mental Health’ paragraph below. They will be required to demonstrate to the UK Training Programme Director and possibly later to the ISST, a comprehensive portfolio spanning several years of comprehensive and well-rounded training (not in house training), in a psychotherapeutic approach such as CBT, CAT, ACT, (not DBT, mindfulness, compassion-focused, hypnotherapy, coaching, neurolinguistic programming or similar types of training) with at least 200 hours of supervised clinical practice by experts in that area.
b. Mental Health Occupational Therapists
i. Mental Health Occupational Therapists usually need to have successfully completed an approved degree in occupational therapy. This is usually a BSc (Honours). Additionally however, holding a degree (this doesn’t have to be a related degree) and healthcare experience enables candidates to take a Postgraduate Diploma or Masters in occupational therapy instead, and qualify that way. For example, a person could hold a BA degree in history and therefore qualify for access to the Postgrad Diploma in occupational therapy and subsequent qualification as an occupational therapist. The Postgrad Diploma in occupational therapy is usually two years full-time. So, not all occupational therapists will hold a bachelor’s degree in occupational therapy. They will however hold a degree in another subject and a Postgraduate Diploma or higher level degree in occupational therapy and be registered with the HCPC.
ii. The professional body for occupational therapists is the British Association and College of Occupational Therapists (BAOT/COT). The applicant is required to be registered with the BAOT/COT. There is a statutory requirement for occupational therapists in the UK to be HCPC registered and applicants for UK, ISST-approved training programmes are required to be so.
iii. Applications from Mental Health Occupational Therapists not meeting the stated requirements of graduating from a counselling, psychotherapy or applied psychology training programme will be processed under the conditions of the ‘Exceptions for Practitioners who hold a Core Qualification in Mental Health’ paragraph below. They will be required to demonstrate to the UK Training Programme Director and possibly later to the ISST, a comprehensive portfolio spanning several years of comprehensive and well-rounded training (not in house training), in a psychotherapeutic approach such as CBT, CAT, ACT, (not DBT, mindfulness, compassion-focused, hypnotherapy, coaching, neurolinguistic programming or similar types of training) with at least 200 hours of supervised clinical practice by experts in that area.
c. Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCP)
i. The professional body for psychiatrists is the Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCP). The applicant is required to be registered with the RCP. There is no statutory requirement or provision for psychiatrists in the UK to be HCPC registered.
ii. Applications from psychiatrists not meeting the stated requirements of graduating from a counselling, psychotherapy or applied psychology training programme will be processed under the conditions of the ‘Exceptions for Practitioners who hold a Core Qualification in Mental Health’ paragraph below. They will be required to demonstrate to the UK Training Programme Director and possibly later to the ISST, a comprehensive portfolio spanning several years of comprehensive and well-rounded training (not in house training), in a psychotherapeutic approach such as CBT, CAT, ACT, (not DBT, mindfulness, compassion-focused, hypnotherapy, coaching, neurolinguistic programming or similar types of training) with at least 200 hours of supervised clinical practice by experts in that area.
d. Mental Health Social Workers
i. The professional bodies for UK social workers are: England: British Association for Social Workers; Northern Ireland: Northern Ireland Social Care Council; Scotland; The Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) and Wales: Care Council for Wales. The applicant is required to be registered with their appropriate professional body. There is a statutory requirement for social workers in England to be registered with the HCPC but there is no statutory requirement for social workers in the rest of the UK to be HCPC registered. However, a Memorandum of Understanding has been agreed between HCPC, the Care Council for Wales, the Northern Ireland Social Care Council and the Scottish Social Services Council (collectively 'the Four Councils') and this sets out a framework for the working relationship between the Four Councils in relation to the regulation of social workers and the approval of social work education across the UK. This agreement allows Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish social workers to register with the HCPC. Accordingly, all UK Mental Health Social Workers applying for UK, ISST-approved training programmes are required to be registered with the HCPC.
ii. Applications from Mental Health Social Workers not meeting the stated requirements of graduating from a counselling, psychotherapy or applied psychology training programme will be processed under the conditions of the ‘Exceptions for Practitioners who hold a Core Qualification in Mental Health’ paragraph below. They will be required to demonstrate to the UK Training Director and possibly later to the ISST, a comprehensive portfolio spanning several years of comprehensive and well-rounded training (not in house training), in a psychotherapeutic approach such as CBT, CAT, ACT, (not DBT, mindfulness, compassion-focused, hypnotherapy, coaching, neurolinguistic programming or similar types of training) with at least 200 hours of supervised clinical practice by experts in that area.
e. Applications for Practitioners Who Hold a Core Qualification in Mental Health Under the Exceptions Rule
Mental health professionals submitting applications under the exceptions rule must meet the following criteria:
i Applicants must hold at least a bachelor’s degree in their field or a related one (a non-related degree is permissible if the candidate followed a qualification pathway of holding a non-related degree plus health care experience, that leads to accreditation in their profession).
ii The applicant must be a fully accredited member of their professional body and their clinical practice must be regulated by it. For example:
(1) Nursing: Nursing and Midwifery Council
(2) Occupational Therapy: British Association and College of Occupational Therapists (BAOT/COT).
(3) Psychiatry: Royal College of Psychiatrists. (RCP)
(4) Social Work(England): British Association for Social Workers
(5) Social Work(Northern Ireland): Northern Ireland Social Care Council
(6) Social Work(Scotland): The Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC)
(7) Social Work(Wales): Care Council for Wales
iii If accepted for training onto a UK, ISST-approved schema therapy training programme the candidate, both as a schema therapy trainee and later as an accredited schema therapist must be, and then continue to be a fully accredited member of their professional body and their clinical practice will be regulated by it.
iv Such applicants will be required to demonstrate to the UK Training Programme Director and possibly later to the ISST, a comprehensive portfolio spanning several years of comprehensive and well-rounded training (not in house training), in a psychotherapeutic approach such as CBT, CAT, ACT, (not DBT, mindfulness, compassion-focused, hypnotherapy, coaching, neurolinguistic programming or similar types of training) with at least 200 hours of supervised clinical practice by experts in that area.
6. Procedure for processing applications where there is uncertainty about the application meeting the eligibility criteria
For applications where there is uncertainty about whether or not the applicant has achieved the Minimum Standards or wishes their application to be processed within the Exceptions for Practitioners who hold a Core Qualification in Mental health rule, i.e. meets the eligibility criteria to begin a UK, ISST-approved schema therapy training programme, the following procedures should be implemented:
a. The Training Director of the programme that the applicant has applied to should request the applicant to provide evidence that they have met the Minimum Standards/Exception rule.
b. Once the Training Director is satisfied that they are in possession of all of the relevant information and documents and a decision can be made, they should send it to other UK, ISST-approved schema therapy training programme directors to seek a consensus decision.
c. Appeal at any point in the process can be made to the ISST Training and Certification committee member.
7. INTERVIEWS AND ASSESSMENTS
While not obliged to do so, directors of UK, ISST-approved training programmes may choose to carry out interviews and written assessments by means such as phone, Skype, or face-to-face. These arrangements will differ between UK, ISST-approved training programmes.