Membership Criteria

*For information regarding membership forms please navigate to the membership forms page and download the relevant form.

Membership Criteria

The Irish Forum for Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy (IFPP) is specifically for those who either practise psychoanalytic psychotherapy with adults, or for professionals who feel they would benefit from participating in certain psychoanalytic events without accreditation.

The IFPP is a member of the Psychoanalytic Section of the Irish Council for Psychotherapy (ICP), an umbrella body for psychotherapy organisations in Ireland. The ICP is a member of the European Association for Psychotherapy (EAP), an umbrella body for psychotherapy organisations in Europe.

In order to be eligible for Full membership of the IFPP, applicants should fulfil the following criteria:

1

They should have a recognised psychoanalytic training and qualification.

In line with the ICPs training standards for all its member organisations, IFPP applicants must have completed a postgraduate psychoanalytic training that is recognised by the Psychoanalytic Section of the ICP, or an equivalent international body. A minimum of four continuous years with the same training body is required.

2

Individual psychoanalytic psychotherapy

This clinical training should consist of a minimum of 320 hours of individual psychoanalytic psychotherapy, which should be at least twice per week from the beginning of training. Psychotherapy should continue throughout training.

The applicant’s psychoanalytic psychotherapist should be a member of the IFPP or an equivalent psychoanalytic body that is a member of the Psychoanalytic Section of the ICP, or an equivalent international body.

3

Individual supervision and cases while training

3.1 Clinical Training Cases
 Applicants should, while training:

  • have seen at least one client at least once weekly for a minimum of two years;
  • have seen at least one client at least twice weekly for a minimum of one year.
  • Client work should meet a minimum of 400 client hours in line with ICP requirements.

3.2 Clinical Supervision Applicants should, while training:

  • have completed a minimum of 150 hours of individual psychoanalytic supervision, which should be at least once per week.
  • have worked with two different clinical supervisors in line with the ICP’s requirements.
  • The applicant’s supervisors should be members of the IFPP or an equivalent psychoanalytic body that is a member of the Psychoanalytic Section of the ICP, or an equivalent international body.
4

Post-Membership

4.1 Clinical Experience

Applicants should have at least a further two years’ experience working clinically as a psychoanalytic psychotherapist after qualification to maintain their eligibility for Full membership.

4.2 Clinical Supervision
A further two years of individual, psychoanalytic supervision is required for applicants to maintain their eligibility for Full membership. This should be at least once per week. The applicant’s supervisor should be a member of the IFPP or an equivalent psychoanalytic body that is a member of the Psychoanalytic Section of the ICP, or an equivalent international body.

Associate membership may be awarded to fully-qualified graduates of a psychoanalytic psychotherapy clinical training programme who do not currently qualify for Full membership. This may provide the Associate member with the opportunity of working towards meeting the criteria for Full membership in the future.

Any applicant who is currently doing a recognised psychoanalytic psychotherapy training course of at least four years with the same training body which will eventually enable him or her to proceed to Full membership, is eligible for Student membership of the IFPP.

Applicants for Student membership must currently be in at least twice weekly psychoanalytic psychotherapy with an IFPP psychoanalytic psychotherapist or a psychoanalytic psychotherapist from an equivalent body that is a member of the Psychoanalytic Section of the ICP, or an equivalent international body.

If applicants are working with clients, they must be in at least weekly psychoanalytic supervision with an IFPP supervisor or a supervisor from an equivalent body that is a member of the Psychoanalytic Section of the ICP, or an equivalent international body.

Retired psychoanalytic psychotherapists may wish to seek or retain membership of the IFPP in order to stay abreast of psychoanalytic thinking and to have opportunities for continued contact with colleagues.

Applicants for Retired membership should no longer be working with clients or supervisees.

Affiliate membership is for those who are not seeking or are not eligible for accreditation as Full members, but who have a committed interest in a psychoanalytic perspective, and would like to participate in events such as conferences and seminars, and to have opportunities for discussion and the exchange of ideas. There are two forms of Affiliate membership: Clinical Affiliate and Non-Clinical Affiliate.

Clinical Affiliates are people who have completed a clinical training and are working clinically with clients, or who are currently in clinical training. Applications for Clinical Affiliate membership are welcome from:

  • professionals or trainees in other member organisations of the Psychoanalytic Section of the ICP;
  • professionals or trainees in other modalities of psychotherapy;
  • professionals or trainees in allied clinical professions, such as psychology, psychiatry, general medicine, nursing and counselling.

Non-Clinical Affiliates are people who have not completed a clinical training but who have an interest in psychoanalysis. Applications for Non-Clinical Affiliate membership are welcome from:

  • professionals in other fields, such as social work, the creative and performing arts, business, school teaching, dentistry, occupational therapy, sport, physiotherapy, community development, science and technology, and the legal profession.
  • academic lecturers and researchers;
  • postgraduate and undergraduate students;
  • anyone with an interest in psychoanalysis.

PLEASE NOTE

Please contact the Accreditation Sub-committee via the IFPP’s Administrator if you have a query about your eligibility.

Each application will be assessed on the basis of its own merits, and assessors will take into account the impact of exceptional circumstances, where indicated, on an applicant’s clinical training and/or professional development. Where an exceptional circumstance is taken into account, this will be noted in writing by assessors and must include supporting documentation from the applicant.