INTRODUCTORY COURSE IN PHILOSOPHY AND PSYCHOTHERAPY
The Introductory Course is both a stand alone certificate course and an introduction to study at the PA. Students who complete the IC can apply to the one year Diploma in Community and Psychotherapy and the Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy Training.
OVERVIEW
The course will take place on Thursday evenings from October at our premises in Hampstead, north London, and consists of a weekly seminar and an experiential group. Each student will be allocated a personal tutor. You will be invited to study past and current psychological theories and treatments of human suffering taught in conjunction with philosophy, in particular phenomenology as well as ideas drawn from art, literature, the politics of psychiatry, power and lived experience.
REQUIREMENTS
The PA has never prized academic qualifications over other skills and experience. Sometimes people who never intended to become psychotherapists find that the Introductory Course inspires them to follow this path after all.
Being a student at the PA means you will have access to our small library and you will also be invited to attend regular PA events and contribute to the PA newsletter.
APPLICATION AND FEES
Application is by interview. Course costs £890
There are a limited number of bursaries available for students surviving on low income.
Interviews for 2026/2027 begin April 2026
PROGRAMME 2025/2026
Course Coordinators
Andrea Heath, Kit Zinovieff, Lucy King
PA Office
Josh Foyster
Experiential Group 6.15 - 7.45
The experiential group has no agenda apart from attending to how this particular group forms and develops, the contribution each person makes, and whether we can learn from the experience to understand what a group is.
Facilitators: Lily Patten, Alia Butt, Georgina Gavriel
Seminars: Thursdays 8 - 9.30pm
Term 1
16 & 23 October 2025
Why not Psychoanalysis ?
Barbara Latham
30 October 6 November
Use & Misuse of Theory
Lucy King
13 November
On Community
Jake Osborne
20 November
On Community
Kay Holmes & Jake Osborne
27 Nov & 4 Dec
What do we think we are doing when we are doing psychoanalysis, thresholds between phenomenology, philosophy and psychotherapy
James Mann
11 December
TBC
Andreas Constandinos
Term 2
22 & 29 January 2026
Sartre, Laing and Existential Psychoanalysis
Kevin Ball
5 & 12 February
Anti-Psychiatry
Vincenzo Passante
19 & 26 February
Performativity & Psychoanalysis
Andrew Royle
5 & 12 March
Irony & Paradox
Jeremy Cutler
19 & 26 March
The World Comes First: the social context of psychotherapy and its philosophical underpinnings
Paul Gurney
Term 3
16 & 23 April
Nietzsche and psychotherapy: an introduction to phenomenology, scepticism and the death of God
Onel Brooks
30 April & 7 May
Envy
Elie Jesner
14 & 21 May
Psychoanalysis & Gender
Kit Zinovieff
28 May & June 4
Throwing away the ladder and being taken for granted From the PA houses to Mansfield Park's
Robbie Lockwood
Saturday Morning Online Seminars via Zoom.
10 - 11.30am
In addition to the regular meetings of each individual course, students from all the courses are welcome to attend the PA Saturday morning online seminars.
PA Study Programme Saturday Morning Online Seminars 2025
11.00 – 12.30
Saturday morning discussions exploring themes in psychotherapy, philosophy, and practice. If you are interested to attend please email the office and we will send you the zoom link closer to the time.
Saturday 15 November
Philadelphia Association Psychotherapy Training
with Jake Osborne
Jake and other PA members will speak about the training and be available to answer questions.
Saturday 29 November
Minimal Medication Approaches for Psychosis and Alternatives to “Antipsychotics”
Seminar and discussion with Dr John Mason
Saturday 13 December
Anti-Oedipus
Seminar and discussion with Dr Jan Harris
Further Details to Follow
January 24th 2026
Why are you not eating ?
Q & A on Anorexia Nervosa
Lucia Giombini & Kevin Ball