The Center for Religion & Psychotherapy of Chicago

Education Program

Curriculum

The Education Program is a two year program, with an optional third fellowship year. In addition to class time, students should expect to spend several hours each week doing the assigned reading necessary for each course. The first year clinical practicum involves 3 hours each week over and above class time, while the second year clinical internship involves an additional 13 hours each week, and begins during the summer following the first academic year.

The curriculum is built around three tracks: (1) self psychology, psychoanalytic theory and associated case studies; (2) approaches to religion/spirituality; and, (3) clinical work and associated professional requirements.

  1. Courses on psychoanalytic theory address the origins of self psychology by providing a background in the foundational theories of Freud and others. They then move into a sustained focus on self psychology, and then go on to highlight current developments in related contemporary psychoanalytic theories.

  2. Courses on religion develop a broadened context for the clinical understanding of religious phenomena by viewing religious life from a variety of perspectives and by examining a variety of different religions. A course on narratives of spirituality and of therapy introduces the genre of the case study and the complexities of working in a multicultural and multiracial world.

  3. The clinical track begins with an introduction to clinical practice and continues with the integrative case conference, which provides a forum for the integration of the theory with the student’s practicum and internship or other ongoing therapeutic/clinical practice. This track also takes up the professional, legal and ethical issues involved in clinical practice, and includes a weekly peer-group for all students. In addition, once each quarter, students are invited to attend one of CRPC’s staff case conferences.

Upon completion of the two years of coursework, students who wish to continue their formational experience in self psychology and religion and/or to continue to build the clinical hours required to sit for LCPC licensure are invited to apply to spend a third year as a CRPC fellow. Fellows continue to see clients at CRPC under CRPC supervision and to attend the Education Program case conference.