Training in Existential Psychology

Training in Existential Psychology

There is a need for people who can perform existential counseling -- the harvest is rich, but the workers are few.

This pages considers:

Models for the practice of existential psychology
What degrees are appropriate
What training experiences help

Models for practice

Licensure

In tribal societies elders and shamans guided and advised. In the recent past priests and rabbis served similarly. Now licensed psychologists and professional counselors try to fill the need. But there are problems with the current system.

For one thing, counseling has increasingly become funded by health insurance. Clients with existential concerns are given quasi-medical diagnoses like "situational depression" or "anxiety disorder," so that their insurance can be billed. Among other things, this is intellectually dishonest, because it requires pretending things like existential neurosis are something other than what they are.

Also, dealing with insurance companies is a tedious and frustrating.

Here is not the place to sort out this issue. Suffice it to say that insurance funding is a dubious way to pay for existential counseling.

The chief advantage of licensure, though, is precisely that it lets one get insurance payments for services. If one decides to opt out of the insurance game, then licensure is not really needed.

In the United States and other countries, one must have a license to advertise oneself as a "psychologist," a "counselor", or a "psychotherapist." But below are several respectable titles with which one can effectively practice existential psychology without resorting to licensure.

Some may say, "but isn't licensure needed to protect society from incompetent practitioners?" To those I would suggest that if this is so we should end licensure, because it clearly hasn't accomplished this.

It is true that many unlicensed counselors practice with no personal or educational qualifications. I obviously do not condone that. By all means be qualified and educated. That is a simple matter of personal ethics and responsibility. But do not equate a license with qualification. A license does not convey competence. They are separate issues.

Some alternatives to being a licensed psychologist or counselor are described in the following sections. After that is more general discussion on graduate degree options.

Philosophical Counseling

In Europe especially, the profession of philosophical counseling has developed. A philosophical counselor applies principles of philosophy, including Socratic dialogue, to assist clients with thinking about their life, decisions, and problems.

This niche has great potential. Many people are reluctant to see a psychologist or a counselor, because that tends to imply they are sick. To see a philosopher, on the other hand, has a positive connotation.

Because there is no license, there is no mandatory course of study to be a philosophical counselor (except, of course, that guided by the practitioner's own conscience and desire for competence). To attract clients it might help to have a graduate degree, most likely in Philosophy.

However, Philosophy schools tend to the pedantic. It takes more than "book learning" to be a good counselor. Ideally a person would supplement Philosophy courses with Counseling, Psychology, and psychotherapy courses, and supervised counseling experiences.

The emergence of this profession is to be greeted with enthusiasm. Hopefully this field can resist the urge (which, unfortunately has already surfaced) to institute formal credentialing.

Life Coach

Also recent is a new profession of life coach. This is partly an outgrowth of the success of motivational speakers/writers like Tony Robbins. A personal coach is hired by a person to help them: organize their life, make decisions, and overcome life obstacles (especially those they create for themselves).

A personal coach has much latitude to develop their own personal style and techniques. It's easy to see how this can include existential counseling.

More so than with philosophical counseling (or even psychotherapy), the personal coach may be called on to develop a concrete plan for the client, and to provide a significant amount of basic motivation for improvement. The motivational aspect might or might not suit you, depending on your temperament.

As with philosophical counselors, personal coaches are paid directly by the client. In large cities there seems ample potential to attract enough clients to maintain a livelihood. Some do this work only part-time.

Spiritual Counselor/Spiritual Director

Ultimately, what we're talking about in these pages is "psyche therapy"-- and not "psychotherapy." Originally these terms meant the same thing, but now the latter's meaning is usually identified with a materialistic/deterministic model of the mind. Unfortunately, "psychotherapy" no longer is concerned with the soul.

Let's assume, then, that what we're talking about here is "psyche therapy."

If a one is suitably prepared, as for example, within an established religious tradition like Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, or Hinduism (or Vedantism) one could consider the path of a "spiritual counselor" or "spiritual director" and working with clients in that capacity.

For more information, you might simply try a web search on the "spiritual direction."

Degrees

Doctoral Degree

Relevant doctoral degrees include:

PhD in Psychology

PsyD - Doctor of Psychology (an alternative form of doctorate granted by schools of professional psychology)

EdD - Doctor of Education (counseling degree)

PhD in Philosophy

A PhD has certain advantages. It is typically required to teach in a university. Beyond providing specific skills, a PhD program develops scholarship and discipline.

To get a PhD one must complete about three years of coursework, and then write a doctoral dissertation. The dissertation is more difficult for some than others. It has a way of bringing out people's tendencies to procrastinate. Or, to put it in a positive way, writing a dissertation is often a 'rite of passage' by which people learn to overcome such hangups.

One year of the Clinical Psychology doctorate is devoted to a clinical internship--in which one works fulltime as a psychologist trainee. One can get a PhD in other areas of psychology (e.g., Social Psychology)--that makes it more difficult (but not altogether impossible) to obtain licensure as a therapist.

Doctoral students in Psychology departments are required to be substantially involved in research, which some students find aversive.

PsyD programs developed as an alternative to Clinical Psychology PhD programs. The PsyD is also a doctoral degree in psychology--but it is more specifically aimed at the application of psychology. There is less emphasis on research, scholarship, and training as a teacher. PsyD programs include a year-long internship. Some programs are found in medical schools, some are private and independent.

Private PsyD programs used to be more expensive than university PhD programs; but with today's exorbitant university tuition, the gap may have narrowed.

EdD degrees--doctorates in Counseling or Counseling Psychology--are granted by Schools of Education. There is no major difference between the EdD and PhD degrees. It is just a historical accident that Counseling Psychology programs developed in Education departments instead of Psychology departments.

At least when I was in school, counseling programs offered training better suited to counseling people with "normal" existential and life issues--a more person-to-person approach. Psychology training tended to follow more a medical model, but also tended to have higher academic standards.

The EdD degree requires a doctoral dissertation and internship.

If one aspires to be a philosophical counselor, a PhD in Philosophy is an obvious alternative. Likely there are now or will soon be Philosophy departments with specific training in philosophical counseling.

Of course, one does not need to restrict oneself to a single department. For example a Psychology grad student can take elective Philosophy courses, and a Philosophy student can similarly take Psychology and Counseling courses.

Master's Degree

Masters degrees can be obtained in Psychology or Counseling. Some schools offer masters degrees in Social Work, which may qualify a person to practice as a licensed counselor.

Masters degrees are usually obtained in two years, as opposed to the four years minimum for a doctoral degree.

After one obtains a Masters degree, one has the option of returning later in ones career to obtain a doctorate.

No advanced degree

If one wishes to be a personal coach or philosophical counselor, then, in theory, one could abandon the "paper chase" for an advanced degree altogether. Depending on the flexibility of ones local university, one might be able to simply enroll and take relevant courses on a pass/fail or "audit" (no grade) basis. Some of the smaller, more closely supervised courses might not be available on this basis, but many of the larger, more lecture-oriented ones might be.

Other Education

One of the good things of a graduate degree program is supervised, hands-on training. For example, in a Clinical Psychology or Counseling Psychology program, one can expect to not only counsel clients, but to review audio tapes of ones sessions along with a supervisor. This experience is valuable.

Realistically, university training is only part of ones preparation to do existential counseling or therapy. The rest takes the form of life experience, reading, philosophical reflection, and counseling you receive. No amount of university training can substitute for these other things.

On the Links page is a section with on web sites related to training in existential and humanistic psychotherapy.

Note: This is a legacy page from an old website; the content is a little out-of-date. For newer websites please check