Psychotherapist
Psychotherapists use talking therapies to help people deal with emotional, behavioural and mental health issues.
What you'll do
Day-to-day tasks
As a psychotherapist, you would:
- build trusting relationships with individuals, couples or groups
- encourage clients to talk about their thoughts, feelings and behaviours
- help clients find ways to cope with their issues and to make positive changes
- create and update confidential client records and write reports
- keep up to date with theory and research
Working environment
You could work in the community, in a therapy clinic, at a health centre, in an NHS or private hospital or from home.
Your working environment may be emotionally demanding.
Career path and progression
With experience, you could take on a training, teaching or mentoring role, or specialise in a particular therapeutic approach.
You might also become self-employed and set up a private practice, or move into academic research.
What it takes
Skills and knowledge
You'll need:
- counselling skills including active listening and a non-judgemental approach
- knowledge of psychology
- the ability to understand people’s reactions
- sensitivity and understanding
- excellent verbal communication skills
- active listening skills
- patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
- to enjoy working with other people
- to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently
Restrictions and Requirements
You'll need to:
How to become
You can get into this job through:
- a university course
- a college course
To become a psychotherapist, you'll need to:
- study for a degree such as psychology, nursing, medicine or social work
- do an accredited postgraduate qualification
- complete 450 hours of practice
Your postgraduate course should be recognised by one of the following:
- UK Council for Psychotherapy
- British Psychoanalytic Council
- British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy
- Association of Child Psychotherapists (APC)
- National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society
Training can take between 3 and 4 years to complete.
To become a child psychotherapist, you will need to complete 4 years of training with the APC.
You'll also need experience of working with children or vulnerable adults.
Some courses may expect you to go into therapy yourself during your training. This is to help you deal with any issues that may affect you as a therapist, as well as to experience therapy from a client's point of view.
Entry requirements
You'll usually need:
- 2 to 3 A levels, or equivalent, for a degree
- a degree in a relevant subject for postgraduate study
More Information
You could start by doing a Level 3 or 4 Diploma in Counselling before moving onto further training at degree and postgraduate level.
You'll be encouraged to take an introductory course to start, to make sure that this is a career for you.
Some colleges have a minimum age limit to start this type of course. They may also expect you to have had experience of working with vulnerable people.
Entry requirements
Entry requirements for these courses vary.
More Information
Career tips
Training in psychotherapy is personally and emotionally challenging. It can also be costly and takes a lot of time and dedication. It's important to think about how it will impact your life before committing to a course.
Further information
You can find out more about careers in psychotherapy from Health Careers and the UK Council for Psychotherapy.
You can also explore other careers in the psychological professions.
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External links
This page contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.