Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy Training Program (SF-PPTP)

Please use the following guidelines to decide whether to apply to SF-PPTP or Foundations. On the application form, you will be asked to check one of these boxes and provide a brief description of your situation. Please be aware that if you accept an offer of admission to either program, you will be asked to submit a non-refundable deposit on July 1 to secure a spot in the Fall 2025 class (please see the Application Form for the full fee schedule).

Recommendation:
Apply to SF-PPTP

Barring unforeseen and unlikely changes in my circumstances, I can commit to the following SF-PPTP requirements between September 2025 and mid-June 2026:

  • During this period, I will spend at least a year practicing in a clinical setting in which I can treat adult patients in open-ended psychotherapy (even if this would be a minority of my clinical work)
  • I can commit to attending Tuesday-evening classes consistently and in person (with exceptions described above) during both Year 1 (September 2025 through mid-June 2026) and Year 2 (September 2026 to mid-June 2027)
  • I understand that engaging in Clinical Consultation with SF-PPTP-approved Clinical Consultants alongside coursework is a core aspect of the SF-PPTP experience, and that supervision or consultation with non-SF-PPTP-approved supervisors / consultants does not suffice for this purpose.

Recommendations:
Apply to Foundations

Barring unforeseen and unlikely changes in my circumstances, I can commit to the following requirements:

  • Between September 2025 and mid-June 2026, I will spend at least six months practicing in a clinical setting in which I can treat adult patients in open-ended psychotherapy (even if this would be a minority of my clinical work)
  • I can commit to attending first-year classes consistently and in person (with exceptions denoted elsewhere on this site) between September 2025 and June 2026.

However, I am not prepared to commit either

  • to attending second-year classes between September 2026 and June 2027; and/or
  • to engaging in clinical consultation with SF-PPTP clinical consultants.

Recommendations:
If applying does make sense, you must apply to Foundations:

  • Between September 2025 and mid-June 2027, I will not be practicing in a clinical setting where I can treat adult patients in open-ended psychotherapy.  However, I can commit to attending Tuesday evening classes consistently and in person (with the exceptions described above).
  • Classes are meant for trainees actively engaged in clinical work.  If you are not currently working with patients, consult Outreach Chair Adam Goldyne (click to email).

Note:  SF-PPTP applications will be prioritized over Foundations applications if there are more applicants than spots.  Thus, if you apply to Foundations but then learn before June 2025 that you can commit to two years of classes, it would be advantageous to let the Admissions Chair know that you would like to apply to SF-PPTP instead of to Foundations.  Once admitted to the Foundations program, you may transfer into SF-PPTP any time.

Upcoming Events

Wednesdays, October 15, 2025 to May 27, 2026
Extension Education Programs
2025-2026 Seasoned Clinicians Program
 Jeffrey Sandler, MD; Clara Kwun, LCSW; Mark Swoiskin, MD; Jeanne Harasemovitch, LCSW; Michael Wagner, PhD, MFT; Joanna Wise-Bradman, LCSW, Dorian Newton, PhD; and Catherine Mallouh (leaders)
Saturday, October 18, 2025
Transformation, Creativity, and the Aesthetic Experience
Notions of Creativity in the Clinical Setting: Case Discussions from Jungian and Contemporary Object Relations Perspectives
Jan Ole Luuk, LLM (presenter); Robert Grossmark, PhD, ABPP; and Paul Watsky, PhD, ABPP (discussants)
Saturday, October 25, 2025
Child Colloquium Series
Learning to Surf: Analyzing Adolescents
Mary Brady, PhD (presenter); Jill Sallberg, PhD, ABPP (discussant)
Saturday, November 1, 2025
Scientific Meetings
LEADERSHIP IN THE PSYCHOANALYTIC MOVEMENT
Harriet Wolfe, MD (presenter); Brett Penfil, LMFT, MPH (interviewer)
Sunday, November 2, 2025
Committee on Groups
Deepen the Dialogues: Conversations Across Difference
The Committee on Groups
Saturday, November 8, 2025
Child Colloquium Series
The Play of Eros: The Story of an Adolescent Boy, his Body and his Analyst’s Body
Bruce Reis, PhD, FIPA, BCPsa (presenter); Terrence Owens, PhD (discussant)
Thursday, November 13, 2025
Psychoanalytic Education Division
Psychoanalytic Training Informational Evening
Please join SFCP Faculty and Candidates for Dinner, Drinks, and a Discussion of Psychoanalytic Training at SFCP.
Saturday, November 15, 2025
Transformation, Creativity, and the Aesthetic Experience
Transformation, Creativity, and the Aesthetic Experience: Comparative Psychoanalytic Perspectives within the Jungian and Contemporary Object Relations Traditions
John Beebe, PhD, ABPP; Diane Elise, PhD; Henry Markman, MD; and Paul Watsky, PhD, ABPP (presenters and panelists)
Saturday, December 6, 2025
Dialogues in Contemporary Psychoanalysis
Event title to be announced
Donald Moss, MD (presenter)
Wednesdays, January 7 to 28, 2026
Psychoanalytic Student Seminars
Becoming a Couple: An Introduction to Psychoanalytic Couple Psychotherapy
Dana Iscoff, MFT (instructor)
Login to your account