The program at the Westchester Institute consists of four basic components:

1. Personal Analysis
2. Clinical Work
3. Clinical Supervision
4. A Four Year Course of Studies

Candidates must be in personal analysis for the duration of their training, at least once and preferably twice per week. Twice a week analysis is required during the final Control stage of training. Upon entering the program, candidates either select an analyst with the approval of the Therapy Committee, or have their existing analyst approved by that committee according to standards set by any of the NAAP-member training institutes in the U.S. Candidates with an interest in Jungian Studies are encouraged to work with an approved Jungian analyst. There is a requirement of a minimum of 300 hours of personal analysis while in the program.

When the Matriculation Committee deems a candidate ready to start clinical work, (usually after the first trimester of training), the candidate selects a supervisor from a list of choices provided by the Supervision Committee.

Candidates are encouraged to work with clients who present a range of clinical pathologies in order to develop their clinical skills. A minimum of 200 hours of supervision of 400 hours of clinical work is required, with at least 100 of those clinical hours conducted with one client, seen a minimum of two times per week. The Institute also provides a low fee referral service for its candidates.

A thorough grounding in psychoanalytic theory and technique is the major goal of the Institute's curriculum. Faculty members at the Institute represent a rich variety of backgrounds and approaches. Among its members are psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, pastoral counselors and educators, all of whom have extensive psychoanalytic training and experience. All classes meet on Mondays with all candidates taking the same curriculum rotated every two years. Candidates with a Jungian specialty enroll in an additional advanced seminar in dream interpretation in their third and fourth years from 4:00 to 5:30 PM at additional cost.

The Westchester Institute admits candidates from a variety of backgrounds and life experiences. In addition to social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists, and psychiatric nurses, whose clinical experience makes it possible for them to move quickly into the clinical part of the program, we admit clergy, educators and other professionals who may need to gain clinical experience during their first year in psychiatric hospitals or some other agency. To matriculate, a candidate must have a Master's degree and show evidence of emotional strength and good character.

All candidates are admitted initially to the Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy Program, whose courses are identical with the Psychoanalytic Program. Upon completion of six trimesters of classes and 100 hours of supervision (50 hours with two supervisors) candidates may apply to the Candidate Evaluation Committee for advancement to the Psychoanalytic Program. At this time the candidate begins twice/week personal analysis and continues this until completion of the Final Case Presentation. After completion of all requirements, including control supervision and the Final Case Presentation, the Training Committee weighs the candidates' achievements and determines readiness for graduation. Successful candidates with State-licensable degrees where they plan to practice, or candidates exempt from such laws, will be granted a Certificate in Psychoanalysis. Candidates with other degrees will receive a Letter of Attendance in Psychoanalysis. Both awards meet the requirements of the American Board for Accreditation in Psychoanalysis of NAAP. The dean of the program is Rob Marchesani, MSSc, NCPsyA, LP.  

For candidates interested in deeper work in Jung's Analytical Psychology, a Certificate in Psychoanalysis with a specialty in Jungian Studies is offered. This does not qualify a graduate to practice specifically as Jungian analyst, which designation can only be granted by programs which are part of the International Association of Analytic Psychology (IAAP)

Candidates who are not accepted into the program in psychoanalysis, or who for other reasons do not want to complete the full requirements of the program in Psychoanalysis, are eligible to receive a Certificate, or Letter of Attendance in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy upon the completion of the four years of classwork, 200 hours of personal psychoanalytic psychotherapy, 150 hours of supervision (with three supervisors) and 300 hours of supervised clinical work.

First- and Second-Year Courses:

• Freud's Essential Writings I: Famous Cases
• Freud's Essential Writings II
• History of Psychoanalysis: Major Movements that Define the Field
• Group Process
• Psychoanalytic Perspectives on Development (includes Infant Observation and Attachment Theory)
• Psychoanalytic Theory: Object Relations
• Psychoanalytic Diagnosis
• Introduction to Dream Interpretation
• Neuroscience
• Psychoanalytic Process: Principles, Intake, and Therapeutic Alliance
• Psychoanalytic Perspectives on Development II: Latency and Adolescence
• Psychoanalytic Theory: Self Psychology
• Neuroses and their Treatment
• The Interplay of Biography and Psychoanalytic Theory
• Sandor Ferenczi and Michael Balint
• Freud and his Followers: Major Figures after Freud
• Jung's Essential Writings
• Psychosomatics
• Psychoanalytic Theory: Interpersonal and Relational Theory
• Existential Psychoanalysis
• Ethics and Socio-cultural Influences in Psychoanalytic Treatment

Third and fourth year courses:

• Contemporary Psychoanalytic Approaches to the Treatment of Personality Disorders
• Case Conference
• Transference/Countertransference Seminar
• Psychoanalysis and Creativity
• Psychoanalytic Process
• Issues of Termination
• Analyzing Resistances and Impasses
• Psychotic Conditions and their Treatment
• Contemporary Psychoanalytic Approaches to Treatment of Personality Disorders
• Transference/Countertransference Seminar
• Dream Interpretation in Clinical Practice
• Child/Adolescent Therapy
• Exploring the Psychotic Core
• Contemporary Perspectives on Gender Development and Homosexuality
• Contemporary Psychoanalytic Approaches to Treatment of Personality Disorders
• Trauma and Dissociation (includes Treatment of Sexual Abuse)

For further information about the Institute's core analytic program or any of our other programs, or to arrange a visit, please us at (914) 666-0163 or click here to send an email.