The ATPPP is a program of the Toronto Psychoanalytic Society (TPS) that is designed to help front-line mental health professionals apply the knowledge and clinical techniques from psychoanalysis to their work with patients and clients.

Psychoanalysis is an intensive form of investigation, theorizing, and psychotherapeutic treatment requiring specialized education and training over many years. This approach to certain forms of mental illness and emotional and behavioural disorders was articulated and organized first by Freud and his followers. The evolution of its findings, theories, and techniques has continued to the present day, informing many contemporary schools of psychodynamic and other psychotherapies. Psychoanalysts are among the most highly trained practitioners in the field of psychoanalysis and psychodynamic psychotherapy.

The ATPPP is a two-year program in psychoanalytic psychotherapy, with a new class starting every two years. It was inaugurated in 1991 and has graduated over seventy candidates from a wide variety of disciplines, including social workers, psychologists, family doctors, psychiatrists, nurses, lawyers, and clergy. During the rigorous training, candidates develop a sophisticated understanding of the clinical techniques and theoretical complexities of psychoanalytic psychotherapy, and its application to a wide range of patient/client populations.


Candidates are taught, supervised, and mentored by select psychoanalysts from the Toronto Psychoanalytic Society, an affiliate of the International Psychoanalytic Association, which was founded by Freud and is the world's primary accrediting and regulatory body for psychoanalysis.

Two seminars of a combined duration of three hours are offered one night per week, for more than thirty weeks in each of the two years. One seminar focuses on the theoretical knowledge base that is essential for clinical work. The other is a clinical case seminar, which clarifies and applies the different theoretical ideas. Readings are carefully selected for each seminar and integrated into the teaching. To supplement the didactic courses, students treat several adults in long-term psychoanalytic psychotherapy with supervision from a psychoanalyst.

The curriculum is under constant review. There are regular and frequent opportunities for feedback between the candidates and the Student Progress Committee, the Education Committee, the Program Executive, the teachers, and the supervisors. Candidates submit twice-yearly case reports of their clinical work, which are carefully reviewed and responded to by the Student Progress Committee, providing another mechanism for candidates to get help with their clinical work. Finally, candidates are encouraged to take part in all the Society's educational and training events, including two half-day Scientific Meetings with invited speakers.


The program is open to mental health professionals who have demonstrated knowledge, skill, and aptitude for psychoanalytic psychotherapy. Clinicians from the fields of family medicine, psychiatry, psychology, social work, counselling, and psychiatric nursing will be considered for admission.

The requirements include an undergraduate university degree, an advanced degree in one's field, and/or at least two years of clinical experience. Applicants will be assessed on their capacity for insight into their own psychological functioning.

Class size is limited and teaching takes the form of small group seminars. Tuition is $3500 yearly. Supervisory fees are additional and are individually arranged. Applicants are asked to submit letters of reference from those who are familiar with their clinical work. All applicants are interviewed by the Selection Committee of the Training Program.


This program is affiliated with the Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto. On graduation, a diploma is conferred by the Toronto Psychoanalytic Society, and a certificate of completion is issued by the Office of Continuing Education, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto. The program meets the accreditation criteria of the College of Family Physicians of Canada and has been accredited for 280 MAINPRO-M1 credits. It is recognized under Section 1 of the Framework for Maintenance of Certification of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.

Graduates are encouraged to continue their affiliation with the Society and to participate in its wide range of clinical seminars and conferences such as the monthly Scientific Meetings, the Annual Day in Psychoanalysis, and the Annual Day in Applied Psychoanalysis. Furthermore, graduates may continue their education and training through the postgraduate seminars offered by the Advanced Training Program in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy.

For further information about the Advanced Training Program in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, or to obtain application materials, contact info@torontopsychoanalysis.com.


The objectives of the ATPPP curriculum are to help candidates develop a sophisticated understanding of the clinical techniques and theoretical complexities of psychoanalytic psychotherapy. Two seminars are combined each evening for a duration of three hours, over more than thirty weeks, for two years. One seminar focuses on the theoretical knowledge base; the second seminar is clinically based, providing an opportunity to clarify and refine theoretical concepts. Assigned readings constitute an important part of the seminars. Some alterations may be made to the seminar format.



Clinical Assessment and Diagnosis (5)
Development (Infant, Ages 3-11, Adolescence) (6)
Basic Concepts of Treatment (4)
Formulation and Record-Keeping (2)
Boundaries and Confidentiality (2)
Research (1)
Classical and Contemporary Freudian Concepts and Theory (14)
Introduction to Technique Based on Freudian Theory (8)
Specific Character Formations and Related Techniques in Treatment (10)
Relational Theory and Technique (4)
Self-Harm (3)
Impasses in Treatment (3)
Consultation, Medication, and Referral (2)

Dream Interpretation within the Therapeutic Process (10)
Transference and Counter-transference (10)
Classical and Contemporary Freudian Concepts and Theory (4)
Theories of Object Relations (8)
Technique Based on Object Relations Theories (10)
Self Psychology and Intersubjectivity (8)
Technique Based on Self Psychology and Intersubjectivity (10)
Termination (2)

Clinical Assessment and Diagnosis
This course is based on readings from two texts written by Nancy McWilliams, Psychoanalytic Diagnosis: Understanding Personality Structure and the Clinical Process (1994) and Psychoanalytic Case Formulation (1999). It addresses fundamental issues that arise during the initial clinical encounter, including conducting an interview, diagnosing characterological problems, assessing development, relational patterns, and levels of personality organization. The seminars will demonstrate how theory applies to practice through numerous clinical examples.
Development (Infant, Ages 3-11, Adolescence)
This seminar series is divided into three phases of development:
Infant Development
This seminar series presents researched topics about the mechanisms of development in the first years of life. It includes a discussion of the development of psychological capacities and the ways in which these permit and compel future maturation and development. Also it addresses what is required from the caretaking environment for development and the nature and impact of failures of environmental provision. Concepts covered include need versus wish, defence, holding, self-other differentiation, object constancy, psychic conflict, and empathic understanding. Finally, these seminars address the elaboration of meaning (intrapsychic versus interpersonal) in a prospective way using vignettes from the lives of infants and young children and their parents.
Ages 3-11
This seminar series presents contributions that the major psychoanalytic thinkers have made to our understanding of this period of development, including concepts of the Oedipal and latency phases. Also, it will address the psychopathologies in this period of development and how they affect later developments.
Adolescence
This seminar series reviews adolescent development from a psychoanalytic perspective, distinguishing between normal and pathological development, elaborating on the unique developmental challenges that need to be negotiated in the transition to adulthood.
Basic Concepts of Treatment
These seminars examine core psychoanalytic psychotherapy concepts, including the treatment frame, session-by-session aims, the overall goals of psychoanalytic psychotherapy, transference, counter-transference, the working alliance, types of interventions made during treatment such as clarifications and interpretations, and the concept of working through.
Formulation and Record-Keeping
This seminar covers the fundamentals, structure, and value of the complex and sometimes difficult process of developing a psychodynamic case formulation, including a method of approach, an outline, and clinical examples. The requirements, values, and approaches to psychotherapy record-keeping are discussed, using the 1998 text Standards and Guideline for the Psychotherapies, edited by Paul Cameron, Jon Ennis, and John Deadman.
Boundaries and Confidentiality
This seminar, based on practice, focuses on the theories addressing the frame in psychoanalytic psychotherapy, with particular attention to the issues of the setting, and regulating and maintaining the boundaries that support and protect the treatment, the patient, and the therapist. Confidentiality issues are discussed, including the protection of records, references to patients and clients in public, professional and academic settings, duties to inform or report, and rights to written or printed documents.
Research
This seminar presents the lively and growing literature on the proven effectiveness of psychoanalytic psychotherapy, comparing and contrasting the gains made by patients in longer-term, intensive dynamic psychotherapies where sustained character change is the goal versus those made by patients in shorter, more structured, more symptom-oriented therapies.
Classical and Contemporary Freudian Concepts and Theory
This seminar explores in depth central Freudian concepts such as the unconscious, the topographical model, free association, dreams, narcissism, sadomasochism and aggression, depression, and melancholia, the structural model, psychic conflict, anxiety and signal affects, and defences. The majority of the readings are from Freud's Standard Edition of Complete Psychological Works, and clinical examples are utilized to illustrate the theory.
Introduction to Technique Based on Freudian Theory
This seminar demonstrates the ongoing importance of Freudian technique rooted in Freud's central ideas concerning early infant and childhood memories/fantasies/motives stored in the unconscious or split off but deeply influencing current life functioning. These are accessed by following the patient's associations, the transference and counter-transference, and tracking resistances stemming from psychic pain as they emerge in the psychotherapeutic process. The seminar demonstrates with clinical material how Freudian technique, interpreted and updated by Freud's later revisions and modern extensions, is the basis of a wide range of effective clinical strategies in today's psychoanalytic psychotherapy.
Specific Character Formations and Related Techniques in Treatment
This seminar examines in depth various character formations and syndromes and their implications for psychoanalytic psychotherapy treatments. The basic text is by Nancy McWilliams, Psychoanalytic Diagnosis: Understanding Personality Structure in the Clinical Process (1994). As well, because the course is given by a number of different leaders, the students are exposed to the richness of different theoretical frameworks. The students are encouraged to bring clinical examples for discussion. Personality types studied include hysterical, dissociative, obsessive-compulsive, depressive, masochistic, psychotic/paranoid, schizoid, borderline, narcissistic, and psychopathic.
Relational Theory and Technique
This seminar addresses the translation of theory to technique and clinical situations from a contemporary relational theory perspective, providing the student with another framework for working with patients.
Self-Harm
This seminar focuses on the complex counter-transference reactions that arise working with suicidal and self-harming patients, with multiple clinical examples.
Impasses in Treatment
This seminar examines in depth the factors involved in impasses during clinical work, including concepts such as negative therapeutic reaction, masochism, and the therapist's contribution.
Consultation, Medication, and Referral
This seminar presents the value of and indications for consultations of various kinds, of medication, and of temporary or permanent referral. Practical approaches to the handling of what can be difficult situations in treatments are discussed using clinical examples.

Dream Interpretation within the Therapeutic Process
In this seminar series students learn about dreams in significant depth, including theory and technical implications during the clinical encounter. Dreams are studied from three perspectives: Freudian, Object Relations, and Self Psychology. The basic hypotheses of each of these schools of thought are reviewed and then applied to help candidates understand dream interpretation as an integral part of the psychotherapy process, regardless of the theoretical framework.
Transference and Counter-transference
This seminar provides an opportunity to study the concepts of transference and counter-transference in greater depth, from both a theoretical and clinical perspective. Topics include transference love, the working alliance, the nature of therapeutic action, working through the counter-transference, and counter-transference with borderline patients. Multiple clinical examples are utilized to consolidate the theory.
Theories of Object Relations
Authors covered in these seminars include Klein, Fairbairn, Winnicott, Guntrip, Balint, Bollas, Mitchell, and Greenberg. The readings are supplemented with clinical case examples, which provide a departure point for further discussion and implications for clinical practice. Issues presented include the development of signs, symbols, and meaning, affect, internal object relations, the development of character and the self, and the contributions of both the patient and the therapist in the psychotherapeutic process.
Technique Based on Theories of Object Relations
This seminar provides a translation of theory to technique in clinical situations using object relations models. It is intended to complement the theoretical seminar and to help consolidate the theory through clinical examples.
Self Psychology and Intersubjectivity
This seminar provides an in-depth examination of the contemporary theories and clinical application of Self Psychology and Intersubjectivity. Readings include Kohut, Basch, Stolorow, Wolf, Lachmann, Bacal, Brandchaft, Fonagy, Orange, Fosshage, and Kindler. Topics include empathic understanding, selfobject transferences, and recent developments. Also, concepts such as counter-transference, defence, and resistance will be revisited.
Technique Based on Self Psychology and Intersubjectivity
This seminar provides a translation of theory to technique in clinical situations using Self Psychology and Intersubjectivity models. It is intended to complement the theoretical seminar and to help consolidate the theory through clinical examples.
Termination
This seminar addresses a variety of themes pertaining to termination, including indications suggesting termination, models of termination, self-disclosure, patient contacts outside of therapy, and specific technical considerations.