Conferences / workshops

[Logic Prevails]

I am a 2nd year Masters student in a clinical program

I've been contemplating whether or not to attend a 4 day conference in December. Some of you may have heard of this one:

http://www.evolutionofpsychotherapy.com/

Anyway, the reason why I'm contemplating is because I'm not independently wealthy and it will cost money to stay in a hotel for those nights, not to mention registration fees.

I want to expand my knowledge of different types of therapies (we cover mostly assessment in our coursework). I plan on practicing with an MA, which means I'll be graduating in less than a year with very little knowledge of specific therapeutic techniques or practical therapy skills.

It seems this conference 'has it all.'

My question is this: how much value do you people put on conferences & workshops such as these? Is this something you would mention on your CV? How much can you really learn from a 3hr workshop on a particular subject? (i.e there are LOTS of different workshops, but each seems to run for a max of 3 hrs).

Overall, do you think these are worth the time and money?

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[lazure]

I do attend workshops but not ones I would have to shell out for hotels and transportation. Workshops will give you a bit of a theoretical basis but to learn to do therapy you have to be a therapist yourself - you can only learn by doing. If you want more education than your current program is providing, why not do the PhD? I know, I know, finances......

 

[Logic Prevails]

Workshops will give you a bit of a theoretical basis but to learn to do therapy you have to be a therapist yourself - you can only learn by doing. If you want more education than your current program is providing, why not do the PhD? I know, I know, finances......

"To learn how to do therapy you have to be a therapist yourself"
- read that one again; it doesn't seem to follow...

I don't want to do a PhD because I have no intention of doing research. If I could extract the relevant clinical coursework and do just that - I would. Our PhD program also takes an average of 4 to 5 years to complete (during which time I could get twice the clinical training and avoid the publications, research, etc.). At any rate our particular program is very assessment oriented (I've done several & have written reports) and does not provide much therapy coursework (even at the PhD level).

With an MA I will be able to call myself a psychologist (after writing the EPPP etc.) with the only restrictions being that I have supervision for the first 5 years of practice and do not practice outside of my own knowledge and skill level. At the moment I have only taken coursework for the application of CBT (but have not administered to a client). After I get my MA, I intend to take a few courses (If I'm permitted) and attend some more focused workshops to strenghten my therapy knowledge and ability. At the moment however, I do not know which techniques are really out there and which ones I'm interested in learning about. So if the advice is to become a therapist before learning about the various therapeutic techniques out there... maybe you could advise where to start. I thought by attending a conference such as this, I might have an idea.

Thanks

 

[lazure]

"To learn how to do therapy you have to be a therapist yourself"

I meant that you need to learn to be therapist by treating people under supervision of a licenced psychologist. Again, going to workshops will give you good theoretical knowledge but you need to exercise those skills on many clients before you can consider yourself a competent therapist. CBT looks straightforward on paper but it is not until you attempt to carry out the protocol that you learn about the complexities of CBT and therapeutic relationship. Believe me, clients never answer your questions the way the book says they are supposed to
As the person above, I strongly suggest that you review the licencing requirements in your state/province - you might be in for a few surprises...you cannot call yourself a psychologist with just a Master's ....furthermore, you likely will not be able to "diagnose", consequently, you will always be working for someone who can...and that professional will take a pay cut...

 

[Logic Prevails]

Few clarifications first:

[With an MA I will be able to call myself a psychologist]

"No you won't. You will be able to call yourself a psychotherapist"

"you cannot call yourself a psychologist with just a Master's"

Okay, I understand that in most states and in some provinces you need to have a PhD to reserve the title of "psychologist." I live in Canada, and for better or for worse, these are the educational requirements for becoming a psychologist (FYI):

NL - MA or PhD
NS - MA (with 5 yrs supervision) or PhD
PEI - MA (with 2 yrs supervision) or PhD
NB - MA
Quebec - MA (with additional training) or PhD
Ont. - PhD (MA can only call themselves a psychological associate)
Man. - PhD
Sask. - MA
ALB - (case by case approval of educational Hx)
BC - PhD (MA can only call themselves psychotherapists)
Territories - MA or PhD

I obtained this information from the CPA website:
http://www.cpa.ca/canreg.html

With the few noted exceptions an individual with an MA in Canada can call themselves a psychologist.
(unless there is something unwritten somewhere that speaks otherwise).

Now, even if I could practice without having to do supervised interventions and additional therapy coursework, I would not; it would be unethical. That's why I want suggestions from people (such as some of those on this board) that have more experience than myself. Just because my University training ends with an MA does not mean that I am done learning.

"Again, going to workshops will give you good theoretical knowledge but you need to exercise those skills on many clients before you can consider yourself a competent therapist".

I agree; maybe (if you've done so already) you can explain to me how one applies newly acquired skills to therapy.

For example, if I do an intervention practicum, what TYPE of intervention strategy would I be likely to use/learn? I would like to understand how one makes the leap from 'theory' to 'practice' regarding different approaches to therapy. Would I just learn intervention strategies that my supervisor is familiar with? If (later down the road) I attend a workshop on a type of therapy I am not familiar with (i.e. BPT), do I need to have an individual competent in this type of therapy supervise me as well?

Understand that I am new to this process and am just trying to plan my education goals (university or otherwise) so that they fit best with my desire to becoming a good psychologist. Whatever your opinion of an MA psychologist, perhaps you could set it aside and give some advice on how you have personally strived to become a competent therapist. If attending workshops/conferences is too early in the game for a person in my situation, what are some other options aside from a practicum (which I plan on doing soon) that might be valuable learning experiences.

Thanks for the feedback

 

[LM02]

I'm not familiar with Canadian licensure laws and regulations, but I think you're missing the point.

The question is not whether you're allowed to function as a "psychologist" administering therapy, but rather whether or not this is ethical. Honestly, how can you advertise a professional service, one that the public would assume you are competent at providing, if you've never even done it?

Case in point, one of the primary tenets of CBT is "collaborative empiricism." In other words, CBT is not a treatment to be "administered." Rather, most of the work is supposed to come from the client (e.g., through homework assignments such as behavioral experiments and thought records). Having supervised experiences practicing CBT would allow you to see what that looks like (and feels like, i might add) in "real life."

Regardless of whether you pursue a PhD, I would strongly suggest that you search for a job after graduation that will place you in a setting where you can see clients under supervision. And it's not a quesiton of whether it's required - if I were you,I would want someone to check in with to problem solve issues that arise in therapy.

 

[Logic Prevails]

"I think you're missing the point"

"The question is not whether you're allowed to function as a "psychologist" administering therapy, but rather whether or not this is ethical."

from above:
"Now, even if I could practice without having to do supervised interventions and additional therapy coursework, I would not; it would be unethical."

I already made the point I think you're trying to press, so yeah, I think I've got it.

 

[lazure]

Your choice of practica and therapeutic orientations you will want to learn will depend quite a bit on the populations you plan to work with.
Do you plan to work with adults or children? Individual or group treatment?
Outpatient or inpatient? What presenting issues do you want to be able to address? I think that a psychologist needs to know the major orientations such as CBT, psychodynamic, family systems etc. in order to conceptualize therapy cases...And as LM02 stated, supervision is crucial for you at this stage. You may even consider paying for supervision if you don't obtain adequate amounts in your placement...

If your province allows MAs to be licenced as a psychologist, do you at least have to declare your areas of competency?

 

[LM02]

"I think you're missing the point"

I already made the point I think you're trying to press, so yeah, I think I've got it.

Ah, I must have completely missed that post - sorry about that!

But back to your original question, I still think that it's better to save your $$ and skip the conference - again, it's not the equivalent of gaining supervised therapy experiences in the real world.

 

[Logic Prevails]

"I still think that it's better to save your $$ and skip the conference - again, it's not the equivalent of gaining supervised therapy experiences in the real world"

You may be right. I realize that conferences and workshops don't offer the kind of training that a supervised practicum can give. I guess I was just wondering if they were worthwhile at this stage in the game. One of my professors thought it would be a good learning experience (just to see what's out there), but perhaps it wouldn't be worth the money.

"Your choice of practica and therapeutic orientations you will want to learn will depend quite a bit on the populations you plan to work with"

I suppose this is true. I am in a developmental program and hope to work with children and adolescents; likely in an outpatient setting, but I'm unsure at the moment.

"If your province allows MAs to be licenced as a psychologist, do you at least have to declare your areas of competency?"

Although there is no specific mention of it, I would assume that you would have to declare areas of competency and practice within those areas.

At any rate, I was curious about our particular program (regarding therapy training) and asked a faculty member when in the PhD program we would learn how to apply specific theoretical models to actual cases (i.e. in an advanced CBT course, I thought we might actually see a client or at least practice with a volunteer). As I've already mentioned above, we have very few therapy courses to begin with; I was told that any 'application' type skills would be learned in a practicum setting (and a student does not need to take any theory courses to do one). This sounds a bit odd to me, because I don't understand how we are to do therapy (even supervised) without any kind of 'template' in which to conceptualize the cases that we see. And as I've mentioned before... would someone like myself learn whatever therapy technique my supervisor prefers while doing a practicum?



Anyway, thanks for the excellent feedback. It really got me thinking more about all of this.

 

[Annakei]

Simply put: Wait until you are established to attend these conferences. I would be all for it if it didnt cost so much. Take the time and money to work on getting licensed and gathering supervision hours.

 

[lazure]

Simply put: Wait until you are established to attend these conferences. I would be all for it if it didnt cost so much. Take the time and money to work on getting licensed and gathering supervision hours.

I don't agree. I make a point of attending at least one or two clinical practice oriented workshops per year. I live in a large city so there is plenty available through various continuous education programs, psychiatry departments, hospitals and schoolboards. My MA program actually offered $200 per year for students to attend clinical workshops but my PhD program which is at a different school, does not...

Brad,
I'm training to be a child, adolescent and family clinician as well. I recommend
that you get solid ground in CBT, family systems, play therapy and some knowledge of psychodynamic models. Try to do your practica both in outpatient settings and inpatient hospital settings. Try some health psych settings. My practica included clinics in GID, Mood and Anxiety, Adult Psych clinic and Child Oncology (which also included Palliative Care).
Also, no practicum supervisor worth his or her salt will turn you loose with a client without ensuring that you have read up on the relevant therapy techniques.....

 

[Annakei]

I don't agree. I make a point of attending at least one or two clinical practice oriented workshops per year. I live in a large city so there is plenty available through various continuous education programs, psychiatry departments, hospitals and schoolboards. My MA program actually offered $200 per year for students to attend clinical workshops but my PhD program which is at a different school, does not...

Brad,
I'm training to be a child, adolescent and family clinician as well. I recommend
that you get solid ground in CBT, family systems, play therapy and some knowledge of psychodynamic models. Try to do your practica both in outpatient settings and inpatient hospital settings. Try some health psych settings. My practica included clinics in GID, Mood and Anxiety, Adult Psych clinic and Child Oncology (which also included Palliative Care).
Also, no practicum supervisor worth his or her salt will turn you loose with a client without ensuring that you have read up on the relevant therapy techniques.....

You are welcomed to disagree but obviously missed my point. If these conferences are out of the OP's personal budget meaning the he/she will have to pay for it then NO I dont think it is worth it. I continue to attend workshops and conferences that are in my budget or that my agency will cover. Right now my focus is to gain more clinical experience. What will it help the OP now if it doesnt count towards licensure AND it may be too costly? just my opinion..

 

[DaffyDoc]

conferences are mainly just businesses feeding off of your wallets. they just want your money. if I wanted to know what the recent research was I would find other means to do so.

I am a 2nd year Masters student in a clinical program

I've been contemplating whether or not to attend a 4 day conference in December. Some of you may have heard of this one:

http://www.evolutionofpsychotherapy.com/

Anyway, the reason why I'm contemplating is because I'm not independently wealthy and it will cost money to stay in a hotel for those nights, not to mention registration fees.

I want to expand my knowledge of different types of therapies (we cover mostly assessment in our coursework). I plan on practicing with an MA, which means I'll be graduating in less than a year with very little knowledge of specific therapeutic techniques or practical therapy skills.

It seems this conference 'has it all.'

My question is this: how much value do you people put on conferences & workshops such as these? Is this something you would mention on your CV? How much can you really learn from a 3hr workshop on a particular subject? (i.e there are LOTS of different workshops, but each seems to run for a max of 3 hrs).

Overall, do you think these are worth the time and money?