Psychodynamic Couple & Family Institute of New England
Couple & Family Therapy
Training Program
A sophisticated, integrative approach to working with complex relationship dynamics
WHY TRAINING MATTERS NOW
Build Expertise in Relational Work
Intimate relationships are under increasing strain.
Couples and families are navigating unprecedented levels of stress related to social polarization, economic pressure, cultural change, shifting norms around intimacy and family structure, and the lingering impact of collective trauma.
At the same time, clinicians are often asked to work more quickly, with greater complexity, and across wider differences of identity, power, and lived experience—often without adequate depth-oriented training to support this work.
PCFINE offers its training in response to this moment. We believe that effective couple and family therapy today requires more than techniques or short-term interventions. It requires a sophisticated understanding of unconscious processes, relational systems, emotional regulation, and sociocultural context—and the ability to hold complexity over time.
Many clinicians receive limited formal training in couple therapy, and even fewer are supported in developing a sustained psychodynamic understanding of couple and family systems over time.
| PCFINE's trainings fill the gap between theory-heavy academic programs & technique-driven continuing education. |
"The PCFINE training program offered me a clinically exciting experience to further my career." PCFINE Training Graduate
This Training Offers
- A longitudinal, relational learning experience that unfolds across a full training year (with an optional second year)
- A deep integration of psychodynamic and systems thinking, rather than privileging one model over the other
- Ongoing small-group consultation with senior clinicians in intimate groups of 3-4 fellows, allowing theory to be applied directly to evolving clinical work with personalized guidance
- Exposure to multiple senior faculty perspectives—with two faculty coordinators present at each class alongside faculty—fostering clinical flexibility rather than rigid adherence to a single method
- A community-based learning environment that supports reflection, dialogue, and professional belonging
Unlike brief workshops or isolated seminars, PCFINE's program provides clinicians with the time, structure, and relational continuity necessary to develop enduring clinical capacities and your own therapeutic voice.
"The ongoing PCFINE peer supervision group that started during my training has been priceless." PCFINE Training Graduate
Curriculum Overview
YEAR 1 - Foundations of Couple Therapy
Required first year covering essential concepts and clinical skills
The first year program integrates psychological concepts and interventions from psychoanalysis, family systems theory, attachment theory, and interpersonal neuroscience. You'll develop skills in evaluation and formulation, understand transference and countertransference dynamics unique to couple work, and learn to address sexuality, affect regulation, and sociocultural dimensions in treatment.
YEAR 2 - Advanced Topics (Optional)
Available to students who complete Year 1 and wish to deepen their expertise
The second year program allows you to explore specific clinical challenges in greater depth. Most fellows choose to continue for this optional year, which follows the same monthly seminar and supervision group format. Topics include working with LGBTQ+ couples, infidelity, parenting transitions, sociocultural dimensions, moral dilemmas, and separation/divorce.
Is This Training Right for You?
Questions We Hear Often (And Why We Welcome Them)
Many clinicians wonder:
"Am I experienced enough for this training?"
"What if I feel out of my depth in front of senior clinicians?"
"Do I need to already 'know' psychodynamic theory to belong here?"
"What if my work with couples feels messy or stuck?"
We expect these questions—and see them as signs of clinical curiosity, not deficiency.
Your Success
Success in our training is less about years in practice and more about clinical openness.
Fellows tend to thrive when they:
- Have basic clinical training and some psychotherapy experience
- Are currently seeing (or preparing to see) couples
- Are willing to reflect on their own emotional and relational responses
- Can tolerate complexity, uncertainty, and learning over time
Early-career and seasoned clinicians both succeed when they are engaged, curious, and relationally minded.
This Training Is a Good Fit If You...
- Are a licensed or license-eligible mental health clinician working with couples or planning to do so
- Want to deepen your understanding of couple and family dynamics beyond techniques or protocols
- Are curious about how unconscious processes, attachment histories, and systemic patterns shape intimate relationships
- Value reflection, emotional depth, and relational learning as essential parts of clinical growth
- Are interested in integrating psychodynamic thinking with family systems perspectives
- Appreciate learning in a community where dialogue, complexity, and multiple clinical viewpoints are welcomed
- Are willing to examine your own assumptions, emotional responses, and relational positioning as a clinician
- Want ongoing supervision that supports your real, evolving clinical work with couples
"The faculty are warm, authentic, and bring a high degree of clinical experience." PCFINE Training Graduate
Format: Monthly Sunday seminars (8:45 AM - 12:00 PM) + afternoon consultation groups (2 hours)
Schedule: September through June (10 sessions total)
Location: Classes rotate among faculty coordinators' homes
Orientation: Welcome brunch before first class in September
The training year begins with theoretical foundations and progresses through specific clinical challenges, always tying theory to practice through case examples from both fellows and faculty. Monthly seminars combine rigorous theoretical exploration with active case discussion in a post-graduate seminar format that encourages fellows to think critically about their clinical choices.
Small consultation groups of 3-4 fellows meet with senior faculty each month, providing ongoing case discussion as your work evolves. This intimate setting allows for deep exploration of your clinical questions and personalized guidance from experienced clinicians and analysts who are leading practitioners in the field.
Readings and a syllabus are provided in advance of the training.
Tuition & Fees
Investment in Your Professional Development
Annual Tuition: $1,750
Application Deposit: $100 (non-refundable, applied to tuition upon acceptance)
Equity Rate: $750/year
The Equity Rate is available for prospective students who submit a statement explaining how they meet our criteria of:
- Identifying as belonging to a racial or ethnic group with historical barriers to access, and/or
- Primarily working with low-income individuals or those who have also endured historical barriers to access by virtue of their race or ethnicity
Scholarships: Additional scholarship support is available. Please inquire for details.
Private Supervision: Optional private supervision can be arranged at a reduced fee with available faculty members.
Eligibility & Requirements
Who Can Apply
Applicants must be licensed mental health professionals or working under the supervision of a licensed clinician.
Required Materials:
- Current curriculum vitae
- For independently licensed professionals: Certificate of malpractice insurance and copy of license
Before Starting, It Helps to Have...
- A foundational clinical training in psychotherapy (graduate-level education in a mental health field)
- Experience working with individuals, couples, or families in a clinical setting
- Comfort with reflective discussion, clinical case presentation, and group learning
- Openness to exploring psychodynamic concepts such as unconscious process, transference, and defense
- A willingness to engage thoughtfully with issues of culture, power, identity, and social context in clinical work
- Curiosity, patience, and a commitment to developing as a clinician over time
Ready To Apply?
Current Status: Applications for the 2025-2026 academic year are now closed.
Applications for 2026-2027 are now closed.
QUESTIONS?
Contact: Alice Rapkin, PCFINE Administrator
Phone: 781-433-0906
Email: pcfine1934@gmail.com