A pioneering online programme in psychoanalytic psychotherapy, taught entirely in English, has been launched by the European School of Philosophies and Applied Psychotherapy (EEPA). The five-year course combines philosophy and psychology to foster personal growth and professional development in mental health.
Founded in 2003, EEPA was created to provide experience-based education. Its curriculum draws on major philosophical and psychoanalytical traditions, from Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, and Spinoza to Freud, Jung, and Nietzsche. The school gives particular emphasis to Carl Gustav Jung and promotes the principles of Responsibility, Respect for self, and Respect for others.
The objectives include training in psychoanalytic psychotherapy, developing knowledge of psychic functioning, integrating acquired knowledge, and harmonising relationships between human beings through discernment between illusion and reality.
“Our teaching alternates between theory and practice. We study ethics in order to improve our lives, and therefore its principal concern is the nature of human well-being,” the school explained. EEPA teaching is rooted in the Socratic principle of “Know thyself” and aims to integrate theoretical study with lived experience. “I integrate theory only when it resonates with my own experience. The understanding comes through the appropriation and the embodiment of the theory,” one statement notes.
At EEPA, learning is designed as a transformative journey. “Guided by the wisdom of great thinkers and inspired by Carl Gustav Jung, our programmes invite you to explore the depths of the human psyche, nurture meaningful connections, and grow at your own pace,” the school said.
The programme is delivered entirely online, with teaching alternating between theory and practice based on each student’s authentic experience. Students set their own pace and study from home or another suitable location. A bilingual team of lecturers provides additional support outside of class hours. Students will also attend an annual Integration Seminar, with two available dates to choose from, allowing them to meet in person.
The course is open to students or practitioners seeking to begin training in psychoanalytic psychotherapy, to individuals pursuing personal development based on the Socratic principle of “Know thyself”, and to those considering a career change. Prerequisites include the French Baccalauréat or its European equivalent.
The training lasts five years and consists of 375 hours across five cycles, including theory sessions and integration seminars. Additional requirements are three weeks of intensive training, a written dissertation, and an oral defence. Students must also undertake psychotherapy follow-up and personal work.
Validation requires a 50–60 page dissertation defended before an accredited jury. Completion of the EEPA programme is the first step towards the Certificat Européen de Psychothérapie Psychanalytique (CEPP), which requires further supervised practice and internships.
Modules cover themes such as morality, ethics, individuation, attachment, defence mechanisms, Freud and Jung, and psychopathology. Resources include access to EEPA’s library, bibliography, and filmography. EEPA Solidaire offers affordable consultations with therapists in training or at the beginning of their careers.
Founding members and lecturers include Nicole Aknin, director of the Sigmund Freud University in Paris; Nicole Attali, founding member of ECPP-France; Uliyemi Olomajeye Martin, lecturer in addiction psychology and couple therapy; Evelyne Fournier-Meissirel, specialist in trauma mediation; Elena Snow, Jungian psychoanalyst; Cor Vreugdenhil, family therapist; Céline Russel, psychoanalyst and coach; and Marie-Amélie Toullec, specialist in relaxation and mindfulness. “The ethic of each of them is to teach what they experience or have experienced,” EEPA said.
EEPA is accredited by the European Confederation of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy to issue the European Certificate of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, subject to additional supervised practice and institutional internships. It also collaborates with the Centre Universitaire Privé de Psychologie Appliquée et Intégrative at SFU Paris.
EEPA is located at 14 rue Alfred Roll, 75017 Paris. Contact details are +33 (0)1 53 75 37 27, email contact@eepa-eu.com, and website. It is registered as a private training centre under declaration number 11753884275 and holds Qualiopi certification.