Petition to Ensure Funding of Reformed Psychotherapy Training in Baden-Württemberg

The student representatives of the Department of Psychology at the University of Mannheim have started a petition together with other departmental student committees of universities in Baden-Württemberg. In the petition, the students demand that the state government provide funding for the new psychology programs prescribed for the training of psychotherapists since September 2020 – something the government has yet to commit to. A total of 4,200 signatures have already been collected to date.

Press release, 25 February 2021
Print Version (PDF)

The psychology students justify the petition as follows:

“According to the new Psychotherapy law [Psychotherapeutengesetz] from 1 September 2020, the training of psychotherapists cannot continue under the former training system. Since 1 September, new students have to complete a program consisting of a general bachelor’s in psychology followed by a subsequent master’s in psychotherapy, concluding with a license to practice as a psychotherapist.

To date, this sort of bachelor’s program is not available at any university in Baden-Württemberg, which means that students who started their studies in the 2020/21 fall/winter semester will currently not have the opportunity to become a psychotherapist here. The reason for this is that the state government has yet to declare that it will provide funding.

If it fails do so soon, the bachelor’s program in psychology according to the new licensing regulations cannot be implemented by the 2021/22 fall/winter semester, and future generations of psychotherapists will be lost.

This issue is therefore not only important for the future of these students but also for the overall therapeutic care throughout Germany. The coronavirus pandemic has once again demonstrated how crucial this area is.”

The psychology departments and institutes of the state universities have also repeatedly stressed the urgency of the situation and demanded a swift and appropriate financial commitment from the government. Click here to read the press release of the institutes of psychology (2020) (in German)

Read more about the student campaign on the website of the departmental student committee (in German)

Access to the psychology students’ online petition:  http://chng.it/nWVvVCb8bZ

Contact:
Student representative:
Melissa Mohr
Departmental student committee of psychology
University of Mannheim
E-mail: memohrmail-mail.uni-mannheim.de

Contact Psychology Department:
Prof. Dr. Georg Alpers
Chair of Clinical and Biological Psychology and Psychotherapy
University of Mannheim
E-mail: alpersmail-uni-mannheim.de