Psychosexual Therapy

Modules and Teaching

• Two years part-time, on campus, starting in October 2026

  2026/7

  Course structure

  You must complete six core modules worth a total of 180 credits.

  In addition to the modules you will also participate in self-reflective groups and undertake a clinical placement.

  Core modules

  • Psychosexual Therapy: Psychosexual Assessment, Diagnosis and Initial Treatment
  • Psychosexual Therapy: Psychosexual Therapy Competencies and Clinical Practice
  • Psychosexual Therapy: Psychosexual Therapy Theory and Research
  • Psychosexual Therapy: Sex through the Life Span
  • Psychosexual Therapy: Thinking About and Working with Relationships
  • Psychosexual Therapy: Working within Diversity and Different Cultural Groups

• Teaching

  We encourage innovative and engaging ways of teaching to help ensure you have the best learning experience and provide a range of different modes of learning to help you juggle study with work and other commitments.

  Find out more about our teaching and teaching hours.

  What are the methods of teaching?

  Teaching is through seminars, collaborative projects, independent study, written assignments, presentations, tutorials and experiential learning.

• How will I be assessed?

  The course incorporates multiple assessment methods such as couple and psychosexual research and theory paper discussions, clinical practice and case evaluations and discussions, role plays, case assessments, clinical supervised hours, a written examination and a clinical case study.

  Please see individual modules for more details.

  Find out more about assessment at Birkbeck, including guidance on assessment, feedback and our assessment offences policy.

Entry requirements

You must have:

• a clinical qualification in psychotherapy, counselling or counselling psychology from a nationally recognised training organisation such as UKCP, BACP or BPS
• sufficient counselling and academic competencies to meet the demands of the course
• a minimum of 200 hours of supervised clinical work with individuals or couples prior to application
• a high degree of reflexivity, capacity to make and maintain close personal relationships, and the ability to reflect on personal experience.

Successful applicants must complete 100 hours of personal therapy, of which at least 20 should ideally be conducted with a psychodynamic therapist, either prior to or during the course. A minimum of 20 hours of therapy is required during training, with sessions starting in the first term. For guidance on finding a suitable personal therapy provider, contact Tavistock Relationships.

Successful applicants will also be required to complete a Disclosure and Barring Service check. 

Applicants with other qualifications or assessed prior (experiential) learning may also be considered.

You will be required to complete an application form and submit a portfolio demonstrating relevant prior learning and clinical experience. 

Apply now to secure your place. The earlier you apply, the sooner your application can be considered and you can enrol. You do not need to have completed your current qualification to start your application.

• What are the English language requirements?

  If English is not your first language or you have not previously studied in English, our usual requirement is the equivalent of an International English Language Testing System (IELTS Academic Test) score of 6.5, with not less than 6.0 in each of the sub-tests. We also accept other English language tests.

  If you don't meet the minimum English language requirements, please contact us or see our international study skills page for more details about how we can help.

  Visit the International section of our website to find out more about our English language entry requirements and relevant requirements by country.

• What are the visa and funding requirements?

  If you are not from the UK and you do not already have residency here, you may need to apply for a visa.

  The visa you apply for varies according to the length of your course:

  • Courses of more than six months' duration: Student visa
  • Courses of less than six months' duration: Standard Visitor visa

  International students who require a Student visa should apply to study on our courses full-time as these qualify for Student visa sponsorship. If you are living in the UK on a Student visa, you will not be eligible to enrol to study part-time courses at Birkbeck (with the exception of some modules).

  As a Student visa student, you should also apply to study on campus only, as online and flexible options of study (if they are available for your course) may affect the conditions of your visa.

  For full information, read our visa information for international students page.

  Please also visit the international section of our website to find out more about relevant visa and funding requirements by country.

  Please note students receiving US Federal Aid are only able to apply for in-person, on-campus programmes which will have no elements of online study.

• Credits and accredited prior learning (APL)

  If you have studied at university (or have an HND or Foundation Degree), you may have accumulated credits. It may be possible to transfer these from your previous study to Birkbeck or another institution.

Fees

• Birkbeck's Lifelong Learning Guarantee

  If you've studied at Birkbeck before and successfully completed an award with us, take advantage of our Lifelong Learning Guarantee to gain a reduction on the tuition fee of this course.

• Can I apply for an international scholarship?

  We provide a range of scholarships for eligible international students, including our Global Future Scholarship. View Birkbeck's available scholarships.

• Additional costs

  As well as fees, you should expect to pay other study-related expenses, such as for travel to and from the place of study, books and stationery.

  A minimum of 20 hours of personal therapy is required during training on this course, ideally with a psychodynamic therapist. Fees are negotiated directly between the student and the therapist.

  You will also be required to pay for the cost of DBS checks, COSRT student membership and any additional supervision where required.

  Discover the financial support available to you to help with your studies at Birkbeck.

Careers and employability

On successfully graduating with this MSc Psychosexual Therapy, you will be:

• equipped to work in the statutory or voluntary sector or as a private practitioner in the field of psychosexual therapy
• eligible to apply for CORST (College of Sexual and Relationship Therapists) and UKCP (UK Council for Psychotherapy) registration once the required clinical hours have been completed
• part of Tavistock Relationships' alumni group and able to take advantage of their high-quality CPD and conferences, helping you keep on top of recent developments in the field and develop your clinical practice further.

Student support

How to apply

• When should I apply?

  You are strongly advised to apply now, to ensure there are still places left, and to give you enough time to complete the admissions process, to arrange funding and to enrol.

  You don't need to complete your current programme of study before you apply - Birkbeck can offer you a place that is conditional on your results.

• How can I get help with my application?

  Get all the information you need about the application, admission and enrolment process at Birkbeck.

  Our online personal statement tool will guide you through every step of writing the personal statement part of your application.

• International agents

  If you are an international agent applying to Birkbeck on behalf of an international student, please use Birkbeck's agent portal.