Psychedelic Therapy Training · Australia
A 35-hour APS-accredited program for mental health and allied health professionals — psychologists, psychiatrists, nurses, GPs, occupational therapists, counsellors, and more — preparing to work with psilocybin and MDMA in clinical and research settings. Five days at Abbotsford Convent, Melbourne. Next intake: 8–12 February 2027.
Psychedelic Institute Australia (PIA) provides psychedelic-assisted therapy training for registered mental health professionals. Our flagship Essential Skills Program is a 5-day intensive in Melbourne, APS CPD-approved for 35 hours, capped at 20 trainees, and taught by clinicians with direct experience in Australian psilocybin and MDMA clinical trials. Next intake: 8–12 February 2027. No nationally accredited qualification in psychedelic therapy exists in Australia yet; PIA provides a certificate of completion, and our graduates currently work in treating teams alongside TGA Authorised Prescribers.
Why PIA Training, Why Now
Faculty and graduates active at
Sources: Australian Psychological Society; PIA faculty bios; Therapeutic Goods Administration; Psychedelic Alpha (January 2026). Updated April 2026.
The flagship program
Our Essential Skills Program is built for mental health and allied health professionals — psychologists, psychiatrists, nurses, GPs, occupational therapists, counsellors, and more — who want to work seriously in psychedelic-assisted therapy. Small cohort. Intensive. No hype. Evidence and practice-based. The program covers clinical technique, safety protocols, and the therapist's own preparation — including how presence and self-awareness shape what happens in the room. Taught by faculty who do this work in clinical trials and supervise the therapists who do.
Limited places — apply early.
About PIA
Our faculty has ample experience in psilocybin and MDMA clinical trials. Our curriculum is built on the protocols those trials use — and is transparent about what the evidence shows, and what it doesn't yet. We take the view that psychedelic-assisted therapy is most effective — and most safe — when ethics, the therapeutic relationship, and the therapist's own presence and preparation are given the same weight as the pharmacology.
In a field prone to overstatement, PIA takes a deliberate position. We don't overstate what psychedelic therapy can do, or how much is currently known. No nationally accredited training framework exists in Australia yet, and we think that warrants transparency rather than marketing confidence. PIA was established to offer a rigorous, trustworthy option during this period — and to help shape the professional standards the field will eventually need.
What we offer
PIA offers four distinct programs depending on where you are in your career and what kind of training you need. Most clinicians come for the Essential Skills Program — our flagship five-day intensive in Melbourne. The other three serve different audiences and stages.
Our five-day intensive for clinicians preparing to work with psilocybin and MDMA in clinical and research settings. Small cohort. Practice-based. Taught by faculty running Australia's psychedelic clinical trials.
See the programAn introductory online course developed in collaboration with Psychedelics Today. For clinicians who want to understand the field before committing to in-person training, or who need foundational grounding before joining the Essential Skills Program.
Bespoke training for clinics, universities, CROs, and research trial teams preparing to deliver psychedelic-assisted therapy within research protocols or institutional programs. Delivered on-site or in collaboration with your team.
Strategic guidance for individuals, organisations, and businesses navigating Australia's psychedelic therapy landscape — from regulatory pathways to clinical implementation to practice development.
The training has to be intensely focused on clinical work rather than intellectual knowledge. You have to know who you are — and what you bring to the room — as a therapist.
How we teach
Our curriculum is built around three commitments — drawn from what the field has learned about how psychedelic-assisted therapy succeeds and fails. We don't overstate what the evidence shows. That's a deliberate choice — and one we think the clinicians we train deserve.
Built on the published clinical trial protocols our faculty work within. Trainees learn validated frameworks, not workshop theory.
Ethics runs through every part of the curriculum — from client screening and dosing environments to the therapist's own psychological responses during a session.
Small cohorts. Trainees practise with each other, observe live demonstrations, and receive direct feedback from clinicians currently running trials. That includes the therapist's own psychological responses — self-awareness is treated as a clinical skill, not left to personal development outside the room.
From the cohorts
Three voices from recent intakes — clinical psychologist, mental health social worker, psychologist. Each currently practising in Australia.
"Loved the relaxed learning style that allowed participants of various expertise to also enrich the experience. It was a rich, supportive learning experience. The ratio of faculty to trainees was wonderful."
"What I appreciated the most was that you continually referred to evidence-based research highlighting both treatment efficacy, limitations and gaps in knowledge."
"All of the facilitators were so welcoming and down-to-earth. This course has further confirmed that this is the field I hope will be the next step in my career."
Apply for the next intake
Applications are open for our Melbourne, 8–12 February 2027 intake. Cohorts are deliberately small — we recommend applying early. If you're not sure whether the program is right for you, send us a message first.
PIA acknowledges the many traditional owners and custodians of these lands, past, present and emerging. We respect the traditional owners and their care of country and culture. We, the people of PIA live on the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung and Bunurong/Boon Wurrung peoples Kulin Nation, Whadjuk peoples Noongar Nation, and the Arakwal Bumberlin people Bundjalung Nation. We honour and appreciate the life and love these lands have given us, and we acknowledge all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and Countries within this place we currently call Australia.