MA Counseling Psychology with a concentration in Drama Therapy at California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS)
The Master’s in Counseling Psychology with a concentration in Drama Therapy is a Board of Behavioral Sciences-approved program taught in person. The program integrates experiential, theoretical, and clinical courses in a curriculum designed to train students to become skillful, ethical, and culturally attuned drama therapists.
Central models and methods in the field of Drama Therapy (including the Integrative Five Phase Model of Drama Therapy, Developmental Transformations, and Role Method) are studied. Students are also exposed to Playback Theatre, Self-Revelatory Performance, Psychodrama, and the larger field of Creative Arts Therapy. Our courses dive into the intricacies of relevant clinical issues (such as distinguishing compulsive and constructive re-enactment, therapeutic direction of improvisational enactment, creative responses to resistance, and use and misuse of psychodramatic tools). We believe that learning should be engaging, meaningful, and fun - and we incorporate dramatic methods to enliven teaching even in our more didactic courses.