Doctoral Degrees in Psychoanalysis

DOCTOR OF PSYCHOANALYSIS IN PSYCHOANALYSIS AND CULTURE

Program overview
The Master’s and Doctor of Psychoanalysis (Psya.D.) programs in Psychoanalysis & Culture offer students a cutting edge curriculum and  prepare them through interdisciplinary study for scholarly research, teaching or augmentation of professional practice.   While social scientists and scholars in humanities and cultural studies are becoming increasingly interested in the psychoanalysis of culture and in the cultural analysis of psychoanalysis, very few institutions of higher education provide an arena for such interdisplinary undertaking.  This program, the first of its kind in the United States, has emerged to fill the gap in the academy for such critical pursuits.  Its distinct mission is to promote systematic dialogue between psychoanalysis, critical social theory, and cultural analysis. 

Core and elective courses provide a solid foundation in theory and methods needed for the systematic integration of psychoanalysis, critical social theory, and cultural studies.   The distinctive character of the program is its emphasis on crafting new theoretical and methodological links between psychoanalysis, the social sciences, the humanities, and cultural studies and applying an interdisciplinary lens to psychological and cultural phenomena.

Students may choose to concentrate on the study of psychoanalysis in relation to culture, on cultural analysis of psychoanalytic thinking, on psychoanalytic readings or interpretations of cultural representations such as media, literature or arts. Students may also choose to focus on interdisciplinary work responsive to contemporary issues of national and international violence, conflicts, terrorism and culture wars.  Graduates from the doctoral program may seek positions in academia as researchers or teachers, or enhance their roles as clinicians or administrators in mental health or social service agencies.

Degree requirements

To qualify for the Psya.D. degree in Psychoanalysis and Culture, a candidate must

• Complete a minimum of 72 credit hours toward the degree in addition to  a minimum of 4 hours for dissertation writing
• Successfully complete the course of study as specified in the degree plan, including the dissertation, within a ten-year period
• Pass a Qualifying Examination as designed and administered by the student’s Qualifying Committee and be successfully advanced to candidacy
• Successfully defend the doctoral dissertation as directed and approved by the Dissertation Committee

A specific program concentration may require additional completion requirements.

Research Projects
Abstracts of Doctoral Research dissertations

Bulletin
Psychoanalysis & Culture program Program Review.pdf

Location
Boston