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Frequently Asked Questions

If you have a question and are thinking of contacting us, it may already be covered in the below FAQs. The section headings are:

> Most Asked Questions

> Resources

> Accreditation, Certification, and Exams

> General

> DBT Training

Most Asked Questions

• Are APT courses accredited?

  Yes, all of our courses are accredited by the Association for Psychological Therapies (APT). This is given weight by the fact that over 150,000 professionals have attended APT courses. APT accreditation signifies that relevant information is presented in an engaging way, and every course is assessed on these two criteria, with the evaluation returned to the course-sponsor. The two scales (relevance and presentation quality) were obtained by factor-analysing what were previously 17 separate feedback ratings and finding that they all correlated with one or the other of the two crucial dimensions, which seemed to be 'relevance' and 'presentation quality'. If you are interested in whether a course is accredited/recognised by a specific other organisation then you need to ask that organisation. As a matter of policy APT does not seek accreditation from, and can’t speak for, any other body.

• Do I gain any type of accreditation?

  Yes, upon completing APT live training you will receive APT-Accreditation Level 1, which can be uprated (free of charge) to Level 2 by completing an online exam in your own time. By successfully completing APT's online training (and exam) you will receive APT-Accreditation Level 2. For further information about accreditation click here.

• Am I eligible to undertake these courses?

  If you are professionally involved in mental health or substance misuse or similar wellbeing provision then Yes, there is no reason why you shouldn't undertake any of our courses, and they are designed to be as accessible and 'transparent' as possible. Bear in mind though that they are mostly post-qualification courses, so for those courses you will only be able to use the content with clients/patients if you have a role that entitles you to do so. Most people who attend are in psychiatric nursing, social work, occupational therapy, clinical counselling or educational psychology, psychiatry, and others.

• Are APT courses recognised by other professional bodies (BACP etc.)?

  We can’t speak on the behalf of other bodies, so you need to check with them to see if they recognise the training for the purpose you require. However, it is fair to say that APT training is highly thought of and we are one of the UK’s largest providers of post-qualification training in mental health and related areas (well over 150,000 professionals have attended APT courses).




Resources

• When will I receive my login details to access the post-course resources?

  This is a manual process, so You will receive your login details shortly after attending the course by email (normally within two weeks).

• Why haven't I received my login details to access the post-course resources?

  It's likely that you already have. If you attended the course over two weeks ago, the email may have gone into your spam/junk folder. Please contact us if you haven't received your login details after this period.

• I can't login to access the post-course resources?

  If your password isn't being recognised you can reset your password here.




Accreditation, Certification, and Exams

• I have completed an APT course, how do I access the exam?

  Following the completion of an APT live course you will receive an email (usually within two week's of completing the course) with your login details to access the associated online exam, to uprate your APT Accreditation to Level 2.

• Are APT courses accredited?

  Yes, all of our courses are accredited by the Association for Psychological Therapies (APT). This is given weight by the fact that over 150,000 professionals have attended APT courses. APT accreditation signifies that relevant information is presented in an engaging way, and every course is assessed on these two criteria, with the evaluation returned to the course-sponsor. The two scales (relevance and presentation quality) were obtained by factor-analysing what were previously 17 separate feedback ratings and finding that they all correlated with one or the other of the two crucial dimensions, which seemed to be 'relevance' and 'presentation quality'. If you are interested in whether a course is accredited/recognised by a specific other organisation then you need to ask that organisation. As a matter of policy APT does not seek accreditation from, and can’t speak for, any other body.

• Do I gain any type of accreditation?

  Yes, upon completing APT live training you will receive APT-Accreditation Level 1, which can be uprated (free of charge) to Level 2 by completing an online exam in your own time. By successfully completing APT's online training (and exam) you will receive APT-Accreditation Level 2. For further information about accreditation click here.

• Once I have completed an APT course, can I use the APT Accredited logo on my promotional material?

  No, the logos are reserved for our excellence awards. You can however say what is the case, for example: 'I have APT Level 2 accreditation in DBT' if that is the case.

• Do I get a certificate after completing an APT course?

  Yes. If you have completed live training a certificate will be emailed to you, usually within 2 weeks of completing a course. If you have completed an 'online anytime' course, you will be able to download a printable certificate.

• Why can't I print my online training certificate?

  For the system to generate a certificate you need to view every page of the course and complete the associated online exam (all completed sections will have a tick next to their name).

• Can I receive a hard copy version of my certificate?

  Yes, the cost for a hard copy certificate is £11 to cover administration and postage. To request a certificate, email registrar@apt.ac with your name and course details.

• Are APT Accreditation Levels (1–5) the same as those under the UK qualification framework?

  No. APT’s Accreditation Levels are unique to APT and are not the same as those on the UK qualification framework (such as Levels 4–7).

  APT Accreditation is designed specifically for mental health professionals undertaking post-qualification training. It reflects the depth and breadth of APT training you have completed with us, and the extent to which you have applied it in practice. For example:

  • APT Level 1 demonstrates that you have attended training in a given area.

  • APT Level 2 recognises that you have passed the relevant examination to demonstrate your learning.

  • APT Level 3 recognises increased levels of applied study and practice in that area.

  • APT Level 4 recognises advanced study and application in the field.

  So, whereas the UK qualification framework applies across all educational settings, APT Accreditation provides a focused record of your achievement and development within psychological therapies, valued by employers and professional bodies across the UK and internationally.




General

• What are the start and finish times of an APT course?

  Online live training runs from 10am-3pm daily (10am-4pm), and face-to-face courses run from 9.30am-4.30pm. (You are advised to arrive before the start time so that everybody is ready to start.)

• Am I eligible to undertake these courses?

  If you are professionally involved in mental health or substance misuse or similar wellbeing provision then Yes, there is no reason why you shouldn't undertake any of our courses, and they are designed to be as accessible and 'transparent' as possible. Bear in mind though that they are mostly post-qualification courses, so for those courses you will only be able to use the content with clients/patients if you have a role that entitles you to do so. Most people who attend are in psychiatric nursing, social work, occupational therapy, clinical counselling or educational psychology, psychiatry, and others.

• Are APT courses recognised by other professional bodies (BACP etc.)?

  We can’t speak on the behalf of other bodies, so you need to check with them to see if they recognise the training for the purpose you require. However, it is fair to say that APT training is highly thought of and we are one of the UK’s largest providers of post-qualification training in mental health and related areas (well over 150,000 professionals have attended APT courses).

• Can you deliver training outside of the UK?

  Yes. We are happy to provide our courses anywhere in the world for the standard UK fee plus the cost of one economy class return airfare from the UK to the location of the course. Alternatively, we can deliver the training 'online live'.

• Can just one of me attend?

  Yes, some of our most popular courses are available live for individuals to attended, or online anytime.

• Who teaches the courses?

  Tutors are nearly all clinical psychologists, mostly of consultant grade. Tutors are selected according to stringent reference-checking. In other words we have a list of criteria which we ask referees to rate the applicant on.
  
  If accepted, the tutor has to maintain an average of 6 on each of two 7-point scales; one on presentation-quality, the other on the relevance of the material to the delegates. (Equally, every course has to maintain those averages, regardless of tutor.) So, whilst occasional courses may slip below this average, most do not.
  
  We don't normally guarantee in advance who will tutor a specific course for two reasons: logistically it would be difficult and in any event it is the courses rather than the tutor that we 'market'. The tutors' job is to present pre-written and validated courses at their best.
  
  For more tutor information click here.
  
  

• Where did you get my email address from?

  We don't do spam, so you will have given it to us at some stage. This will normally have been one of the following: When attending a course, on the registration form. As a course sponsor, as a contact method. On the telephone, during our 'database cleaning'. Should you wish to be removed from any mailings or would just like more information then please contact us.

• How can I access your courses where I am?

  We can provide a course anywhere in the UK, for groups of 6 to 15, for the fixed fees quoted on this site. Courses are run 'onsite' and the tutor will come to you or 'online live'. Also see "Can just one of me attend?" We are also happy to provide our courses anywhere in the world for the standard UK fee plus the cost of one 'premium-economy' class return airfare from the UK to the location of the course.

• Do you do supervision?

  Those who have attended the course can come on supervision days subsequently. The way it works is that the supervisor comes to you and runs 3 supervision groups of 90 minutes each, during the day. Each group has about 5 people on it, each person only attends one of the 90 minute groups. Supervision days aren't nearly as much in demand as training days, which seems to me a pity because they are just about the best way of generalising training to real life, but those who buy them tend to buy them in multiples of 3, with each day separated by about a month. The cost is £1445 plus VAT per day (which is reclaimable so long as you are registered for VAT).

• Evidence for DICES®

  DICES checklists are exactly that. In other words they are there to tell – or remind – clinicians of the factors they should be considering. For example, 'hopelessness' is established as an irrefutable correlate of suicide risk and that is referenced on the course. 'Exploitation' on the other hand is a much more nebulous construct and has led to considerable debate about situations which can either be viewed as 'exploitation' or as a mutual 'win-win' situation! We then leave it at that. In other words we don't suggest that there is a straightforward correlation between the number of boxes ticked and the degree of a specified risk. It seems to us that when you look at past situations that have turned out badly it is not so much the misreading of statistical correlations that's been at fault but a much more basic neglect of factors that should not have been overlooked. DICES is reckoned to be 'self-evident' – the idea that it is wise for clinicians to have (a) a checklist of items they should consider when deciding whether a risk is 'significant' or not and (b) a checklist of items they should cover when composing a risk management plan. The evidence for individual items on the checklists (e.g. Hopelessness as a predictor of suicide) is referenced on the course.

• Evidence for RAID®

  'RAIDing' isn't 'a unitary approach', in other words it is a collection of well established approaches put together into a format which is intended to help delegates remember and apply them and bring a positive frame of reference to very difficult behaviour. In particular it leans on these areas of work: (1) The Behavioural literature, (2) the Constructional Approach, (3) solution-focused thinking and (4) the importance of the relationship between helper and helped. In terms of evidence that this is a useful thing to do, there are a couple of elements you might consider. Last year, for the 20th year running, The RAID® Course was either APT's top-selling or second-top-selling course of over 50 in the catalogue. Analysing who commissions the courses, this is mostly the result of 'repeat customers and recommendations'; in other words those people who have received The RAID® Course clearly judge it to be relevant and effective for what they hope it will achieve.

• Eligibility to become a tutor.

  The standard eligibility criteria for attending the school for tutors are that you should be: (a) A clinical or counselling psychologist of consultant grade, or similar. (b) Have an aptitude for teaching and motivating people to learn. (c) Receive good references from two specified referees (current and past line managers) who are asked to rate 10 scales. (d) Variations on the eligibility criteria. APT operates a measured meritocracy, in that we constantly measure the performance of courses and tutors on two the key scales of presentation-quality and relevance, and if a tutor delivers the required performance then they are by definition up to standard, whatever their level of seniority. In the same way, some tutors' professional backgrounds are nursing, occupational therapy and social work, but what they all have in common is (a) significant clinical experience, (b) the aptitude for teaching and motivating people, (c) good references from specified referees, as above, and (d) a feeling for 'Psychological Therapies, as befits anyone accredited by the Association for Psychological Therapies. So, if your c.v. does not fit the standard criteria you should not take it amiss if you are not accepted, but you can certainly still apply. To check your eligibility, click here.

• How many hours of supervision are required to successfully be awarded the APT diploma?

  To be awarded the APT Diploma you have to fulfil the requirements exactly as detailed on our website and, although regular supervision or peer discussion is certainly good practice, it is not essential to receive supervision to complete the projects described. However, if your aim is to obtain BABCP accreditation (which some people seek) then they do require 'supervised clinical practice' (see the BABCP site for current details).

• Do APT courses entitle me to practise?

  It is your professional qualification that entitles you to see clients/patients and part of your professional responsibility is to keep up to date with relevant interventions such as DBT, CBT, Solution-Focused Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, etc. and that is where the APT courses come in.

• If I attend the CBT Essentials course can I say that I am CBT-qualified / am a CBT therapist and put that on my CV?

  If you are a mental health professional and complete the CBT Essentials course, you can rightly add that fact to you CV. You might say something like: I am a mental health nurse and in 2025 attended APT’s Course CBT Essentials. This involved three teaching days totalling 18 taught hours. If you are NOT currently a mental health professional and are seeking ‘a change of direction’ and want to become a recognised CBT therapist, then you need to become accredited as such with the BABCP. To see details of what that entails, go to their site; to do so now click here.

• If I attend the CBT Essentials course (for example) can I use CBT with the patients I see?

  Yes, we provide ‘post-qualification’ training, i.e. training for people who have a professional qualification. What entitles you to see patients is that professional qualification, and as a mental health professional you are expected to keep up-to-date with developments. This is why people attend APT courses. Having attended a course you are expected to use your professional judgement in applying what you have learned to your own situation. In keeping with that, APT courses aim to give you relevant skills and knowledge you can use in your own workplace.

• If I study the CBT Essentials course online can I say that I am CBT-qualified / am a CBT therapist and put that on my CV?

  If you are a mental health professional and complete the CBT Essentials course online, you can rightly add that fact to you CV. You might say something like: I am a mental health nurse and in 2025 successfully completed APT’s Course CBT Essentials online. This is based on APT’s live course CBT Essentials, which in its live version involves three teaching days totalling 18 taught hours. If you are NOT currently a mental health professional and are seeking ‘a change of direction’ and want to become a recognised CBT therapist, then you need to become accredited as such with the BABCP. To see details of what that entails, go to their site; to do so now click here.




DBT Training

• What is the eligibility criteria for APT’s DBT training?

  Our DBT courses are for people who are 'post qualification', in other words qualified as clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, mental health nurses, occupational therapists, or social workers. The majority of people who come on the courses are from the first three groups but the important requirement is that attendees have a professional background that has taught them the standard clinical skills and standard professional skills such as confidentiality etc.

• What’s the best phased approach to APT’s DBT training?

  Our suggestion for a phased approach to the training would be as follows: Step one, attend the DBT Essentials course. This will give you APT’s Level 1 accreditation in DBT. Step two, within a month or so, attend the Teaching the Life Skills at the heart of DBT™ course (which teaches you to convey crucial life skills to patients, usually in groups). This will give you APT’s Level 2 accreditation in DBT. Step three, sit the (free of charge) exam online. This will give you APT’s Level 3 accreditation in DBT. Deliver DBT to your patients, setting up as good a service as you can, for about six months. Then attend the Masterclass (four days). This will give you a chance to address any problems, build on good things that happened, check that you are running good consultation groups and giving telephone support, obtain an expert view on your service, and so on. This will give you APT’s Level 4 accreditation in DBT. Most attendees should be able to reach this level. Any time after that, if you are very committed, to write a (specified) project aimed at obtaining APT's level 5 accreditation in DBT. This is a demanding project and only about half those who submit obtain a pass mark at the first attempt.

• Do these courses provide supervision? If not where do we get it from?

  No, it is the service’s responsibility to provide supervision. Where do people get it from? 1. Sometimes from local DBT-knowledgeable professionals (often clinical psychologists) either 1:1 or in groups. 2. other times as ‘peer-supervision’ (often people on the course who arrange properly to meet up – often in groups – to provide this for each other). 3. Also the DBT ‘consult’ is an inbuilt form of (peer) supervision. 4. Also our Masterclass has supervision elements in it, but as it is a once-off can’t rightly be regarded as supervision, except as one component of a package.

• Are the British Isles the only organisation that can accredit DBT Training?

  No, anybody can do so, but the question arises as to the worth of the accreditation. Accreditation from the Association for Psychological Therapies (APT) is backed by fact of over 150,000 professionals having attended APT courses, the transparency as to what the different levels of accreditation mean, and the written evaluations testifying to the quality of the training provided.
  
  

• If I attend the extended training in DBT can I say that I am a DBT Therapist and put that on my CV?

  Full transparency is always the best policy. So if you successfully complete the extended training, you can rightly add that fact to you CV. You might say something like: I am a clinical psychologist and in 2025 I successfully completed APT’s extended training in DBT. This involved attending 10 days of teaching spread over six months, passing a written exam, and submitting a 4,000-word work-based project at the set level.

• If I attend the DBT Essentials course can I say that I am DBT-qualified and put that on my CV?

  Full transparency is always the best policy. So if you complete the DBT Essentials course, you can rightly add that fact to you CV. You might say something like: I am a mental health nurse and in 2025 attended APT’s Course DBT Essentials. This involved three teaching days totalling 18 taught hours.

• If I study the DBT Essentials course online can I say that I am DBT-qualified / am a DBT therapist and put that on my CV?

  Full transparency is always the best policy. So if you successfully complete the DBT Essentials course online, you can rightly add that fact to you CV. You might say something like: I am a mental health nurse and in 2025 successfully completed APT’s Course DBT Essentials online. This is based on APT’s live course DBT Essentials, which in its live version involves three teaching days totalling 18 taught hours.

Exclusive Courses.

The majority of our courses are provided this way - we deliver the training exclusively for your team (live online or face-to-face) or an all-inclusive fee.

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Open Courses.

The majority of our training is provided 'exclusively' for whole teams but for a lot of our courses, you can also attend 'online live' (via Zoom) as an individual or small group.

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Online Anytime Courses.

Obtain APT-quality input at a time that is convenient to you and minimises the need for 'cover' normally associated with training.

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