Psychotherapist to clinical psychologist
A psychotherapist already meets 60% of what the clinical psychologist role asks for. The move turns on 40 required skills not yet in the profile.
62.7/ 100
1 How much of what a clinical psychologist is expected to do is already part of a psychotherapist’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the clinical psychologist role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A clinical psychologist role treats 59 of its required skills as things a psychotherapist already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- accept own accountability
- adhere to organisational guidelines
- advise on healthcare users' informed consent
- apply context specific clinical competences
- apply organisational techniques
- carry out psychiatric assessment of child
What stands in the way is 40 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 72 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A clinical psychologist role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a psychotherapist background worth leading with.
- already held history of patient's psychotherapeutic problems social sciences, journalism and information
- already held manage psychotherapeutic relationships communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held provide a psychotherapeutic environment assisting and caring
- already held record the outcome of psychotherapy information skills
- already held use psychotherapeutic interventions assisting and caring
- already held work on psychosomatic issues assisting and caring
All 72 carried skills, including the 59 the clinical psychologist role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 48 missing skills fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn expert services in clinical psychology required
- still to learn clinical psychological treatment required
- still to learn conditions for professional practice of clinical psychology required
- still to learn creation of clinical psychological opinions required
- still to learn emergency psychology required
- still to learn evaluation of psychological performance required
- still to learn health psychology required
- still to learn psychological healthcare services required
- still to learn psychological interventions required
- still to learn psychological treatment measures required
- optional, not held experimental psychology optional
- still to learn methods of differential diagnosis required
- still to learn clinical reports required
- still to learn diagnosis of mental health issues required
- still to learn multi-professional cooperation in health care required
- still to learn counselling methods required
- still to learn crisis intervention required
- still to learn first aid required
- still to learn neurology required
- still to learn primary care required
- optional, not held forensic psychiatry optional
- optional, not held neuroscience optional
- still to learn provide strategies of differential diagnosis required
- still to learn assess healthcare users' risk for harm required
- still to learn conduct psychological assessement required
- still to learn evaluate clinical psychological measures required
- still to learn record healthcare users' progress related to treatment required
- still to learn conduct psychological research required
- still to learn test for behavioural patterns required
- still to learn test for emotional patterns required
- still to learn provide psychological interventions to chronically ill persons required
- still to learn apply clinical psychological treatment required
- still to learn apply psychological intervention strategies required
- still to learn provide clinical psychological support in crisis situations required
- still to learn refer healthcare users required
- still to learn interpret psychological tests required
- still to learn provide clinical psychological counselling required
- optional, not held prescribe medication optional
- still to learn provide clinical psychological assessment required
- still to learn provide clinical psychological expert opinions required
- still to learn provide testimony in court hearings required
- optional, not held conduct forensic evaluations optional
- optional, not held provide clinical advice to team members optional
- still to learn drug interaction management required
- still to learn consultation required
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a clinical psychologist role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 expert services in clinical psychology study this
- 02 methods of differential diagnosis study this
- 03 provide psychological interventions to chronically ill persons practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 72 skills that carry over
- already held accept own accountability skill
- already held adhere to organisational guidelines skill
- already held advise on healthcare users' informed consent skill
- already held apply context specific clinical competences skill
- already held apply organisational techniques skill
- already held carry out psychiatric assessment of child skill
- already held comply with legislation related to health care skill
- already held comply with quality standards related to healthcare practice skill
- already held contribute to continuity of health care skill
- already held counsel clients skill
- already held deal with emergency care situations skill
- already held decide upon a psychotherapeutic approach skill
- already held develop a collaborative therapeutic relationship skill
- already held diagnose mental disorders skill
- already held diagnose psychiatric symptoms skill
- already held educate on the prevention of illness skill
- already held empathise with the healthcare user skill
- already held employ cognitive behaviour treatment techniques skill
- already held ensure safety of healthcare users skill
- already held follow clinical guidelines skill
- already held formulate a case conceptualisation model for therapy skill
- already held handle patient trauma skill
- already held health care occupation-specific ethics knowledge
- already held help healthcare users develop social perceptiveness skill
- already held history of patient's psychotherapeutic problems knowledge
- already held identify mental health issues skill
- already held inform policy makers on health-related challenges skill
- already held interact with healthcare users skill
- already held listen actively skill
- already held manage healthcare users' data skill
- already held manage psychotherapeutic relationships skill
- already held monitor therapeutic progress skill
- already held organise relapse prevention skill
- already held perform therapy sessions skill
- already held prescribe psychotherapeutic treatment skill
- already held promote inclusion skill
- already held promote mental health skill
- already held promote psycho-social education skill
- already held provide a psychotherapeutic environment skill
- already held provide health education skill
- already held psychiatry knowledge
- already held psychological diagnostics knowledge
- already held psychology knowledge
- already held psychopathology knowledge
- already held psychopharmacology knowledge
- already held record the outcome of psychotherapy skill
- already held respond to changing situations in health care skill
- already held respond to healthcare users' extreme emotions skill
- already held support patients to understand their conditions skill
- already held therapy in health care knowledge
- already held use clinical assessment techniques skill
- already held use e-health and mobile health technologies skill
- already held use psychoeducation skill
- already held use psychotherapeutic interventions skill
- already held use techniques to increase patients' motivation skill
- already held work in a multicultural environment in health care skill
- already held work in multidisciplinary health teams skill
- already held work on psychosomatic issues skill
- already held work with patterns of psychological behaviour skill
- already held apply caseload management skill
- already held apply hypno-psychotherapy skill
- already held apply psychoanalysis skill
- already held apply systemic therapy skill
- already held clinical social work knowledge
- already held provide treatment strategies for challenges to human health skill
- already held psychosomatics knowledge
- already held sexual disorders knowledge
- already held use foreign languages for health-related research skill
- already held use foreign languages in patient care skill
- already held work on the effects of abuse skill
- already held work with healthcare users under medication skill
- already held work with healthcare users' social network skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn scientific literature required
- optional, not held research design optional
- optional, not held occupational health optional
8 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held conduct forensic evaluations optional
- optional, not held experimental psychology optional
- optional, not held forensic psychiatry optional
- optional, not held neuroscience optional
- optional, not held occupational health optional
- optional, not held prescribe medication optional
- optional, not held provide clinical advice to team members optional
- optional, not held research design optional
31 held skills the clinical psychologist role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role address side effects of menopause skill
- not needed by the target role apply systemic design thinking skill
- not needed by the target role body language knowledge
- not needed by the target role collaborate to discuss treatment plans in psychotherapy skill
- not needed by the target role communicate in healthcare skill
- not needed by the target role conceptualise healthcare user’s needs skill
- not needed by the target role conclude the psychotherapeutic relationship skill
- not needed by the target role conditions for the professional practice of psychotherapy knowledge
- not needed by the target role conduct psychotherapy risk assessments skill
- not needed by the target role discuss the end point of therapeutic intervention skill
- not needed by the target role disorders affecting self-awareness knowledge
- not needed by the target role encourage healthcare user's self-monitoring skill
- not needed by the target role evaluate practice in psychotherapy skill
- not needed by the target role geriatrics knowledge
- not needed by the target role historic development of psychotherapeutic schools knowledge
- not needed by the target role keep up with current trends in psychotherapy skill
- not needed by the target role maintain personal development in psychotherapy skill
- not needed by the target role manage personal professional development skill
- not needed by the target role paediatrics knowledge
- not needed by the target role pedagogy knowledge
- not needed by the target role personality development theories knowledge
- not needed by the target role psychiatric disorders knowledge
- not needed by the target role psycho-social forms of intervention knowledge
- not needed by the target role psychoanalysis knowledge
- not needed by the target role psychological theories knowledge
- not needed by the target role psychomotor therapy knowledge
- not needed by the target role record healthcare users' billing information skill
- not needed by the target role rehabilitation knowledge
- not needed by the target role scientific research methodology knowledge
- not needed by the target role supervision of persons knowledge
- not needed by the target role theories of personality knowledge
27 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn expert services in clinical psychology required
- still to learn methods of differential diagnosis required
- still to learn clinical psychological treatment required
- still to learn clinical reports required
- still to learn conditions for professional practice of clinical psychology required
- still to learn creation of clinical psychological opinions required
- still to learn diagnosis of mental health issues required
- still to learn drug interaction management required
- still to learn emergency psychology required
- still to learn evaluation of psychological performance required
- still to learn health psychology required
- still to learn multi-professional cooperation in health care required
- still to learn psychological healthcare services required
- still to learn psychological interventions required
- still to learn consultation required
- still to learn counselling methods required
- still to learn crisis intervention required
- still to learn first aid required
- still to learn neurology required
- still to learn primary care required
- still to learn psychological treatment measures required
- still to learn scientific literature required
- optional, not held experimental psychology optional
- optional, not held forensic psychiatry optional
- optional, not held neuroscience optional
- optional, not held occupational health optional
- optional, not held research design optional
Common questions about this move
Can a psychotherapist become a clinical psychologist?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A psychotherapist already covers 60% of what a clinical psychologist is expected to do: 72 skills carry over, 59 of which the clinical psychologist role treats as required.
What skills does a psychotherapist need to become a clinical psychologist?
40 required skills are missing, plus 8 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by social sciences, journalism and information. The single most important is expert services in clinical psychology.
How hard is the move from psychotherapist to clinical psychologist?
Its learning distance is 62.7 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.