A European Framework for Psychologists' Training

FORMAL QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS - GREECE

The title. Graduates with a Bachelors degree (Ptychion) qualify for certification and licensing as a "psychologist" with the Ministry of Health. The Bachelors degree is based on four years of study which includes one year of supervised practical training and a thesis.

The law. A law which licenses psychologists to practice was passed in 1979, regulated by the Ministry of Health and Welfare. However, it was not put into effect until 1991. The law recognises the title of "psychologist" and licenses psychologists to practice, without clauses for specialisations. A new proposal for change in law is currently underway in the Ministry of Health. This proposal is based on the Metaptychiako (Masters) degree, with two to three years of postgraduate training, including supervised practical training and a thesis, in specialisations in applied psychology: clinical psychology, school psychology and organisational psychology.

Further specialist education and training. Employment as a "psychologist" after certification for those with only the Ptychion is restricted to very few areas. This is because employment as an applied psychologist essentially requires postgraduate training in areas such as clinical psychology, school psychology, organisational psychology, etc. Some graduates are successful in being employed as psychologists in research programs, as counsellors in a variety of programs of municipalities, as interviewers in market research, etc. A large percent of graduates enrol in postgraduate programs at the Greek universities and in universities abroad. The second stage of specialisation is in postgraduate programs in clinical psychology, school psychology, organisational psychology, economic psychology, developmental psychology, cognitive science. Entry into these postgraduate graduate programs is open to all holders of the Ptychion degree, and is based on undergraduate grades, a written examination in psychology, interviews, knowledge of a foreign language, research and applied psychology experience. The number of accepted candidates is limited to between 5 to 25 graduate students per program, depending on the university. These graduate programs are two to three years in duration, including supervised practical training and a thesis.

Research. Research is an integral part of the programs, a senior thesis for the Ptychion (Bachelors), a thesis for Metaptychiako Diploma (Masters), and the Ph.D. dissertation. Entry into a postgraduate specialised program affords the opportunity for continuing for the Ph.D. after writing a dissertation. Three years are required for the Ph.D. Also, Ptychion graduates can enter directly into a Ph.D. by research program in theoretical areas of psychology - not in applied areas - such as cognition, personality, neuropsychology, etc.

Framework | Project | Partners | National Information | Presentations | Articles