New master's degree program at the MHH: Focus on psychotherapy!

New master's degree program at the MHH: Focus on psychotherapy!

The Hannover Medical School (MHH) is expanding its educational offerings with a new master's degree program in clinical psychology and psychotherapy, which starts in the winter semester 2025/2026. Loud MHH The course will offer 20 students the opportunity to specialize in the diagnosis, treatment and research of mental disorders. This new Master is the sixth of its kind at the MHH and complements the existing offerings, which include Biochemistry, Biomedicine, Biomedical Data Science, Public Health and “Infection Diseases and One Health”.

The program aims to provide students with the skills necessary to obtain state licensing as a psychotherapist. This is particularly relevant in the context of the reform of the Psychotherapists Act, which resulted in the introduction of direct study for psychotherapists. The students receive practical training and gain insights into various clinical areas, both in outpatient and inpatient settings. Leading professors from the MHH, including Professor Martina de Zwaan and Professor Stefan Bleich, lead the course and bring decades of experience in training psychotherapists.

Academic goals and content

The new master's degree program is aimed at graduates of a polyvalent psychology bachelor's degree and imparts basic technical, methodological, social and implementation-oriented skills. The focus is on the responsible and independent psychotherapeutic care of mentally ill people. All teaching modules meet the requirements of the psychotherapist licensing regulations (PsychThApprO) and ensure comprehensive scientific and practical training.

Professor Gregor Szycik and Professor Tanja Zimmermann share teaching responsibility for the course. The program is designed to offer all important components from a single source, which enables application-based training. Information about the course of study and admission requirements can be found on the MHH website or can be obtained from the course coordinators Carolin Maschke and Angelina Vasileva-Dettmer.

Challenges for international students

A challenge for aspiring psychotherapists with a bachelor's degree obtained abroad is switching to master's programs in Germany. DGPs points out that the recognition of achievements from abroad is often regulated by the health authorities, usually the state examination offices. There is also uncertainty about the possibility of simplified regulations for entire study programs or individual applications. 

In exceptional cases, the equivalence of a B.Sc. degree obtained abroad can be determined, but extensive adjustments to the study programs in Germany are often necessary. These challenges particularly affect students from countries such as Austria who want to apply for M.Sc. courses in Germany. For detailed information on recognition issues, the affected students should contact the respective Austrian universities directly.