Note: The dates are set, but times of day are approximate and may be subject to change.
 

Boston Cohort Schedule for the In-Person Weekends and Training:
The in-person weekend sessions will meet during these times:

• Thursdays from 2 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. ET  
• Fridays and Saturdays from @ 10 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. ET
• Sundays from 9 p.m. to 1 p.m. ET
   

Schedule for the Online Weekends:

• Saturdays from 11:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. ET
   

Note: The dates are set, but times of day are approximate and may be subject to change.
 

San Francisco Cohort Schedule for the In-Person Weekends:
The in-person weekend sessions will meet during these times:

• Thursdays from 2 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. PT
• Fridays and Saturdays from @ 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. PT
• Sundays from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. PT
   

Schedule for the Online Weekends:

• Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. PT
   

Note: The dates are set, but times of day are approximate and may be subject to change.
 

Schedule for the October Weekend:
The Online weekend sessions will meet during these times:

• Thursdays from 5 p.m. – 9:30 p.m. ET
• Fridays and Saturdays from @ 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET
• Sundays from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. ET
   

Schedule for the November, December, February, March, and April:

• Saturdays from 11:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. ET
   

Schedule for the January Thursday and Friday:

• Thursday from 2 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. ET.  
• Friday from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. ET
   

Schedule for the May Weekend:
The Online weekend sessions will meet during these times:

• Thursdays from 2 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. ET
• Fridays and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. ET  
• Sundays from 9 p.m. to 1 p.m. ET 
   

These professionals who hold the following specific advanced degrees and licensure, commissions, or ordinations may apply to the hybrid certificate programs:

• Acupuncturists (LAc with DACM / DSOM / DAOM)
• Advanced Alcohol and Drug Counselors (LAADC with MA)
• Attorneys in counseling specialties (JD)
• Behavioral Analysts (BCBA/BCBA-D with MA/MS or PhD)
• Certified Nurse-Midwives (CNM with MS)
• Chiropractors (DC)
• Clinical and Counseling Psychologists (PhD/PsyD)
• Clinical Social Workers (LCSW)
• Counseling Nutritionists (RD, RDN, CNS, or CCN with MA/MS)
• Marriage and Family Therapists (LMFT)
• Naturopathic Doctors (ND)
• Nurse Practitioners (NP with MS)
• Occupational Therapists (OT with MA/MS)
• Ordained Clergy and Commissioned Chaplains (with M.Div. and 4 units of CPE)
• Pharmacists (MS or PharmD)
• Physical Therapists (PT with MA)
• Physician Assistants (PA)
• Physicians and Psychiatrists (MD/DO)
• Professional Clinical Counselors (LPCC/LPC)
• Registered Nurses (BSN or higher)
• Speech Therapists (MS)
• Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners (TCM with MA/MS)
   

State Restrictions on Hybrid Programs for Residents:  
Some states restrict residents from taking hybrid training programs out of state. In these cases, such states require institutions to be authorized or exempt in order to enroll trainees residing in the state.

If you reside in one of these states, unfortunately you are not eligible to apply for the CIIS Hybrid certificate programs. You can learn more about this list and state authorization here.

• Alabama
• Arkansas
• Delaware
• District of Columbia (DC)
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Minnesota
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Rhode Island
• Wisconsin 
   

Our entirely online cohort, which will be open only to licensed psychotherapists, psychiatrists, and psychiatric nurses, will allow greater accessibility to the certificate program for these clinicians both nationally and internationally.

Only professionals who hold the following specific advanced degrees and licensure may apply to the Online certificate program:

• Advanced Alcohol and Drug Counselors (LAADC with MA)
• Behavioral Analyst (BCBA/BCBA-D with MA/MS or PhD)
• Clinical and Counseling Psychologists (PhD/PsyD)
• Clinical Social Workers (LCSW)
• Marriage and Family Therapists (LMFT)
• Psychiatric Nurse Practitioners (NP with MS)
• Psychiatrists (MD/DO)
• Professional Clinical Counselors (LPCC/LPC)
• Psychiatric Registered Nurses (BSN or higher)
   

State Restrictions on Online Programs for Residents:
Some states restrict residents from taking Online training programs out of state. In these cases, such states require institutions to be authorized or exempt in order to enroll trainees residing in the state. You can learn more about state authorization here.

All applicants may consider applying to be part of the Center’s Oregon training program. Our certificate curriculum is approved as a psilocybin training program by the Oregon Health Authority (Training Program ID #TP-ce7dd84c) and authorized by the Oregon Higher Education Coordinating Commission (HECC).  

Regardless of which cohort applicants apply for, any applicant may participate in our Oregon training program in Portland, Oregon that will take place April 4th to 6th, 2025. See the tuition section for the additional cost of this training. Any trainees who finish the certificate curriculum, complete the specific additional Oregon training in Portland, and also pass an exam may then apply to OHA for a facilitator license to do psilocybin work at an Oregon service center. Please read further details about this here. As of January 1st, 2025, the Oregon statute 333-333-4050 will be expanded to allow people who are not residents of Oregon to be licensed as psilocybin facilitators.  

On the application, you will be asked to decline this opportunity to be trained in Portland, Oregon or give us your level of interest to be included in that training. Depending on the numbers of enrollees interested in this opportunity as well as any rule changes from OHA before April 2025, we will make as many spaces available in the April Portland training as possible. We are very happy to be the largest and oldest training program to be approved by OHA.

These professionals below have specific eligibility requirements:

Criteria for Clergy and Chaplains: Ordained clergy and commissioned/ordained chaplains are eligible if they actively serve in pastoral counseling and spiritual direction within the well-known world religious traditions. The three requirements for this group are that they must: have earned an accredited M.Div. with study in psychology and therapeutic skills; be ordained or commissioned within a supervised traditional and established curriculum with multiple teachers; and preferably have completed 4 units of CPE prior to application. There is aid available for clergy and chaplains who demonstrate financial need.

Criteria for Counseling Attorneys: Only JD licensed attorneys with demonstrated supervised training and counseling work with families, couples, and individuals in several specific areas are eligible to apply. These areas are limited to: divorce mediation, child custody mediation and resolution, end-of-life counseling, estate plan counseling, family and elder law counseling, and community dispute resolution.  

In 2-4 double-spaced pages, please describe your background and interest in this certificate. We recommend limiting your answers to the seven questions below to no more than approximately 1/3 to 1/2 of a page each. Please answer each of the seven questions in order. Please include descriptions of your training in therapy, medicine, counseling law, or spiritual direction where relevant.

• Share how you learned the following topics and where you practiced these therapeutic skills and knowledge with diverse clinical populations: understanding of psychological diagnoses; skills in building the therapeutic alliance; how to conduct individual and group psychotherapy; and clinical and pastoral confidentiality.
• Please describe your training in diversity, equity, and inclusion and how you use that knowledge and skill base to improve your clinical work or spiritual direction practice.
• Tell us how you integrate psychology, mindfulness, or spirituality into your own practices of personal development.
• Any training program that teaches about trauma informed care can bring up a trainee's own history of interpersonal and/or cultural trauma. Please explain your thoughts on how a training program can skillfully respond to such events while balancing the need to cover required content. Additionally, please share what you might do if this happens to you personally during your training.
• Ethical considerations are of utmost importance in interventions when clients are in an altered state of consciousness. Please discuss your commitment to the ethical standards of your profession and how you have maintained professional and pastoral boundaries with those you have served in your practice.
• Please share what you would tell a fellow clinician or clergy member who asks you for advice when their client asks them to use unlawful psychedelics as part of their professional practice.
• In addition, your goals are important to us. Please share with us what you hope to do with this certificate. Make sure to consider the ways you might use this training for your current work in the world and how this training can contribute to your long-term life goals.

Please include a resume or CV that outlines the history of your higher education, licensure, ordainment, or commission status, practica, internships, residencies, work in service to communities, pastoral care, and fieldwork.

Licensed applicants should submit a copy of current license(s). Clergy/chaplains should upload their commission/ordination papers and optionally, any documentation of 1-4 units of CPE.

Please submit contact information for two current or past clinical supervisors, mentors, and/or professors who are willing to serve as a reference. Include their full name, email, phone number, and relationship to the applicant. We prefer contacting references rather than reading letters of recommendation.

Application Fee: $150 non-refundable

Tuition Cost:

• Hybrid Boston and San Francisco Cohorts (incl. Holotropic Breathwork): $8,900
• Online Cohort: $8,300
   

Optional Additional Costs:

• Holotropic Breathwork for the Online Cohort in SF (1/31/25 to 2/2/25): $500
• Oregon OHA Coursework in Portland (4/4/25 to 4/6/25): $650
   

When an applicant is offered admission to the 2024-2025 program, the first tuition payment is due within three weeks of the offer of admission or by August 15, 2024, whichever comes first. See the Information Packet for both tuition payment options: one or three payments. The first payment will secure your space in the program.

The certificate program sponsors Need-Based Scholarships for applicants under five specific criteria.

Applicants for scholarships must write a 1-page letter which demonstrates financial need as well as membership in one or more of these five groups:  

• Those identified as BIPOC
• Those identified as LGBTQIA+
• Those who are military service members/veterans
• Those who are clergy or chaplains
• Those who are serving under-resourced communities

In the 1-page letter, each scholarship applicant will report key facts about their financial situation. Applicants should describe their lived experience and membership in one or more of the above five groups. The Need-Based Scholarship statement letter is due with the application materials. Need-based scholarships will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis for applicants offered enrollment. Applicants requesting a scholarship should apply early. Our goal is that applicants for aid will be notified on a rolling basis through August 15, 2024.

Since 2016, we have dispersed over $1 million to students from training program revenue and donated scholarship funds.  

We would like to thank all our donors who have generously funded scholarships, particularly the Certificate Alumni Association and the Boston Psychedelic Research Group for funding BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ scholarships, since 2016.   

CE credits for psychologists are provided by the Spiritual Competency Academy (SCA) which is co-sponsoring this program. The Spiritual Competency Academy is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Spiritual Competency Academy maintains responsibility for this program and its content. The California Board of Behavioral Sciences accepts CE credits for LCSW, LPCC, LEP, and LMFT license renewal for programs offered by approved sponsors of CE by the American Psychological Association. LCSW, LPCC, LEP, LMFTs, and other mental health professionals from states other than California need to check with their state licensing board as to whether or not they accept programs offered by approved sponsors of CE by the American Psychological Association. SCA is approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN Provider CEP16887) for licensed nurses in California. RNs must retain this document for 4 years after the course concludes. SCA is an approved CE provider for National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coaches (CEP Number 100196).

For other questions about CEs, contact Spiritual Competency Academy at info@spiritualcompetencyacademy.com.

Trainees are awarded a certificate of completion for course work after paying the continuing education fee and completing the CE program evaluation up to 30 hours. Continuing Education Certificates are emailed to trainees.

For questions about enrolling in CE or receiving your Certificate of Attendance, contact Wendy Campbell at wcampbell@ciis.edu.