Berlin International Psychoanalytic University (IPU)

The International Psychoanalytic University (IPU) Berlin is a state-recognized, private, non-profit university located in the heart of Berlin. It was founded in 2009 by the Gesellschaft zur Förderung der universitären Psychoanalyse mbH, initiated by Prof. Dr. Christa Rohde-Dachser and Prof. Dr. Jürgen Körner. The university is operated by the International Psychoanalytic University Berlin gGmbH, whose sole shareholder is the Foundation for the Promotion of University Psychoanalysis. The IPU sees itself as a university that systematically integrates psychoanalysis as a science and practice in teaching, research, and clinical application.

With a student body of 787 (as of the Winter Semester of 2024/2025), the IPU offers a research-oriented study environment in a familial setting. It is designed for students interested in exploring psychological, clinical, cultural, and societal issues from a psychoanalytic perspective.

The range of programmes includes both German and English-language programmes at the bachelor's and master's levels, such as the undergraduate BSc Psychology PLUS, the MA Psychology - Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy designed to prepare students for licensure, and specialised master's programmes like MA Psychoanalytic Cultural Studies and Cultural Psychology, MA Psychology (English track), MA Leadership and Counselling, or MA Interdisciplinary Psychotherapy.

The IPU places a strong emphasis on integrating theory and practice. A strong practical orientation is established from the first semester onwards, including collaborations with clinical institutions, practice-oriented project seminars, and involvement in the psychotherapeutic university outpatient clinic. This clinic is an integral part of clinical training and research, offering treatments in three recognized therapeutic approaches - Behavioral Therapy, Psychodynamic Therapy, and Analytical Psychotherapy - while also serving as a research centre for psychotherapeutic processes, efficacy, and innovations.

Research at the IPU is interdisciplinary in nature. The university intentionally enriches the predominantly behaviorally-oriented psychology of other institutions with perspectives from cultural studies, social sciences, and psychoanalysis. Methodologically, the IPU employs hermeneutic, qualitative, quantitative, as well as theory-testing and theory-generating approaches. Research focuses include psychotherapy research, analysis of cultural and societal transformation processes, and concept research on psychoanalytic subject and epistemology. Students are systematically involved in research activities through participation in the research colloquium, the annual research day, or involvement in research projects.

A key element of the IPU is the promotion of young academics. This includes structured doctoral programmes like the IPU Doctoral College and the joint graduate college with the Hans Kilian and Lotte Köhler Centre at Ruhr University Bochum. The university supports doctoral candidates and postdocs in conference attendance, publications, scholarships, teaching assignments, and international research stays. In February 2025, the Berlin Senate granted the IPU the right to award doctoral degrees following a renewed institutional reaccreditation by the German Council of Science and Humanities in January 2025, which highlighted the university's unique research profile.

Internationalisation is a strategic focus of the IPU. Since 2013, the university has been participating in the Erasmus+ programme (ECHE Code: D BERLIN32) and maintains a broad network of partner universities in Europe, Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Students and faculty benefit from exchange programmes, mobility grants, joint teaching formats, and international research collaborations. The International Office supports mobility and organises various programmes for international networking, including German language courses for international students.

In addition, the IPU is committed to sustainability. The GreenOffice coordinates university-wide activities related to environmental responsibility, including carbon footprint assessments, events on climate psychology, an IPU sustainability certificate, and sustainable idea competitions. The goal is to transition towards becoming a carbon-neutral university.

The IPU Berlin sees itself as a university that places the human being with its psychological, social, and cultural dimensions at the centre. With an interdisciplinary, practice-oriented, and international study and research offering, it provides a unique academic environment for those who wish to engage in scientific exploration of human beings and their psyche.

The IPU Berlin was first institutionally accredited by the German Council of Science and Humanities in October 2014. After a successful reaccreditation in April 2020, a further reaccreditation took place in January 2025. Subsequently, the IPU was granted the independent right to award doctoral degrees. All programmes at the IPU are state-recognised, and its degrees hold the same legal status as those from public universities in Germany. The Psychology programmes (B.Sc. and M.Sc.) have been certified by the accreditation agency ACQUIN and meet the requirements for psychotherapeutic licensure examinations and further training in one of the four recognised therapeutic approaches.