The APT Accreditation system for Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT).
The Association for Psychological Therapies offers the following levels of accreditation for DBT practitioners, intended to provide a clear and transparent record of the level competence you are maintaining and to be of high relevance to employers.
The accreditation is given weight by over 150,000 professionals having attended APT courses and thereby gained APT accreditation in their course-subject at levels ranging from 1 to 5, from introductory to advanced.
You might consider levels 1 to 3 as being where you are acquainting yourself with DBT. At levels four and five you might reasonably describe yourself as ‘a DBT therapist‘. Always assuming that you have a relevant underpinning professional qualifications such as psychology, psychiatry, mental health nursing, occupational therapy, or social work.
The Levels below refer to the accreditation you acquire by attending APT training, or by submitting a record of equivalent training you have received from elsewhere for verification by the APT (note, the training must have been completed within the last 3 years).
APT Accreditation, Level 1 is the level of accreditation you obtain by attending either DBT Essentials, DBT for Adolescents (DBT-A), or Running DBT Skills-Development Groups (all are 3-day courses).
Your accreditation currently lasts for 3 years, and is renewable by attending a refresher course, sitting an online refresher (DBT Essentials and DBT-A only) or by submitting evidence of practice and reflections thereon. (There is a form available for this, click here.)
APT Accreditation, Level 2 means you have undertaken DBT Essentials or DBT for Adolescents, and Running DBT Skills-Development Groups (all are 3-day courses).
Your accreditation lasts for 3 years from the date you completed the more recent course, and is renewable by submitting evidence of practice and reflections thereon, with the prevailing fee. (There is a form available for this, click here.)
APT Accreditation, Level 3 means that you have Level 2 accreditation and also passed the online exam in DBT.
Level 3 accreditation lasts for 3 years, and is renewable by submitting evidence of practice and reflections thereon, with the prevailing fee. (There is a form available for this, click here.)
APT Accreditation, Level 4 means you have Level 3 accreditation and have attended a minimum of at least 3 additional days qualifying training, which will probably be APT's DBT Masterclass or equivalent.
Level 4 accreditation lasts for 3 years, and is renewable by submitting evidence of DBT practice and your reflections on your practice, with the prevailing fee. (There is a form available for this, click here.)
APT Accreditation, Level 5 requires you to have Level 4 accreditation in DBT and additionally submit a set project to an acceptable standard. The purpose of the project is to illustrate that you can effectively apply the knowledge and skills gained from your training to a clinical situation. The pass level for this is demanding, in that the project needs to be at a standard that could be published on this site as an example of APT's Level 5 accreditation in DBT.
Level 5 accreditation is renewable by submitting evidence of practice and your reflections on it, with the prevailing fee. (There is a form available for this, click here.)
Quick Links
The APT Accreditation System ❯
Motivational Interviewing Accreditation ❯
Solution-Focused Therapy Accreditation ❯
Trauma-Focused CBT Accreditation ❯
Onsite Courses.
The majority of our mental health training courses are provided this way - we come to you and train a group of up to 15 people for an all-inclusive fee.
Online Courses.
Obtain APT-quality input at a time that is convenient to you and minimizes the need for 'cover' normally associated with training.
