The CICS two-year Diploma in Psychosexual and Relationship Therapy comprises Years 2 and 3 of Qualification Pathway 1 and Years 1 and 2 of Qualification Pathway 2.
The course covers the combined bio-psycho-social dimensions of sexual and relationship health and wellbeing. It has been designed to ensure that, by the end of the programme, our graduates have a solid foundation of comprehensive knowledge and skills for confident therapeutic practice with psychosexual and relationship problems.
Gender, sexual, relationship and cultural diversity are fully integrated into all aspects of the course.
Our course is accredited by the College of Sexual and Relationship Therapists, meaning that it meets the stringent requirements of the UK’s largest accrediting body for sex and relationship therapists, and leads to COSRT Registration.
The therapeutic theoretical orientation of the course is “pluralism”. Pluralism is an emerging way of thinking about therapy, based on the fundamental assumption that no one therapeutic approach has the monopoly on understanding the causes of distress or on the most helpful therapeutic responses. Instead, it suggests that different clients are likely to want, and benefit from, different things in therapy. We teach a range of contemporary approaches to therapy, to best serve each unique client, whilst maintaining the centrality of the client, relational working and research based practice.
We take a blended learning approach to all of our courses, combining comprehensive home study materials with live practice based, experiential training days.
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“As a neurodivergent therapist who has taken part in many different training programmes throughout my career, this was the first time I truly felt that my neurodivergent needs were understood and accommodated. That made an enormous difference to my ability to engage with the material, my sense of inclusion within the learning community, and my overall capacity to participate fully. I’m hugely grateful to CICS for creating an environment that removes the barriers so often present in traditional educational settings.”
thequeertherapist.com
“I struggle to sound sincere when I talk about CICS because my feedback is so hyperbolic it sounds like it can’t be true – but I really do mean it! CICS was the best learning environment I’ve ever been in. I’ve never seen so much thought go into developing learning materials in a way that meets different learning styles. I’ve never experienced a syllabus be so cutting edge in its handling of the big topics of today, nor have I seen them handled with such nuance and subtlety. There’s an astonishing amount of passion and dedication that’s gone into creating CICS and building out the syllabus. Something I loved is the commitment to have each section be taught by a subject expert, which many schools choose to cut corners on. I think a lot of this is down to the continued presence of the school founder, Julie Sale, she’s a visionary on a mission, and as long as she continues to dedicate herself to this project I expect it will keep going from strength to strength.”
jemstopes.co
“I am so happy and proud to have completed my training in psychosexual and relationship therapy with the Contemporary Institute of Clinical Sexology. It was a fantastic course that has such an inclusive and diverse approach that it has enhanced all my practice as a Sexual Health doctor, not just within our Psychosexual Medicine and therapy service. It challenged my own narratives and opened my eyes to the impact of social, political and historical narratives and intersectionality. I also got to work with some wonderful people both teaching and learning alongside me! I can honestly say it has been life-changing.”
To apply directly to the Diploma in Psychosexual and Relationship Therapy, applicants must be fully qualified counsellors or psychotherapists. All other applicants are invited to apply for the Diploma in Pluralistic Psychotherapy.
The March 2026 intake runs monthly on Fridays and Saturdays, 10am to 5pm. 70% of this course will be attended online via Zoom and 30% in person in our training premises in Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire, UK. The dates of the in person modules will be confirmed at offer and will apply to all students in the cohort. Exemptions to in person attendance can be applied for based on disability or non-UK and Ireland residency.
The September 2026 intake runs monthly on Fridays and Saturdays, 10am to 5pm. This is a synchronous hybrid access course, combining in person attendance with online Zoom attendance and is primarily intended for Pathway 1 students.
Assessment is continuous and comprises of both written and observed assessment protocols.
Following successful completion of the CICS diploma, students will be eligible for the COSRT Psychosexual and Relationship Therapy Register and the COSRT Relationship Therapy Register and can work as qualified sex and relationship therapists.
The total course fee is £7,800 including VAT for the full two-year programme and all home study materials. A non-refundable deposit of £600 is payable on acceptance of a place. The balance is then paid in 24 equal monthly payments of £300.
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