Cognitive Behavioural Therapy PGDip

Study level: Postgraduate
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Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a current form of evidence-based psychological therapy recommended by NICE as a first line intervention for many psychological disorders.

Year of entry

Location

Coventry University (Coventry)

Study mode

Part-time

Duration

1-2 years part-time

Course code

HLST238

Start date

January 2026

The information on this page is for 2024-25 entry and should be used as guidance for 2025-26 entry. Please keep checking back on this course page to see our latest updates.


Course overview

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a current form of evidence-based psychological therapy recommended by NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) as a first-line intervention for many psychological disorders.

This PGDip in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy aims to provide practical, intensive and detailed skills training to facilitate skills development to a defined standard of competence while increasing your knowledge base of theory and research in CBT.

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Rated Gold Overall

Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) 2023

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5 QS Stars for Teaching and Facilities

QS Stars University Ratings

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Top 5 Student City in England (Coventry)

QS Best Student Cities Index 2025

Why you should study this course

  • The aim of this course is to train you to deliver CBT to people with depression and a range of anxiety disorders.
  • Successful completion of the training should equip you with the skills required to become an independent CBT practitioner.
  • Two modules dedicated to reflective practice and personal/professional development as a CBT therapist are included within our course (Foundations of Reflective Practice and Personal and Professional Development in Clinical Practice).
  • Currently accredited by the British Association of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP), this Level 2 CBT training course aims to provide all the necessary training as per BABCP's Minimum Training Standards1.
  • Each year a number of places are usually funded by Health Education England*, or you can choose to self-fund your training if there are available places.

*HEE commissioned places are available to those candidates who have an NHS Talking Therapies for Anxiety and Depression Service commissioned clinical placement. Placements usually advertise their own trainee therapist vacancies (e.g. on the NHS Jobs website) and we conduct a joint recruitment process with them (academic screening and interview)5.

Accreditation and professional recognition

This course is accredited 1 and recognised by the following bodies:

British Association of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies

British Association of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP)

This course is currently accredited by the British Association of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP). Upon successful completion of the training you should be eligible to apply for provisional accreditation as a Cognitive Behavioural Therapist with the BABCP.



What you'll study

This course aims to train you to deliver CBT to people with depression and a range of anxiety disorders. In addition to providing practical, intensive and detailed skills training to give you the opportunity to enhance skills development to a defined standard of competence, the course also aims to increase your knowledge base of theory and research in CBT and to promote a critical approach to the subject. In order to successfully complete the course and gain the award of PGDip CBT, you will need to complete and pass all six mandatory modules.

Modules

We regularly review our course content, to make it relevant and current for the benefit of our students. For these reasons, course modules may be updated.


How you'll learn

The course is delivered via a combination of university attendance (two days per week during term time, equating to approximately 11 hours of teaching) plus a clinical placement2,5 (up to three days per week). The duration of the course is one year for full-time trainees, and up to two years for those with part-time employment contracts. (Please see the entry requirements section for further information. There is a requirement to remain in placement for the duration of the training programme).

It is taught through a range of teaching styles and opportunities, which is aimed at providing both an opportunity to develop knowledge and understanding of relevant materials and an opportunity to develop clinical competence.

These may include:

  • Supervised clinical placement**
  • Academic lectures
  • Skills workshops
  • Individual and group clinical supervision both within the clinical setting and within the university
  • Guided self-study
  • Individual tutorials
  • Self-practice/self-reflection groups

**To be eligible to enrol on the course, you must have an appropriate clinical placement. It is your responsibility to secure an appropriate placement (NHS Talking Therapies for Anxiety and Depression Service commissioned placement or equivalent).

The contact hours may be made up of a combination of face-to-face teaching, individual and group tutorials, and online classes and tutorials

As an innovative and enterprising institution, the university may seek to utilise emerging technologies within the student experience. For all courses (whether on-campus, blended, or distance learning), the university may deliver certain contact hours and assessments via online technologies and methods.

Since COVID-19, we have delivered our courses in a variety of forms, in line with public authority guidance, decisions, or orders and we will continue to adapt our delivery as appropriate. Whether on campus or online, our key priority is staff and student safety.


Assessment

This course will be assessed using a variety of methods which will vary depending upon the module.

Assessment methods include:

  • A critical literature review
  • A clinical simulation exercise
  • Oral presentation
  • Clinical case study reports
  • Clinical process analysis reports
  • Self-reflective reports
  • Clinical session recordings
  • A professional practice portfolio

The Coventry University Group assessment strategy ensures that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards achieving the intended learning outcomes.


International experience opportunities

The school aims to provide a multicultural, international experience2, attracting students from a wide range of diverse backgrounds and different countries, who may provide global insight and experience. Many of the organisations we have links to operate on an international basis and we also collaborate with internationally renowned researchers across the globe.


Entry requirements

To study this course, you must have a relevant core mental health profession or be able to demonstrate the equivalent knowledge, skills and attitudes via a ‘KSA’ portfolio. To be eligible to enrol, you must also have access to a clinical placement in which it is possible to carry out up to three days a week of face-to-face, supervised CBT practice and audio/video record client sessions for assessment in the academic setting. It is your responsibility to secure an appropriate placement (NHS Talking Therapies for Anxiety and Depression commissioned placement or equivalent), where you will work for up three days per week for the duration of the course. Satisfactory health clearance and enhanced criminal record disclosure is also required5.

To check if you are eligible to apply for training please see:

For more information or further clarification on requirements, please contact the course team on pgdip.cbt@coventry.ac.uk.

In line with the NHS Constitution we use a values-based recruitment approach in seeking candidates with the appropriate values to support effective team-working in delivering excellent patient care.

We recognise a breadth of qualifications, speak to one of our advisers today to find out how we can help you.

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Fees and funding

Student Full-time Part-time
UK Not available HEE funded  

For advice and guidance on tuition fees3 and student loans visit our Postgraduate Finance page.

We offer a range of International scholarships to students all over the world. For more information, visit our International Scholarships page.

Tuition fees cover the cost of your teaching, assessments, facilities and support services. There may be additional costs not covered by this fee such as accommodation and living costs, recommended reading books, stationery, printing and re-assessments should you need them.

The following are additional costs not included in the tuition fees:

  • Any optional overseas field trips or visits: £400+ per trip.
  • Any costs associated with securing, attending or completing a placement (whether in the UK or abroad).

Please note that HEE operates a 2-year psychological professions funding rule which means that once an individual has commenced an NHS-funded psychological professions training programme, a 2-year period will be required to pass from the expected complete date of that training before the funded individual would be eligible for further NHS funding to train in another psychological profession training (where this leads to a change of occupation). For further details please see HEE guidance.

*Irish student fees

The rights of Irish residents to study in the UK are preserved under the Common Travel Area arrangement. If you are an Irish student and meet the residency criteria, you can study in England, pay the same level of tuition fees as English students and utilise the Tuition Fee Loan.

**EU Support Bursary

Following the UK's exit from the European Union, we are offering financial support to all eligible EU students who wish to study an undergraduate or a postgraduate degree with us full-time. This bursary will be used to offset the cost of your tuition fees to bring them in line with that of UK students. Students studying a degree with a foundation year with us are not eligible for the bursary.


Careers and opportunities

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) has a continually evolving and robust evidence base and is indicated in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance across a number of psychological disorders. These include depression and a range of anxiety disorders.

Adequate access to a choice of effective psychological treatments for these problems via local NHS Talking Therapies for Anxiety and Depression Services continues to be a key government priority. As such, CBT can form the basis of much mental health practice across NHS Trusts.

This award should provide graduates with a solid foundation in cognitive-behavioural psychotherapy, and an opportunity to seek a role within the field of cognitive behavioural psychotherapy.

On successful completion of the course, you will be able to:

  • Critically evaluate the CBT evidence base for an identified area of clinical practice, as well as the evidence base for the cognitive behavioural treatment of depression and anxiety disorders
  • Demonstrate knowledge of the phenomenology, diagnostic classifications and epidemiological characteristics of common mental health problems, and be able to distinguish between different presenting disorders
  • Undertake a CBT assessment (including risk assessment) and use this to develop a CBT formulation and treatment plan for both straightforward and more complex depression and anxiety case presentations
  • Demonstrate clinical competence in CBT intervention for both depression and anxiety cases
  • Utilise clinical supervision appropriately to improve knowledge and understanding of the cognitive behavioural models, develop clinical skills, and manage the role of the self in the therapy process
  • Utilise CBT self-practice and self-reflection (SP/SR) to facilitate the identification of personal barriers or challenges that might hinder professional development
  • Understand the role of the therapeutic relationship in CBT when working with anxiety disorders and depression presentations, and the role of both client and therapist in client change
  • Demonstrate an ability to sensitively adapt the delivery of CBT to ensure equitable access for all clients, taking into account various cultural and social differences as well as the impact of their own personal values
  • Critically recognise the therapist’s own reaction to clients who are perceived to be different in terms of their identity, values and beliefs
  • Evidence completion of all requisites for application for provisional professional accreditation with the BABCP.

How to apply