PSTY5203 provides a structured learning in short term psychodynamic interpersonal psychotherapy alongside a clinical experience supported by small group supervision. It will be followed by unit PSTY5204 in semester 2 which is similar in nature and will give you an opportunity to work with further structured learning and clinical experience, in short term psychodynamic psychotherapy. The initial focus is on assessment of presenting problems in the light of current and past relationship history, dynamic formulation, followed by the principles of intervention in initial, middle and end phases. Students will bring a suitable case from their work setting or an affiliated psychotherapy setting, whom they will audio-record and bring sessions for supervision - they will do an assessment and formulation, arrive at a mutually agreed goal/s to work on, and a contract of sessions. They will begin therapy with a second patient, during the second semester, on similar lines. They are required to see each patient for between 10 and15 sessions. Supervision will focus on the micro-skills of engagement, empathic attunement and use of language, when meeting the patient, forming a safe therapeutic relationship, conducting the assessment, arriving at a goal to achieve, developing the frame and contract, and if necessary, a safety plan when required. They will learn to be active and focused, keeping the goal of therapy in the forefront and not straying away from it. Students will gain skills in the following: working in an active, focused manner in developing the therapeutic relationship, doing a psychodynamic formulation, identifying and processing coping mechanisms, facilitating the expression of suppressed affect and emotion, identifying and working with the transference and being aware of their own countertransference; constructing the goodbye letter, and ending with the patient, taking care to appropriately refer those patients who need further therapy. Students will experience a grounding in reflective practice, ethical conduct and the importance of self-care, and develop the skill to determine the types of patients who will benefit from a short term dynamic interpersonal psychotherapy, and work with these patients.