The Community and Continuing Education wing of Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar (VCUarts Qatar) is now accepting registration for its Art Therapy Diploma – Level 6: Creative Therapeutic Practice For Children and Young People.
The diploma course will be conducted online. Teaching will take place over a 12-month period from 23 September 2023 until 27 July 2024. The course is the first of its kind in the region and the diploma is certified by the Counseling and Psychotherapy Central Awarding Body (CPCAB) in the UK.
Designed to enhance creative and therapeutic skills
This theoretical and practice-led course is designed and created specifically to enhance and advance creative therapeutic interventions for children and young people in the Gulf region.
The course is suitable for applicants with an undergraduate or post-graduate qualification in the field of art and child-focused areas, such as but not limited to nursing, education, psychology, and youth work. Those with equitable professional experience will be considered on a case-by-case basis. The course is targeted at an existing workforce who wish to further enhance their creative therapeutic skills to support the mental health of children and young people.
Modules will cover the ethical, practical, cross-cultural, and creative theoretical components essential to delivering effective and creative therapeutic intervention to children and young people.
The online lectures will take place over one full day per month, which makes it suitable for those from a wide geographical reach, in employment or with other commitments. It will include lectures and clinical placements in various places in Qatar and across the Gulf region. All placements will be supervised by the lecturers conducting the Level 6 course.
Modules will be delivered by five experts in the field – Mary Rose Brady, Patricia Watts, Ph.D., Sarah Kendrick, Natalia Gomez Carlier and Sara Powell.
Mary Rose Brady has over 30 years of experience working with the impact of trauma on child, adolescent and adult development. She was previously Director of Operations and Lead Advisor for Children and Young People’s Mental Health at the British Association of Art Therapists and Head of Parenting and Creative Therapies, one of the UK’s leading Children’s Charities. She is currently commissioned to write the Handbook for Working with Children and Young People in Art Therapy.
Patricia Watts is an independent art therapist, practice supervisor and consultant who is also a Founding Director of the Centre for Creative Therapeutic Practice. She is a Lecturer at Queen Margaret University and at the University of Glasgow. A CPCAB-approved supervisor, she has worked as a volunteer with children and family services as a Practitioner and Team Leader and was previously elected as a Council Member for the British Association of Art Therapists representing Scottish members.
Sarah Kendrick is a Psychotherapist with over 25 years of post-qualification experience. She has worked with vulnerable children and families therapeutically in school, social care and community settings throughout her career and has held senior positions in some of the UK’s leading charities. She is a guest lecturer at the British Association of Art Therapists and a Multi-disciplinary Clinical Supervisor in private practice.
Natalia Gomez Carlier earned her degree in psychology from Universidad de Los Andes, a master’s in art therapy from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and is currently a PhD student of Transpersonal Psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies. She is a Registered Board-Certified Art Therapist with the American Art Therapy Association. She has practised as a psychotherapist for more than 20 years in Bogota, Chicago, New York, Muscat, and Dubai.
Sara Powell is the founder of ATIC Psychological Counseling Center. She is from the UK, a Third Culture Kid, growing up in the Gulf. She is a registered psychotherapist (MBACP) with BACP UK, an Art Psychotherapist registered with the Health Care Profession Council (HCPC) UK and a member of the British Association of Art Therapists (BAAT). Powell has over 12 years of clinical experience and has overseen numerous projects consulting government agencies in Singapore and the Gulf (in forensic settings, with addiction as well as in medical settings and with vulnerable children and young people).
Powell explained the scope and significance of the course and its application in the regional context.
She said that globally, we are confronted with widespread mental health issues affecting all ages, but in particular children and young people who encounter an array of mounting stressors.
In response to this pressing issue, the Level 6 course aims to equip child-focused professionals in the region with essential skills to address the specific mental health needs of communities and provide support for neuro-divergent individuals.
Powell said it is crucial to cater to the needs of that segment of the community who are non-verbal and therefore, in need of therapeutic knowledge in the application of arts to ensure inclusivity.
With a strong commitment to cultural sensitivity, our teachings and module structure are meticulously designed to remain culturally informed and attuned to the needs of the region.
For information regarding the course and for registration details, visit qatar.vcu.edu. VCUarts Qatar is a partner university of Qatar Foundation.
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