Creating Clarity: IFS Level 1 Admissions

As many are aware, over the past few years the IFS Institute has seen a significant increase in demand for our IFS Trainings. We've previously shared our efforts to cultivate our trainer community, as well as our progress increasing access to significantly more program participants as part of our efforts to meet this demand.  

As we’ve continued this work, we recognize the necessity of distinguishing between the clinical use of IFS as an evidenced-based psychotherapy and the application of IFS as a model of the mind across other disciplines. We also recognize the need to expand our program offerings to better meet the learning needs of those applying the model across other disciplines vs continuing with our one-size-fits-all approach. 

To facilitate these two shifts, we must separate paths for IFS learning. Beginning in February 2024, admissions for IFS Level 1 Trainings in the US and Canada will shift to limit enrollment to those already qualified and legally credentialed to work in a mental health profession.  We continue ongoing consultation with our International Partners for future alignment of international admissions criteria with their local professional regulations. Once we accommodate the new credentialing requirements to other countries, these same changes will apply to all of our international trainings. We will provide an additional announcement before the effective date of these changes to our international trainings.

We’re making this change to: 

• Align learning objectives with participants’ needs: Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 Trainings have been designed by mental health professionals to enable other mental health professionals to work with their clients using the IFS methodology.     
• Align intent of the IFS Level 1 Training with the skills of participants: The application of IFS taught in Level 1 Training is an evidence based therapeutic treatment. Level 1 participants need to  be skilled in working in a clinical setting with clients who have experienced trauma.   
• Provide Continuing Education programs: IFSI provides educational programs to therapists who have existing credentials in an aligned field of study. We feel our programs require an existing base of knowledge in providing mental health care on which the IFS model can be a supplemental modality.  
• Align with professional safeguards: We want to ensure that those using IFS in practice with their clients are working within the legal and regulatory guidelines of their geography. This ensures that those who are taking our training have been accredited by an organization who provides ethical and scope of practice safeguards for the application of the method. 
• Create an effective learning environment: We believe that our programs are more effective when learners have a similar foundation of knowledge and practice. 

As this change is implemented, we will also be working towards the elimination of the lottery process, which we plan to complete in 2024.  

We also know, and do not hold lightly, that professionals from many different backgrounds see the power of IFS as a model of the mind. Our community has long held professionals in fields such as body workers, legal mediation, school administration, coaches and religious leaders who utilize IFS to inform and guide their work and who have made significant contributions to our community. We are grateful for everyone's efforts in applying IFS to these additional disciplines and your work is an inspiration for our path forward. The mission of IFS Institute remains to bring Self leadership to the world and our goal is to create new educational programs aimed to serve a wider range of professions and the general public. 

We’re thrilled to have our new Curriculum and Learning Programs team on board and they’re working on developing new programming for 2024. Our popular Online Circle and Continuity programs will remain open to professionals wanting to apply an IFS lens to their practice. We recently enrolled a new Intimacy from the Inside Out program, and work is also underway on IFS Foundations for coaches coming soon. 

We understand many in our community may have parts that react to this change that would like to be heard. We are here and listening. Please provide feedback here.