Psychoanalysis and the Universities
If there is one principal mistake that psychoanalysis has made in the past 100 years, it is the way in which it has allowed
itself to remain dissociated from the University and from academic life. This statement sounds hyperbolic, but I believe
that our disconnection from the University
has played a significant role in the schismatic tradition of
psychoanalysis in the context of its parochial, doctrinaire,
private institute structure. The troubled relation between
psychoanalysis and the University goes back historically to
Freud's problems with the Austrian medical school's system of
academic advancement and to the anti-Semitism within the
Ministry of Education in the 1890s. An often overlooked
aspect of its early history is that the rise of psychoanalysis was
carried out by a number of men (including Freud, but also
Abraham, Jones, and Ferenczi) with unfulfilled academic
ambitions. The psychoanalytic movement offered these people
a framework outside of academia for doing research,
scholarship, teaching, editing, creating journals, and acquiring
organizational positions.
Freud argued that the psychoanalytic method had
already contributed to "the solution of problems
in art, philosophy, and religion." Psychoanalysis,
he suggested, threw new light on the history of
literature, mythology, civilization, and the
philosophy of religion. "The fertilizing effects of
psycho-analytic thought on these other disciplines
would certainly contribute greatly toward forging a closer link,
in the sense of a universitas literarum, between medical science
and the branches of learning which lie within the sphere of
philosophy and the arts."
The Values and Ideals of
the NYU Postdoctoral Program
The N.Y.U. Postdoctoral Program ("Postdoc") was originally
established to embody and continues to stand for a few key
principles: academic freedom, psychoanalytic pluralism, a
comparative approach to psychoanalytic theory, dialogue
among the various psychoanalytic schools and traditions,
respect for the student as a mature adult and accomplished
scholar (all of our students or candidates have previously
earned doctoral degrees), and interdisciplinary exchange. We
in the "Postdoc community" have always believed that the best
atmosphere in which to pursue these principles was in a
University setting where there was an established tradition of
intellectual inquiry, freedom of thought, conversation with other
disciplines, and a commitment to research and unfettered
exchange of knowledge and critical scholarship. Unlike the
more common, free standing, psychoanalytic institutes, that
have historically created a quasi-religious or cult-like tradition
within psychoanalysis, a University provides opportunity for
cross disciplinary exchange and guarantees freedom of thought
and expression.
Curriculum and Candidate Participation
Candidates at Postdoc are free to
learn from all faculty and all
orientations as our faculty includes
many of the leading and most
creative thinkers in the
psychoanalytic world. Candidates
are encouraged to sample courses and supervisors from each
of the orientations although they are free, if they so chose, to
concentrate in any one of them. While receiving guidance about
how to organize their curriculum, candidates may arrange a
course of study that is thoroughly suited to their individual
needs. Candidates are represented on many of the Program's
Committees as well as on the Program's Senate, so that they
may be exposed to faculty and graduates and may participate
in Program governance from the beginning of their
psychoanalytic education.
Personal Analysis
Candidates are expected to have a
personal analysis as the foundation for
psychoanalytic practice and are free to
work with an analyst of their own
choosing, not necessarily one from
within the Postdoc community. We are committed to a
principle of non-interference in the candidate's personal
analysis and the candidate may chose to enter or continue in
analysis with a graduate of any psychoanalytic training
program, who has obtained at least five years of postgraduate
experience.
Colloquia and Conferences
The Postdoctoral Program has an active and intellectually
stimulating series of colloquia and annual conferences, many of
which are inter-track, providing a lively and challenging
opportunity for learning and exchange and exposing our
candidates to the most current, cutting-edge thinking in the
psychoanalytic world.
The Psychoanalytic Society
The Psychoanalytic Society is an organization made up of our
faculty and graduates. Aside from running its own conferences,
study groups, referral service, and special events, the
Psychoanalytic Society provides a professional home once the
candidate has completed training and become a graduate of the
Program.
NYU Postdoc Programs
Are you a graduate student interested in
psychoanalysis?
Are you a post-doctoral level psychologist
considering further training in psychotherapy and
psychoanalysis?
Explore our curricula, read about our proud history, read
through the list of our world-famous faculty and supervisors,
take in the range of topics in our seminars and colloquia,
become acquainted with the range of our clinic services.
Please come and visit us, live and in-person, for one of our
many colloquia and conferences that are open to the wide
mental-health community.
Please feel free to contact our office by email with any
questions or comments. I would be most happy to talk
personally with anyone interested in our program or
considering applying for advanced training in psychotherapy
and psychoanalysis.
Sincerely,
Lewis Aron, Ph.D., ABPP
Director
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