External Events

Professional development events offered by external providers

Disclaimer: The events advertised on this page are neither accredited nor endorsed in any way by the New Zealand Psychological Society. They are advertised on behalf of external providers for information only. All enquiries must be directed through the relevant link provided below.

If you would like to advertise on this page please contact us. You can find the NZPsS-provided PD events here.

Trauma Education presented by Dr Leah Giarratano
Treating PTSD and Complex Trauma (Days 1–4) with Dr Leah Giarratano. Core 30-hour online international training for all mental health professionals working with traumatised populations. The programme attracts between 15 and 42 trauma-focused CPD hours.

Self-paced online over three months commencing on delivery of your printed materials, or starting on 1 February, 1 April, 1 July, or 1 October annually. You can complete the programme entirely self-paced in your own time without time off work. You can split the Days 1–4 programme to complete in different periods during the year (e.g., Days 1–2 commencing in February and Days 3–4 commencing in July). A complimentary extension is available for self-paced learning, if required. When you register for our self-paced online programme, you have access to a scheduled livestream in the same or the following year to help consolidate learning.

Or join one of our highly interactive Days 1–4 livestreams offered in March, June, September, or November. You have three months access to the self-paced online programme immediately following your livestream to consolidate learning.

You can also complete the programme in either or both modes (e.g., Days 1–2 self-paced and Days 3–4 livestream or vice versa). The Days 1–4 fee for New Zealand residents is AU$1,290, or AU$695 for Days 1–2 or Days 3–4 if purchased separately. Please register one month prior and allow two weeks for delivery of printed materials. Your programme fee includes access to both modes to help consolidate your learning.
For all upcoming offerings, click here.

NZ Institute of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy | Public Lecture and Workshop presented by Pamela Shein
Friday, 6 November 2026, Auckland | Public Lecture
Saturday, 7 November 2026, Auckland | Workshop/Clinical Presentation
Pamela Shein is a Child and Adult Training Analyst with the Australian Psychoanalytical Society. She is the Chair of the Child and Adolescent Standing Committee for the Australian Psychoanalytical Society, and the Asia-Pacific Co-Chair of COCAP, IPA (Committee for Child and Adolescent Psychoanalysis).
For registrations, click here.

Introduction to Insight Focused NeuroTherapy™ (IFnT Level 1)
Saturday 14 November to Sunday 15 November 2026 | Auckland
Insight Focused NeuroTherapy™ (IFnT Level 1) offers a coherent, neuroscience-informed framework that helps clients move beyond intellectual understanding into genuine, embodied transformation. Developed by international speaker and neuroscience psychotherapist Pauline Skeates, IFnT synthesises key findings across neuroscience, polyvagal theory, memory reconsolidation, predictive processing, Clean Language, and somatic interoception into a unified, practical methodology.
For more information, click here.

Coming Off Antidepressants: What Psychologists Need to Know
Tuesday, 17 November 2026 | Online, 5pm–7pm
Presented by Dr Valerie Tan, Clinical Psychologist and Marleen van Oeveren, Clinical Pharmacist
This two-hour online seminar explores the psychological and clinical considerations involved in supporting people who are reducing or stopping antidepressants. Bringing together clinical psychology and pharmacy perspectives, the seminar will consider antidepressant withdrawal and deprescribing; principles of tapering, including hyperbolic tapering; recognising and differentiating withdrawal from relapse; and the psychological effects of antidepressants that may be relevant to assessment, formulation and therapy.
For more information, click here.

ANZ ACBS 2026 | Auckland
Pre-Conference Workshops 21–22 November 2026 | Conference 23–25 November 2026
The ACBS (Association for Contextual Behavioural Science) 2026 Conference will bring together psychologists, clinicians, researchers, and practitioners from across Aotearoa, Australia, and beyond. This year’s programme explores the evolving landscape of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Contextual Behavioural Science, with thought-provoking plenaries, experiential workshops, research presentations, and practical ideas you can take directly into your clinical work.

Space Therapist Training with Dr Eli Lebowitz
Christchurch: 11 & 12 March 2027, 8.30 am – 5.00 pm (both days) at the Novotel Airport
Auckland: 15 & 16 March 2027, 8.30 am – 5.00 pm (both days) at the Novotel Ellerslie

The Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE) Training is coming to New Zealand! Founded by Dr Eli Lebowitz, an internationally recognised expert in child and adolescent treatment, SPACE is a highly sought after parent-based treatment programme for whānau who have children and adolescents with anxiety, OCD, and related problems. His therapist training workshops are global sell-outs. Open Closed Doors is proud to be bringing Dr Lebowitz to New Zealand and to offer SPACE training in-person for the very first time in Aotearoa. This is in response to the significant interest from therapists and services to access and learn this evidence-based approach. In 2027, Dr Lebowitz will deliver exclusive two-day therapist training workshops. The two-day workshops will cover:

Case presentations
Video excerpts
Treatment simulations
Evidence-based SPACE framework

The registration cost is NZ$1,700 + GST and spaces are limited. For registration information, click here.

Psychedelic Practitioner Training
14 weeks | 11 January to 12 April 2027 | Online (NZ time)

An intensive professional programme for registered doctors, psychologists, psychotherapists, counsellors, and other mental health practitioners preparing to work responsibly in Aotearoa's emergency psychedelic-assisted therapy and medicine sector. Delivered by PsyEdu and Psychedelic Training NZ, with Drug Science and Aotearoa-based partners. The curriculum covers foundational knowledge through to practical skills in screening, preparation, session support, integration, ethics, and service design, with particular attention to the New Zealand regulatory and cultural context (including Indigenous perspectives and the emerging local landscape).
Cohort size is limited. Course fee $6,300 NZD (early-bird and bursary options available).
For more information, click here.

Working with Traumatised Teens: Power, Connection, & Identity in the Hardest Years
One-day workshops presented in 2027 by Dr Matt Slavin for Compass Seminars: Hamilton 8 March, New Plymouth 9 March, Palmerston North 11 March, Hastings 12 March, Nelson 24 May, Christchurch 25 May, Dunedin 26 May, Queenstown 28 May, Tauranga 26 July, Auckland 27 July and Whangarei 28 July

Adolescence is never easy but when trauma is part of the story, the challenges become more complex, more intense, and often more misunderstood.This emotionally grounded, strategy-rich workshop explores how trauma disrupts the core developmental tasks of adolescence: identity formation, emotional regulation, safety, boundaries, and connection. Professionals will gain tools to work directly with teens to help them make sense of their reactions, regulate their nervous systems, and build trust, while also learning how to guide the parents, carers, and systems around them to stay steady and supportive. Drawing on neurodevelopmental theory, attachment models, and lived case examples, Dr Slavin explores how professionals can work with teenagers who push connection away and how to guide the systems around them to stay regulated, compassionate, and consistent.

For more information, click here.

Mindful-Somatic Approaches to Working with Acute and Developmental Trauma: Comprehensive Live-Online Training
March to July 2027, 10 days, 5 x 2-day monthly modules, 9am–5pm all days, online

Presented by Dr Paris Williams, Clinical Psychologist, who has extensive experience in trauma, substance dependency, psychosis, dissociative disorders, chronic pain, and other associated conditions, and is the author of the acclaimed book, Rethinking Madness. In this four-month training you will learn and practice an integrative approach to mindful-somatic trauma therapy that draws from the collective wisdom and practice shared by the most established modalities in this field, including Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, Somatic Experiencing, Hakomi Mindful Somatic Psychotherapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Internal Family Systems (IFS), and Nonviolent Communication (NVC).
For more information, click here.

NZ Family Court Specialist Psychology Group Conference

13–15 May 2027 | 9.30am–5pm, Wellington
Conference focusing on this specialist Family Court work. Also open to those who are intending or interested in applying to become a Family Court Report Writer.

Thursday 13 May: Specialist court report writers only
Friday 14 May: All allied Family Court professionals
Saturday 15 May: Specialist court report writers only
For more information, click here.