Master of family therapy and systemic practice
Master of family therapy and systemic practice
Do you work with people and want to expand your expertise in areas such as couples and family therapy, relational work, networking, counselling or crisis management? Then our professional Master's degree may be for you.
Do you work with people and want to expand your expertise in areas such as couples and family therapy, relational work, networking, counselling or crisis management? Then our professional Master's degree may be for you.

The target groups for the degree programme are professional practitioners who work with children, young people, the elderly, individuals, couples, families and groups within family counselling, child welfare, mental health care, drug and alcohol dependency, educational institutions and healthcare institutions, guidance in various contexts and in personnel and organizational work.
Why choose this programme?
- Close follow-up from teachers
- Stimulating and multidisciplinary learning environment
- Close cooperation with the field of practice
- Long and broad experience in the field
- Centrally located
The programme is divided into two fields of study
Students choose the field of study when applying for admission: Systemic Practice or Systemic Couples and Family Therapy. This choice is related to the student’s work placement during the programme, which means that the work placement must meet the content requirements for the option chosen.
1: Systemic Practice
Work placements can cover different types of work, such as counselling and guidance, group management, team work, networking, organizational work, educational work, skills development and different forms of crisis management, support conversations, adaptation, work to assist children and their families, and work with children, young people, the elderly, individuals, parents and groups.
2: Systemic Couples and Family Therapy
Work placements can cover therapy and therapeutic work with children, adolescents, the elderly, individuals, couples, parents, families and groups.
Clinical profession-based Master’s degree
The Master's degree is a profession-based programme that builds on the Bachelor's degrees in health, social studies and educational studies or the equivalent. The programme is closely linked to the student's work experience before and during the programme. It is a requirement that students undertake work placements and receive supervision throughout the programme.
Learning outcomes
After completing the Master’s degree programme, the candidate should have achieved the following learning outcomes, with respect to knowledge, skills and general competence:
Systemic Practice
- has in-depth knowledge of systemic practice, with specialized knowledge of the discipline’s theory of practice, values and systemic approaches
- has in-depth knowledge of the literature and research in the field and is informed by this, both nationally and internationally
- is able to analyse professional issues drawing on the programme's basic concepts, and take a critical approach that focuses on ethics, values and relations in systemic professional practice
- is able to collaborate and communicate with an awareness of the power relations, structures and discourses in society that affect the circumstances of people
- is able to work independently on different issues in complex contexts with the involvement of several parties, networks and large systems
- is able to carry out independent, limited research or development projects under supervision and in accordance with current research ethics standards
- is able to approach systemic practice in a reflective, versatile and insightful manner, and has developed a high level of sensitivity and self-reflection in their dealings with other people and systems in their professional practice
- is able to contribute to new thinking, professional development and research in collaboration with different professional groups, fields of practice and service users
Systemic Couples and Family Therapy
- has in-depth knowledge of systemic couples and family therapy, with specialized knowledge of the discipline’s theory of practice, values and systemic approaches
- has advanced knowledge of health promotion perspectives in couples and family therapy
- is able to analyse professional issues drawing on the theory of family therapy, and take a critical approach that focuses on ethics, values and relations in professional practice
- is able to apply specialized knowledge about children and families as an integral part of a therapeutic repertoire of tools
- is able to work independently on different issues in complex contexts with the involvement of one or more family members and networks
- is able to carry out independent, limited research or development projects under supervision and in accordance with current research ethics standards
- is able to carry out couples and family therapy in a reflective, versatile and insightful manner, and has developed a high level of sensitivity and self-reflection in their dealings with people
- is able to carry out independent research and development work and disseminate results from this in different contexts and to different target groups nationally and internationally
Work placement
Work placements take place at a professional enterprise where, over a period of time, students are responsible for planning and managing work based on a systemic perspective. A systemic perspective is defined here as work that builds on the theories and methodologies taught in the study programme. In addition to the students’ work placement institutions, VID also has some placements that the students can apply for from the second year of the programme.
Possibilities upon completion of programme
The programme qualifies students for positions in child welfare, family counselling, mental health care, educational institutions and healthcare institutions that require competence at the second cycle level. This includes positions that mainly entail therapeutic work with children,
young people, individuals, couples and families, and positions related to guidance, personnel and organizational work, supervision of professional practitioners and participation in interprofessional cooperation.
The programme also qualifies students for positions in the field of systemic family therapy, systemic practice and counselling.
Students who successfully complete the Master's degree can apply for admission to PhD studies.
Courses
- Theory of practice
- Professional approaches
- Perspectives, values and relations in professional practice
- Personal and professional development
- Science theory, research methods and research ethics
- Master's thesis
Offer to foreign exchange students:
https://www.vid.no/en/international/exchange-student/learning-possibilities/
Facts and fees
Starting date
2021-08-30
Campus
Class code
MAFAM
Full or part-time
Part-time
Credits
120
Length of study
4 years
Fiancial Support
Students admitted
30
Language
Norwegian
Admission requirements
Ytterligere kostnader kommer i tillegg, se avsnittet Dersom arbeidsgiver betaler studiekostnadene
- NOK Semester fee
- NOK Student fee
- Tuition NOK
- Total tuition and fees NOK 0
Master of family therapy and systemic practice, part time 2021-2022
- NOK 460 Semester fee
- NOK 320 Student fee
- Tuition NOK 14600
- Total tuition and fees NOK 15380
Teacher
Organization of studies
The Master’s Degree Programme in Family Therapy and Systemic Practice is a four year programme, divided into eight semesters with two course weeks per semester.
Each course week lasts five weekdays. The students are placed in groups of 25–30 students. The programme comprises 120 ECT’s and contains 9 obligatory courses. Course 3 is a professional specialisation course chosen by the student from one of several specialisation courses. The specialisation topics will vary based on the students’ areas of interest and practice.
The students participate in practical training throughout the programme. Students must state their relevant practical training at the start of the programme. Students have 320 hours of counselling during the programme. Counselling expenses come in addition to the tuition.
Master students have their first week of joint gathering from September 10th 2018 at Dr. Holm’s Hotel, Geilo. The cost for full board and lodging is NOK 1290 per day. VID will reserve single rooms for everyone. The students pay at arrival.
Apply
Start of study
30. August 2021
Admission for the study is closed
Admission is opening 1. February 2021
The application deadline is 15. April 2021
Admission requirements
Admission requirements is not available in English. Please contact the admission office at opptak@vid.no for more information.
About rating applicants
Questions about admission?
- Helle Nærø, student adviser, Oslo, phone: +4722451922, e-mail: opptak@vid.no
ressurser
- Programme descriptions
- Reading lists
- 2020-2021: Pensumlister vår 2021, Master i familieterapi og systemisk praksis, VID Oslo
- 2018–2019: Pensum master i familieterapi og systemisk praksis, 2018-2019, kull 17, 16 og 15
- 2018–2019: Reading list, master of family therapy and systemic practice, 2018–2019
- 2017–2018: Reading list, family therapy and systemic practice. 2017–2018
- 2016–2017: Reading list, family therapy and systemic practice, 2016–2017
- 2015–2016: Reading list, family therapy and systemic practice, 2015–2016