Program Overview

Program Overview

The University of Oulu offers a 30-credit course, "Lyhytterapeuttista osaamista sote-ammattilaisille" (Brief Therapeutic Skills for Social and Health Care Professionals), which aims to enhance the skills of social and health care professionals in working with clients who have mental health challenges.

Target Group

The course is designed for social and health care professionals who have a relevant university or university of applied sciences degree and the opportunity to apply brief therapeutic methods in their own client work.

Requirements

• A suitable university or university of applied sciences degree in a relevant field (e.g., nursing, social work, psychology).
• A current work contract in a social and health care organization.
• The opportunity to apply brief therapeutic methods in their own client work.
• A personal motivation letter.

Course Content

The course covers the following topics:

• Adult mental health disorders and their assessment.
• The service system and legislation related to mental health care.
• Ethical principles in mental health work.
• Brief therapeutic methods, including cognitive-behavioral therapy and emotion-focused therapy.
• Applying brief therapeutic methods in client work.

Course Structure

The course consists of six study units:

1. Adult mental health disorders (5 credits).
2. Mental health service system and brief therapy (5 credits).
3. Cognitive-behavioral therapy methods in brief therapy (5 credits).
4. Trauma perspective in brief therapy (5 credits).
5. Emotion-focused methods in brief therapy (5 credits).
6. Applying brief therapeutic methods in client work (5 credits).

Implementation

The course is implemented as a multimodal course, including webinars, video lectures, literature, and individual and group assignments. The course also includes a client work period where students apply brief therapeutic methods in their own work.

Tuition Fee

The tuition fee for the course is 2,730 euros (including VAT 25.5%).

Duration

The course starts in February 2026 and ends in March 2026.

Language

The course is taught in Finnish.

Organizer

The course is organized by the University of Oulu.

Location

The course is held online.

Previous Experience

Previous participants have found the course to be very useful in their work, providing them with concrete tools and skills to work with clients who have mental health challenges.