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This PG Advanced Diploma program is being offered in joint collaboration with St. Mira’s College for Girls, Pune.
The program constitutes a training in orientation – an orientation to Presence or ‘beingness’ and equips therapists with the required skills/attitude to deeply listen. This allows for deeper healing forces to emerge in psychotherapeutic contact and to facilitate the client’s movement towards a felt sense of wholeness.
The training explores experientially three vital ingredients of therapy that brings about transformation:
- The Therapist’s Presence: The quality of Embodied Presence of the therapist
- The Relational Space: The quality of Compassionate Presence in the therapeutic alliance
- The Client’s Self in Presence: The quality of inner listening that stimulates the Client’s Self in Presence.
The course is suitable for :
- Counselors
- Psychotherapists
- Psychologists
- Psychiatrists
- Social Workers
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
- Academic background in Psychology/Social Work/Psychiatry at graduate/post-graduate level
- Practicing Counselors & therapists will be preferred
STRUCTURE OF THE PROGRAM
The Program is offered in two formats:
- Join the program in a fully online format
- Join the program in hybrid format - participants can attend a few modules online and the rest in-person in Pune.
*An in-person option for each module will be available if a minimum of 6 participants confirm their attendance at the center in Pune.
Course Dates
-Three-hour group supervision sessions once a month between modules
- Module 1- August 20-24, 2025 Online for everyone
- Module 2- November 5-9, 2025 Hybrid
- Module 3- January 19-25, 2026 Hybrid
- Module 4- March 25- 29, 2026 Hybrid
- Module 5- June 24-28, 2026 Hybrid
- Module 6- September 16-20, 2026 Hybrid
- Module 7- November 16-22, 2026 Hybrid
- Module 8- February 24th - 28th, 2027 Hybrid
- March-July 2027 - Research Project Completion and Final Submissions
The 40-day Mindfulness Practice (Integrating Compassion & Wisdom), starting June 21st, is a part of the program. It is included at no additional cost for all enrolled students.
COURSE DESIGN
The Presence Oriented Psychotherapy Program is a systematic and sensitively designed course to have an inner experience of Mindfulness and Presence drawing both from wisdom traditions as well as evidence-based approaches in psychology and its application in one on one and group work.
As a unique approach it has been developed and designed by Sandy Dias Andrade, a psychotherapist in Mindfulness and Presence oriented work.
Each module sets the base for a deepening into the principles of intention, attention attunement, resonance and wholeness and bringing this in the therapeutic space.
What the training entails :
- The therapist is equipped with background knowledge drawing from interpersonal neurobiology, neuroscience, attachment theory, somatic and energy psychology, trauma resolution principles and mindfulness-based cognitive behavioural work. Key principles from Buddhist Psychology form the base that informs the work and relevant exposition to other wisdom traditions supports an understanding of an interdependent sense of Self. Besides verbal contact, other modalities such as art and movement are also used to facilitate a non-conceptual intuitive knowing that guides the process of therapy.
- The course is also a training in formal mindfulness practices that enables a natural flow of compassion and wisdom. It equips therapists to imbibe an attitude of openness, non-judgement, kindness, curiosity and `not knowing’. There is an exposition to key principles that marks mindfulness-based approaches in therapy.
- The inner work of the therapist is emphasized as the ground on which therapeutic contact is established and deepened. Hence an ongoing mindfulness and meditation practice and attending retreats is part of the course as well as engaging in one’s own psychological work.
- It also equips the therapist with the necessary skills to engage and allow for the client’s inherent sense of wisdom to emerge in a moment-to-moment process.
- The course also encourages participants to take the learnings of the course and apply them to their areas of interest and expertise with the populations they work with. In the second year, participants engage in research where the methodologies of research and writing are in line with the principles of Mindfulness and Presence.
Curriculum:
- Module 1- Mindfulness of the Therapist
- Presence Orientation Paradigm
- Intention & Attention
- Mindfulness
- Self Care
- Therapeutic Contact
- Module 2- Compassionate Presence
- Impermanence
- Attachment Theory & Relational Space
- Interpersonal Neurobiology
- Self Compassion
- Attunement & Resonance
- Focusing Methodology
- Module 3- Retreat- I
- Shamata & Vipassana
- Practices of Brahmaviharas
- Movement & Art-based Practices
- Practices from Yoga
- Module 4- Self as Presence
- Neuroscience of Mindfulness
- Non-Self & Wholeness
- Spacious Awareness of Thought, Feelings, Sensations
- Principles of Internal Family Systems
- Methods of Inquiry into Parts and Self
- Module 5- Trauma Resolution & Mindfulness
- Principles of Somatic Psychology
- Embodiment & Trauma
- Research in Mindfulness
- Methods of Inquiry
- Module 6- Subtle Body
- Thinking at the Edge
- Subtle Body in Psychology
- Intuitive Awareness
- Module 7- Retreat - II
- Compassion Practices
- Open Awareness
- Subtle Body Awareness
- Movement & Art-based Practices
- Module 8 -
- Non-dual Wisdom in Psychotherapy
- Individual Research Project & Presentation
Completion Requirements:
- Attendance of classes
- 480 hours of Mindfulness Practice
- Assignments
- Conduct 60 peer sessions
- Conduct 60 client sessions
- Receive 10 personal counseling sessions per year*
- Receive 10 individual supervision sessions*
- Complete Individual Research project
PROGRAM FEE
- Year 1: Rs. 98,530/- (83,500 INR +18% GST*)
- Year 2: Rs. 98,530/- (83,500 INR +18% GST*)
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*The stated fee does not include the following:
A. 10 individual supervisions and 20 personal counseling sessions to be fulfilled throughout the duration of the course. Individual supervision with an approved supervisor from the Just Being Center incurs an additional cost, currently charged at Rs. 2000/- per one-hour session. Please note that fees may undergo slight variations in the event of any changes to our overall supervision fee structure.
Participants can choose their own counselor, whether external or from Just Being, for personal counseling sessions and will need to cover associated expenses independently.
B. For those intending to attend modules in person at the Just Being Center in Pune, the costs related to travel, accommodation, and meals are no included in the aforementioned fee.
Sandy Dias Andrade
Lead Trainer
A gifted psychotherapist, trainer and workshop leader with 19 years of experience in the field, she has primarily trained in Mindfulness based interventions like Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) and Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT), Integral Somatic Psychotherapy (ISP), Biodynamic CranioSacral Therapy (BSCT), Focusing Skills Certification and is equipped in skills in cognitive, affective, somatic works as well as trauma resolution.
Sandy Dias Andrade is a psychotherapist in mindfulness and presence and founder director of Just Being, Pune. She is internationally certified in Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT). She is also visiting faculty on other courses at the University of Pune and TISS.
She is also a trustee at Connecting, an NGO involved in suicide prevention work. She was responsible for initiating the helpline service and has trained and mentored over hundred volunteers in ‘Mindfulness Based Active Listening’ as well as mentored other organisations and individuals in setting up listening systems.
Harini Raval
Co-Teacher
Harini is an associated counselor with Just Being and holds individual as well as Group therapy spaces. She facilitated Grief Circles for the community on behalf of Just Being Center in association with Connecting Trust. She also works in the area of strengthening leadership in education and child development.
Harini Raval holds a Master’s degree in Social Work from ‘College of Social Work Nirmal Niketan’ and a Doctoral Degree in Education from ‘University of Twente, Netherlands’. She has trained in ‘Mindfulness Based Counseling: Listening with Embodied Presence’ from Just Being & St. Mira’s and ‘Mindfulness & Presence Oriented Psychotherapy’ from Just Being Center.
Fiona Parr
Guest Faculty
During the Training, Fiona will cover Focusing Level 1 and 2. She teaches aspects of the Focusing methodology in the first year as well as Thinking at the Edge as a process to contemplative inquiry in formulating a phenomenological approach to research in the second year.
Fiona Parr is a Focusing-oriented therapist and Certifying Coordinator for The International Focusing Institute (TIFI). She teaches the 5 levels basic course, and professional trainings to Trainer level in the UK and online; and she offers individual Focusing sessions. Fiona has facilitated personal development in others and herself since 1978, and practised Focusing since 1991. Her spiritual life is most important to her, and Focusing supports her spiritual practice.
Bruce Stevenson
Guest Faculty
Bruce Stevenson teaches elements of Internal Family Systems (IFS) and the Inquiry process on the course.
Bruce Stevenson studied Anthropology and has trained in Integrative psychotherapy and Internal Family Systems (IFS) (2006). He has been practicing for over twenty years utilising IFS as well as other effective therapies and techniques. He has also trained with A.H. Almass in the Diamond Approach and was a Buddhist monk in Japan, England and USA for a number of years.
Patricia Meadows
Guest Faculty
Patricia Meadows teaches somatic approaches in being trauma informed as well as working with the subtle body and attachment oriented work on the course. She is a holistic nurse/counselor, trauma therapist, educator, teacher and facilitator of inner work.
Patricia has over 30 years of experience in healthcare and mental health. Currently in her integrative practice of over 15 years, she facilitates a process-oriented approach to healing, transforming and living authentically. Within this integral and holistic context, she also works as a trauma therapist with individuals who have experienced diverse forms of trauma (pre-and perinatal, attachment, relational, developmental, medical/surgical, emotional, physical, sexual, spiritual). Her work is deeply informed by long-term spiritual practice in the Diamond Approach, spiritual inquiry and mediation. She is a teacher in the Diamond Approach. She completed six years of doctoral studies in East/West Psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies.
Dr Mahesh Deokar
Guest Faculty
Dr Mahesh Deokar will cover aspects of Buddhist Philosophy, Buddhist Psychology and Psychotherapy and is the head of the department of Pali at the University of Pune. He is a well-known scholar and has published a number of papers on Buddhist philosophy and has actively promoted the learning of Buddhist Psychology and Psychotherapy at the University. He takes a module on Buddhist philosophy and highlights the key principles of Buddhist philosophy that find relevance in the course
Amona Buechler
Guest Faculty
Amona teaches awareness through movement on the course and also assists Fiona Parr in the Focusing classes. Amona has been a Certified Feldenkrais Practitioner (Awareness Through Movement) since 1998. She is also a Focusing Trainer, ARUN Conscious Touch practitioner, and trained in Systemic Constellations.
John Prendergast
Guest Faculty
John Prendergast has done pioneering work in bringing a non-dual approach to therapy, and he offers special sessions for our students of the Advanced Training Program in Mindfulness & Presence Oriented Psychotherapy. He is a spiritual teacher, author of ‘The Deep Heart - A Portal to Presence’ , psychotherapist, and retired adjunct professor of psychology. He was a professor of psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco for twenty-three years where he taught and supervised masters level counseling students. He has had a private psychotherapy practice since 1985. He is the founder and editor-in-chief of Undivided: The Online Journal of Nonduality and Psychology.
Sujatha Nerurkar
Guest Faculty
Sujatha Nerurkar teaches movement through yin yoga on the course as well as pranayam and the subtle body consciousness.
She is a well-established teacher in many different schools of yoga and is passionate about bringing Patanjali’s yoga sutra’s to a larger audience. She is in the process of developing a short term course with Just Being on Mindfulness through movement and yoga, based on the philosophy of the yoga sutras.
The following will be an ongoing process once you submit the application form:
- Submission of Application form
- Short-listed Candidates will be invited for an Interview
- Interview
- Intimation of Final Selection
- A non-refundable deposit of Rs.20,000 to reserve a seat within 2 weeks of Selection
- Completion of formalities (Document submission etc.) & Full fee payment for Year 1 to confirm seat
Important Dates:
- Last date to fill Application form: May 15th
- Interviews will begin at the beginning of February 2025
- Document submission, Full Fee Payment for Year 1 & Completion of formalities- June 15th, 2025
- Commencement date of 40 day program is June 21st and module 1 begins on August 20th, 2025
Kindly note:
- Admission is on a first-come-first-serve basis.
- The seats are limited due to the nature of the learning involved. Hence request you to apply early
- The 40-day Mindfulness Practice (Integrating Compassion & Wisdom), starting June 21st, is a part of the program. It is included at no additional cost for all enrolled students.
Eligibility Criteria:
- Academic background in Psychology/Social Work/Psychiatry at graduate/post-graduate level
- Practicing Counselors & therapists will be preferred
The course is suitable for :
- Counselors
- Psychotherapists
- Psychologists
- Psychiatrists
- Social Workers
An Expert’s Review of the Curriculum
“I found this course [Advanced Training in Mindfulness & Presence Oriented Psychotherapy] very impressive indeed in its range and depth. This programme will clearly develop the ability of participants to work with clients from a place of deep ‘Presence’. It is well thought through in terms of its design and assessment and, from my knowledge in related fields in the UK, it is of similar standard. The content, however, goes way beyond what is found in most counselling/ psychotherapy programmes. It is wonderful that such a rich and inspirational programme should be on offer at this time. I congratulate Sandy Dias Andrade and her team for designing such a well thought-through, academically rigorous and utterly inspiring programme.”
JUDY MOORE
Author, Senses of Focusing
Former Director of Counselling & Director of the Centre for Counselling Studies, University of East Anglia, UK
