Our Mission
The mission of The George Washington University Art Therapy Graduate Program is to train exceptionally skilled therapists whose professional practice is grounded in a broad understanding of the most current clinical art therapy, counseling, and trauma theories; the application of the best research and evaluation methodologies; and the consistent use of diverse, integrative and culturally responsive treatment strategies.

Our Goals

1. Students will have a broad knowledge of foundational approaches, theories, techniques, and evaluation methods of art therapy and counseling.
2. Students will be able to engage in clinical work with insight and self-awareness and a high level of professional, ethical, and multicultural competence with diverse client populations.
3. Students will have developed proficiency as art therapy researchers, understanding the inter-relationship between theory, practice, and science.
4. Students will cultivate their identity as an artist and art therapist and have experience exhibiting their artwork in a professional manner.
5. Students will gain understanding of the latest theory of the psychobiology of traumatic stress, and will have clinical skills using verbal and non-verbal approaches in the treatment of trauma related disorders.

Special Features of Our Program

• State of the Art Space—Technological studio classrooms; Art Therapy Gallery; on-site open art studio space Program library, and student computer lab.
• History—One of the oldest, most well established art therapy programs, created in 1971 and developed by founders in the field of art therapy—Edith Kramer, Hanna Yaxa Kwiatkowska, Bernard Levy and Elinor Ulman.
• Trauma coursework integrating current research with experiential work in the Art Therapy Clinic.
• Art Therapy Clinic—community clinic with video and sound capabilities, three rooms with monitoring space.
• Social & Cultural Diversity emphasis—International and service-learning coursework summer courses and internship opportunities in India, France, South Africa, and American Indian country.
• Research opportunities for individual, collaborative, faculty, and programmatic research.
• Internship sites—over 100 internships with diverse populations in psychiatric, educational, medical and community-based settings in DC, Virginia, and Maryland.
• Faculty—Five fulltime faculty and approximately 20 adjunct faculty (experienced and practicing art therapists) encompassing a wide range of therapeutic specializations.