In a significant step forward for mental health education, the Clinical Psychedelic Lab within the Department of Psychiatry at Monash University will launch the Monash Psychedelic Education Program in 2025. Psychedelic science has re-emerged as one of the most impactful frontiers in scientific research, challenging and expanding our understanding of the brain, mental health, and the nature of conscious awareness. Interest in psychedelic science and therapies has burgeoned globally in recent years, with growing demand for well-informed and highly-skilled practitioners and researchers, and the need for improved psychedelic literacy in the community generally. The Monash Psychedelic Education Program is designed to meet this need.
The program will commence with educational offerings in psychedelic science and psychedelic therapies at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels, catering to a broad audience, including mental health professionals, healthcare students, and the general public. These initial offerings (see below) will form the prerequisites for the Graduate Certificate in Psychedelic Therapies, an advanced clinical training program that is planned for roll out in 2026 at Monash University.
At the forefront of psychedelic research and education in Australia, the Clinical Psychedelic Lab, led by Dr Paul Liknaitzky, is bringing together world-leading educators, researchers, practitioners, and people with lived experience to deliver engaging and informative psychedelic education, open to students from across the world. “We’re excited to establish a world-class education and training program that will draw from leading-edge research and practice from teams around the world, including ours at Monash, to educate and inspire students and professionals with an interest in this field,” said Dr. Liknaitzky. “Wherever people are based in the world, and across a broad range of interests in psychedelic science and therapies, we hope this program will set a standard for engaging and well-informed psychedelic education globally.”
The launch of this program comes amid a global surge in psychedelic research, with over 100 universities engaging in trials and studies. Promising findings have led various countries, including Australia, to permit the use of psychedelics like psilocybin and MDMA in certain clinical settings for conditions such as depression and PTSD. “There’s a significant unmet need in mental healthcare, and psychedelics present a potential solution,” said Prof. Suresh Sundram, head of the Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychedelic Lab investigator at Monash University, “This program aims to provide a University-accredited pathway to training in psychedelic therapies for healthcare professionals, as well as a broader educational offering for anyone interested in this rapidly evolving field”.
Despite the increasing interest and demand, there are currently no accredited university courses in psychedelic science or therapies in Australia. The Monash Psychedelic Education Program aims to address this gap, commencing with two initial phases:
- Phase 1 (launching 2025): Psychedelic Science and Psychedelic Therapies – offered at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels, available to Monash students and also to anyone, anywhere in the world.
- Phase 2 (launching 2026): Short courses and training in advanced topics in psychedelic therapies, available to eligible healthcare professionals. Our advanced clinical psychedelic training, the Graduate Certificate in Psychedelic Therapies (comprising two courses from Phase 1, and two courses from Phase 2), is slated for launch in 2026. These offerings will involve clinical training, supervision, and in-person intensives.
As interest in psychedelic therapies continues to rise, the Monash Psychedelic Education Program represents a significant step toward improving psychedelic literacy generally, and clinical competencies among professionals. “We are committed to delivering a curriculum that not only meets current educational needs, but also adapts to the future landscape of mental health treatment and the evolving field of psychedelic science,” Dr. Liknaitzky added. With this pioneering initiative, Monash University continues to innovate within the mental health sector in Australia and beyond.
About Monash University
Monash University is Australia’s largest university with more than 80,000 students. In the 60 years since its foundation, it has developed a reputation for world-leading high-impact research, quality teaching, and inspiring innovation.
With four campuses in Australia and a presence in Malaysia, China, India, Indonesia and Italy, it is one of the most internationalised Australian universities.
As a leading international medical research university with the largest medical faculty in Australia and integration with leading Australian teaching hospitals, we consistently rank in the top 50 universities worldwide for clinical, pre-clinical and health sciences.
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