Course Content
Practical expertise in psychosocial care and prevention
With a balanced mix of research methodology, theory and practical skills, this Master’s programme will deepen your understanding of the human psyche. You will learn how to support people in exceptional psychological situations, provide counselling to those with mental health conditions, and help prevent mental health conditions. The programme has an interdisciplinary focus and is specifically designed to equip you for multi-professional work and collaboration with other professional groups, which plays a central role in the management of complex conditions. You will gain insight into professional practice through practical projects, for example in regional healthcare provision, in which you will be involved from a very early stage. The programme’s organisers place particular emphasis on an international perspective and provide support in finding an internship abroad, if desired. The Master’s programme does not lead to training as a psychotherapist, but equips you to improve psychosocial care in collaboration with all relevant professional groups, ensure continuity of treatment, and enable people to participate in society and working life.
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A response to the rising number of mental health issues
Depression, chronic fatigue, anxiety: absenteeism due to mental health conditions reached a new high in 2022. There has been an alarming 48 per cent rise in absenteeism due to mental health conditions in the workplace over the last ten years. Among children and young people, too, the number of cases of depressive disorders and anxiety disorders has doubled compared with the period before the Covid-19 pandemic. This is compounded by a shortage of specialist staff in the field of psychosocial care.
DIT has launched an innovative Master’s programme in response to the acute shortage of specialists in psychosocial care in the region. The list of challenges is long: long waiting times for outpatient psychotherapy, particularly for children and young people. This situation cannot be addressed solely by expanding the number of psychotherapy places; rather, the entire psychosocial care landscape must be strengthened – from prevention programmes and counselling centres right through to therapeutic residential communities.
The new interdisciplinary and practice-oriented Master’s programme in Mental Health provides a response to these challenges.
Who is this degree programme suitable for?
For anyone working in the healthcare sector who is interested in mental health and wishes to play an active role in shaping the care landscape. From psychology and social work to nursing and physician assistant roles, there is something for everyone here.
Is this degree programme new in Germany?
Amongst other programmes, there is already a part-time, professionally oriented ‘Mental Health’ programme at Munich University of Applied Sciences. What makes the Master’s programme at DIT special is its specific focus on the needs of the Lower Bavaria region and the close integration of research and practice right from the start. The high demand for specialists in the prevention of mental health conditions makes the Master’s in Mental Health particularly attractive.
Subject Overview
Overview of lectures and courses, SWS (Semesterwochenstunden = weekly hours/semester) and ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System) in the Master of Mental Health.
Career Prospects
There is a high demand for professionals for the prevention of mental illnesses as well as for counselling and support of people with mental stress - preventive and complementary to psychotherapeutic services. Professional fields of activity are in counselling, supervision, occupational health management or in the psychosocial care landscape (e.g. therapeutic residential communities, addiction and family counselling centres, school prevention programmes).
Depending on your basic profession, the Master's programme enables you to expand your previous knowledge and support options in the field of health to include the perspective of mental health. Students with a degree in nursing have the opportunity to qualify as an Advanced Nursing Practitioner (ANP) in their own specialisation.