How to apply for the PPD Programme
To apply for the PPD programme please use this form. You will be asked to submit a scan of your current passport, or alternative document showing your identity and nationality and other required supporting documentation. If you have any questions or difficulties with the application process, please email ppd-admissions@educ.cam.ac.uk.
Overseas applications and Visa
The University provides visa sponsorship for some of our PPD courses. To check eligibility and for further details please see our visa page.
Application Deadlines
Taught courses have individual application deadlines so please refer to the course specific sites for further details of these. Partial applications submitted on the deadline will not be accepted. It is in your interests to apply well in advance of the deadline.
Interviews
Some taught courses will require an interview. This will usually be conducted by either the course coordinator or the member of teaching staff.
Admissions Policy
Please find our Admissions Guide, including general entry requirements, applying with special requirements, appeals and complaints.
Please note that as a PPD student you will be a member of the Faculty of Education with access to all Faculty services. Successful completion of our PPD programme entitles students to a University of Cambridge award. Students will not have College membership during the course of PPD programme and as a result access to some central University facilities may be restricted. However, PPD students do have access to the University's Accessibility and Disability Resource Centre (ADRC).
Data Protection
The University will use the details you provide on your application together with additional details provided by any referee and recorded following any interview process. We will also conduct suitability checks for safeguarding and safer recruitment purposes. Full details are included in the data protection statement for students.
Admissions Complaints and Appeals
Please note, there is no appeal against academic judgements made by the University. However, if you believe that there has been a procedural error, there was bias or perception of bias in the decision-making process, or if there were circumstances unknown to the University, which, for good reason you did not inform the University of in your application, and which would have had a material impact on the admission decision, you should write in the first instance to the Head of the PPD Office. Guidance for applicants is here.
Counselling Diploma only - Applications for September 2025 entry
The Faculty of Education will accept applications for September 2025 entry from 4 November 2024.
We have a limited number of places on this popular and over-subscribed postgraduate course, so we recommend that applications are made as early as possible in the admissions cycle.
Application process
1. Apply for the course using the application form linked below, providing reference details according to the referencing requirements
2. Shortlist for interview: if shortlisted, provide documentation ahead of the interview to enable vetting checks (more details provided in the interview invite)
3. Attend interviews : if offered a place, register for an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check with children’s barred list information (details provided in the offer)
Enquiries about the Professional Practitioner Development (PPD): Diploma in Child and Adolescent Psychotherapeutic Counselling course should be addressed to the PPD Admissions Office at ppd-admissions@educ.cam.ac.uk.
Apply for the Diploma
Applications are made online using the form linked here.
References
You will need to provide two references.
- If you have been in higher education within the last five years, one referee must be an academic one.
- If you have worked in a school or college setting, one of your references must be from the headteacher of that school or college (if you have worked in more than one school/college the headteacher of your most recent school must be provided).
- If you have not worked in a school/college, but you have worked in a setting with children/young people, your reference must be from the most senior person in that setting.
- If providing a second reference from an employer, this should also be from the Senior Manager or Headteacher and should relate to employment within the past 5 years.
Please see the reference guide for more information.
Selection for interview
Candidates are selected for interview based on the information provided on their application form only. The information offered within your personal statement is vital to demonstrate how you relate to the specific child and adolescent psychotherapeutic counselling admissions criteria below.
Application deadlines
• 1st batch deadline: 17th February 2025
• 2nd batch deadline: 5th May 2025
• 3rd and final batch: 2nd June 2025 (any applications received after this date will not be considered).
Please read the following pages for more information about the procedure: