California Institute of Integral Studies Grad School

California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) is a pioneer in higher education offering interdisciplinary, cross-cultural, and applied studies in its three schools: The School of Consciousness and Transformation, the School of Professional Psychology, and the School of Undergraduate Studies. Master's and doctoral degrees are available, as well as a Bachelor of Arts completion degree in Interdisciplinary Studies. CIIS is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).

The integral outlook, envisioned by the founders of CIIS, has grown to include the study of multiple perspectives and spiritual traditions, and encompasses the myriad aspects of learning: the intellectual, the experiential, and the applied. More and more, students are looking to cultivate qualities they will need as leaders of transformative change in their fields of work and in society - and to do so, they are looking for an education that, in the words of educational activist Parker Palmer, "links the inner and outer; that rejoins soul and role, that understands that the world we live in is constantly being co-created by the interplay of what is within us and what is around us." (CIIS Commencement, May 2007).

Since its inception in 1968, CIIS has been at the center of the San Francisco Bay Area discussion on spirituality and the integration of Eastern and Western philosophies. The Institute is committed to small classes, a personal learning environment, and a strong sense of community, making it an extraordinary place for people committed to transforming themselves and the world.

The CIIS School of Consciousness and Transformation is inspired by the integral approach to education, which predicates a spiritual foundation to life, knowledge, and culture, and encompasses a rich diversity of approaches and viewpoints. The internationally known core faculty is augmented by a remarkable group of distinguished visiting and adjunct faculty. Programs in the school include Asian and Comparative Studies; East-West Psychology; Integrative Health Studies; Philosophy, Consciousness, and Cosmology; Social and Cultural Anthropology; Transformative Leadership and Transformative Studies; and Women's Spirituality. The Institute recently launched two MFA programs; Creative Inquiry, Interdisciplinary Arts, and Writing and Consciousness. Both programs explore the intersection between artist and society, craft and aesthetics, history and contemporary arts and literature, bringing together the artist or writer and the greater world. CIIS also offers an advanced certificate in Spiritual Counseling, geared to mental health professionals and pastoral counselors, through its East-West Psychology program.

The CIIS School of Professional Psychology balances traditional clinical training with a concern for contemporary social, cultural, and spiritual issues, encouraging integration of new and alternative approaches to psychological health while adhering to rigorous standards of scholarship, research, and practice. The school's five master's level concentrations (Community Mental Health, Drama Therapy, Expressive Arts Therapy, Integral Counseling Psychology, and Somatic Psychology) meet the academic requirements for Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) licensure in the state of California. CIIS's doctoral program in Clinical Psychology is accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA).

The School of Undergraduate Studies' Bachelor of Arts Degree Completion Program in Interdisciplinary Studies brings adult students together in a cohort, utilizing transformative learning principles while focusing on the themes of self, culture, and society.