Participate
The IPA is led by the passion and commitment of its members, whose contributions play a central role in helping the association to achieve its aims. There are several ways that members can engage in the work of the IPA, from making contributions to our blog or newsletter, to becoming involved in the running of the IPA by joining a committee, task force, or advisory group.
Active participation in the association’s activities can help members to broaden their horizons, expand their professional networks, and enhance their psychoanalytic knowledge. It also provides members with an opportunity to influence the issues that really matter to the membership. The impact spreads out to the wider profession of clinical psychoanalysis and those seeking to apply psychoanalysis to the communities and world beyond the couch.
Write for the IPA Blog
The IPA maintains a series of blogs and is always seeking new articles from its members. Our blogs cover a range of topics, from everyday issues to psychoanalytic theory, enabling our members to present their ideas with varied audiences, from the general public to experienced analysts. If you would like to become an author for one of the IPA blogs, you can find our submission guidelines, as well as all of our previous posts here.
Feature on an IPA Webinar or Propose a Webinar Topic
Our popular monthly programme of webinars has been providing IPA members with a platform to share their theories, ideas and opinions with an international audience since 2017. We welcome proposals from members who wish to appear as a speaker, or who wish to work with our webinar team to create a webinar on a new topic. Find out more.
Join a Committee
There are currently over 113 active IPA committees – each has a mandate (the job they are appointed to do) and a roster (the people appointed to do the job. You can find out more information about each of our committees here.
Roles for committees are sought against skill, interest and regional representation. Members are appointed to committees by the President under the advice of the Appointments Committee, and approved by the IPA Board. If you are interested in joining one of our committees, the committee chair is a good place to express your interest. Once the Appointments Committee has made a recommendation to the Board, and it is approved, the President writes formally to appoint you for the term of office (length of time you will serve in the job).
Elections
Some roles, including the Board of Representatives, the Officers – the President, Vice-President and Treasurer – have to be elected. These elections take place every congress year for the 21 members of the Board, and on a slightly different schedule for the officers. The treasurer is never elected in the same year as the President and Vice-President, ensuring that the Officers always straddle across Administrations – this provides a strong, secure governance process for the IPA. Elections processes are detailed and can be found in the Procedural Code here.
Vote in an Election
All members are invited to vote for the representatives they wish to serve on the IPA board, or as an Officer, so long as they are in good standing. Good standing, means that the member is not outstanding on their membership dues. The ballot opens between March and May of each congress year and the results are announced at the Business Meeting of the Congress. Detailed information about the process is emailed to all members when the ballot opens, and is also made available on the IPA website for the entire duration of the voting period.
Stand for Election
Members wishing to stand for election to the IPA Board, or as President, Vice-President, or Treasurer, must be in good standing. There are 3 ways to be nominated for election. Firstly, a nomination directly from your Component Society, secondly, nomination by 10 IPA members and thirdly by petition. A candidate standing for one of the Officer positions, must be nominated by a written petition of at least 150 IPA members (50 from each region). A candidate for a seat on the IPA Board must be nominated by a written petition of at least 100 members from their respective region. All nominations are assessed by the Regional Nominating Committee for Board Representatives or the Central Nominating Committee for Officer elections.
Nominate a Colleague for
an IPA Award
The IPA presents a number of prestigious awards and prizes at our biennial congresses. These awards serve to recognise the achievements and contributions of psychoanalysts to the discipline of psychoanalysis, to the IPA, or to their local communities. Entry criteria and application guidelines are announced during each award cycle on our website here.
Present at an IPA Event
Our programme of events provides IPA members with a platform to present their ideas to an international audience. Our two flagship events – the IPA Congress, and the Asia-Pacific Conference – take place on alternating years and regularly attract thousands of practising and aspiring psychoanalysts from around the world. We welcome proposals from members to take part in paper presentations, panel discussions and a wide variety of other scientific activities.