Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT) training focuses on helping clients accept difficult emotions while committing to actions aligned with their values.
ACT uses mindfulness & behavioral techniques to increase psychological flexibility & resilience through experiential learning.
Professionals trained in ACT can effectively support clients in navigating life challenges & achieving meaningful change.
Painful emotions or unpleasant thoughts can be extremely hard to sit with and accept.
Often, our knee-jerk reaction is to avoid these experiences or try to get rid of them completely, which most of the time only makes us feel worse.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) aims to help people develop a better relationship with difficult thoughts, feelings, and internal experiences and to encourage them to commit to living their life to the fullest (Harris, 2011).
If you want to become an ACT practitioner, you’ll be glad to know there are lots of courses available to you. However, there is currently no official certification route. This article provides a list of some of the best acceptance and commitment therapy training courses out there right now to help you weigh your options.
Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Positive Education Exercises for free. These ready-made tools are perfect for enhancing your teaching approach, making it easier to engage students in meaningful, student-centered learning.
A fundamental goal of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy is to cultivate a meaningful life in alignment with your values while accepting that suffering is a normal and natural part of this (Harris, 2011).
Mindfulness skills are believed to be centrally important in ACT to help clients manage difficult thoughts and feelings, and decrease the impact these experiences have on their lives (Harris, 2011).
There’s currently no official process to become a certified ACT practitioner. The Association for Contextual Behavioral Science (ACBS), an international community for ACT, decided against a certification process in the interests of avoiding a “hierarchical and closed process which would be antithetical to our values” (Long, n.d.).
Instead, the ACBS hopes to nurture an “open, self-critical, mutually supportive community which, working together, builds a progressive psychology more adequate to the challenges of human suffering” (Long, n.d.). So, if you’re a health professional wanting to deliver ACT, you have your pick of a large range of training options.
Of course, to deliver psychological therapy, you’ll need to gain the appropriate training, certification, and licensure (e.g., as a social worker, psychologist, or counselor) to practice in your region.
The ACBS also emphasizes that in addition to training, learning about and honing your skills in ACT are supported by (Long, n.d.):
There is an abundance of ACT therapy training courses to choose from, and because there’s no red tape around certification, you have the freedom to pick one that most aligns with your preferences, budget, and schedule.
To make it a little easier to find the best acceptance and commitment therapy training programs and courses, we’ve listed some of our top picks that are designed and delivered by experts, most of which are offered online.
Praxis
Praxis offers a range of evidence-based and on-demand training courses for students looking to learn more about ACT or develop their skills as practitioners working with specific clinical groups.
Taught by ACT trainer and psychotherapist Matt Boone, ACT Basics is a beginner-friendly course designed to help clinicians integrate the principles of ACT into their practice from day one.
The course consists of 10 modules that include video instruction, experiential exercises, and practical demonstrations—captured live at an in-person workshop with mental health professionals.
You’ll learn how to apply the six core psychological flexibility processes, use ACT tools with clients, and deepen the therapeutic relationship through flexibility and presence. You’ll also receive bonus recorded webinars that answer common beginner questions and explore how ACT can be integrated with other approaches like CBT and DBT.
Led by ACT co-founder Dr. Kelly Wilson, this course offers a deep exploration of how to work with values in a meaningful and transformative way.
Across six modules, you’ll learn how to approach values work with more presence, creativity, and nuance—even when clients seem stuck or resistant. You’ll gain access to 11 hours of video and audio instruction, real therapy demonstrations, written materials, and experiential exercises you can use in your own practice.
Two bonus resources—a live case consultation and a guided analysis of stuckness in values work—add further depth. The course provides 13 CE hours and lifetime access to all materials.
Taught by renowned ACT trainer and trauma expert Dr. Robyn D. Walser, this course trains clinicians to support trauma survivors—including those with PTSD, moral injury, and complex trauma—using ACT.
Through 12 modules, you’ll learn how to build psychological flexibility using clear instruction, clinical role plays, audio debriefs, and hands-on exercises. You’ll also explore how to integrate ACT with other trauma therapies and navigate difficult moments with greater clarity and compassion.
With lifetime access and 12 CE hours included, this course gives you the tools to help clients heal, reconnect, and find meaning beyond trauma.
This course is delivered by leading experts in ACT Dr. Kirk Strosahl and Dr. Patti Robinson. Dr. Strosahl was also a cofounder of ACT. Together, the trainers have written some of the most influential books in ACT and teach Focused Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (FACT) to health professionals around the globe.
This six-module course consists of video instruction, practical exercises, teletherapy role-play, and written materials. The first three modules walk you through how to conduct the initial FACT session. Module 4 looks at follow-up sessions, Module 5 focuses on metaphors and how to use them in therapy, and Module 6 guides you through how to work with complex clients and support your resilience as a therapist.
For professionals and students who wish to learn ACT directly from its creator, Dr. Steven C. Hayes, and his associates, ACT Courses provides a range of evidence-based, on-demand training options.
This introductory course offers a deep dive into the processes and principles of ACT.
A significant part of the course content was created from recordings of a live three-day ACT workshop with 30 mental health professionals, so you can really get a feeling for how ACT works in action.
There are 10 modules in the course, which amounts to 24 continuing education hours. Some of the module topics include understanding the six core human yearnings, moving from psychological inflexibility to flexibility, and the foundation of our sense of self. As well as the course material, you’ll get access to audio exercises, Q&A videos, and real-life sessions.
This is another course from Dr. Hayes and aims to help clinicians with a firm understanding of ACT to make the transition from theory to practice.
In this 10-module self-paced course, you’ll learn about a process-based framework for delivering ACT and watch demos of role-play and real-play sessions.
Some of the module topics include ‘Functional Analysis,’ ‘Treatment Planning,’ and ‘Present Moment and Self-As-Context.’
You’ll also get access to helpful resources like an ACT Assessment Toolkit and an ACT Rating Scale Training Manual. Completion of the course counts as 23.5 hours of continuing education.
This foundational course, created especially for behavior analysts, shows you how to use ACT in your line of work.
Under the direction of Dr. Hayes, Dr. Mark R. Dixon, and Dr. Ruth Anne Rehfeldt, the course discusses the behavioral foundations of ACT and relational frame theory and provides useful resources to enhance results for clients in a variety of contexts.
The course offers 12 hours of excellent content and 16 CE hours, and it includes 8 core modules, clinical demonstrations, case studies, experiential exercises, and bonus materials.
Psychwire offers numerous online courses in ACT delivered by Dr. Russ Harris, a leading ACT expert and author of the bestselling book The Happiness Trap.
1. ACT for Beginners
This six-week, 16-hour course is suitable for health professionals and counts as 16 continuing education credits.
Course modules include an introduction to ACT, cognitive defusion, the difference between goals and values, and self-as-context metaphors. You’ll learn how to use ACT to deal with different strains of challenging clients and create a better relationship with your own thoughts and feelings.
This six-week, 16-hour course is suitable for health professionals looking to enhance their ACT skills when working with people with depression and anxiety disorders.
The course expects learners to have more than a beginner’s knowledge of ACT, so you’ll need to complete the Beginners Course, go to an introductory two-day ACT training, or work through a beginner-level ACT textbook.
The course curriculum covers an extensive range of topics and issues unique to anxiety and mood disorders. Some areas covered include worrying, the difference between mindfulness and relaxation, fear versus anxiety, exploring the roots of anxiety, and working on values with clients who claim to have none.
This advanced-level course is highly skills focused. Over six weeks (16 hours), you’ll learn a compassion-based, exposure-centered approach to delivering ACT for trauma-related issues, whether acute, chronic, simple, or complex.
You’ll explore ways of addressing key issues associated with trauma, such as hyperarousal, flashbacks, shame, and a fractured sense of self.
The course is open to health professionals. As with the course above, you’ll be expected to have a solid understanding of ACT before joining, and the same prerequisites apply.
This six-week (eight-hour) course is aimed at health professionals who are frequently faced with the challenge of making the most out of very limited time with clients.
This is an advanced-level course, and the same pre-course requirements apply as the two courses above.
The training covers the principles and practice of the FACT model. You’ll learn skills and strategies to deliver ACT efficiently, like focused interviewing skills and rapid case formulation, and understand how to deliver an effective ACT intervention in 10 minutes or less.
PESI is a nonprofit continuing education organization offering a range of courses in ACT.
1. 2-Day Intensive ACT Training
This on-demand digital seminar, hosted by Dr. Daniel Moran, teaches useful, research-based techniques to increase your therapeutic impact. The training prepares clinicians to use ACT techniques for a variety of issues, such as anxiety, PTSD, mood disorders, trauma, substance abuse, and more.
Case conceptualization tools, effective intervention techniques, and roughly 12 hours of CE-eligible instruction are all included in the seminar. CE credit is available upon completion of the online post-test.
This course is delivered by Dr. Steven Hayes and Dr. Daniel Moran and features in-session demonstrations from Hayes and other master ACT clinicians.
There are six modules, which amounts to 23.75 hours of continuing education. Some module topics include ‘Control and Acceptance,’ ‘Cognitive Defusion,’ ‘Values and Action,’ and ‘Psychological Flexibility.’
3. 3-Day Workshop: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
Taught by ACT trainer Dr. Mike Mecozzi, this comprehensive digital seminar (also available as a live webinar) offers over 18 hours of practical training designed to help clinicians confidently apply ACT in a wide range of clinical scenarios.
You’ll explore the full ACT model—including psychological flexibility, creative hopelessness, defusion, acceptance, values work, and committed action—alongside targeted interventions for anxiety, depression, trauma, and interpersonal challenges. The training also includes CE credits upon completion of the post-test.
Finally, the ACBS has a peer review process for expert ACT trainers in the community to make it easier for people to locate high-quality ACT training (ACBS, n.d.).
This is not an accreditation process by any means, nor does the process examine someone’s competency as an ACT practitioner. Rather, this peer review process focuses only on the person’s delivery of professional ACT training and is completely voluntary for trainers.
If you’re looking to find ACT trainers to provide training, consultation, or coaching, the ACBS website is a good place to start. You can contact the trainers via the ACBS website.
Many of the courses we’ve covered have virtual learning options, so be sure to check them out too. If you haven’t found the right one for you, here are a few more online ACT therapy training options to consider.
The Association for Psychological Therapies (APT), ACT Essentials
This three-day course is suitable for clinically skilled professionals seeing patients in treatment settings or teams working in inpatient or community settings.
Completing the course will gain you APT’s Level 1 accreditation. You can complete the course in a self-paced way or via a live course on Zoom.
Although this is an ‘essentials’ course, you’ll cover a lot of ground. By the end, you’ll be able to start using ACT approaches with your clients. You’ll also gain personal rewards that will help you help others, such as becoming more in touch with your values and being better able to accept your thoughts and feelings.
This introductory ACT course is very kind on the wallet and is open to anyone with an interest in psychology, therapy, and ACT, with a general idea of what psychotherapy and counseling involve.
The course includes 35 lectures (nearly 7 hours in total). Some module titles include, ‘Core Processes in ACT, ‘Positive Psychology and The Happiness Trap’, and ‘When Emotions Don’t Want to Disappear’.
The course is led by Motivational Psychologist and Life Coach, Elmira Strange.
Psychotherapy Academy, Demystifying ACT: A Practical Guide for Therapists
This self-paced online course is led by ACT expert Dr. Daniel Moran.
There are five modules that add up to 4.75 continuing education credits. Each module comes with a video offering practical take-home tips. You’ll also get access to audio interviews with Dr. Moran, where he talks through some real-life clinical cases.
The Affinity Centre, An Introduction to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
This is a very reasonably priced course from United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy-registered psychotherapist Ian Tomlinson, who is both an ACT practitioner and trainer.
The course would suit anyone interested in learning more about ACT and includes exercises students can apply to themselves. There are 11 modules, including topics like ‘How ACT is different,’ ‘The ACT Hexaflex,’ and ‘Self as Context.’
Use these 17 Positive Education Exercises [PDF] to enhance student engagement, resilience, and wellbeing while also equipping students with valuable life skills.
If you’re already delivering ACT and looking for some inspiration for your sessions, why not use some of our ACT worksheets and exercises below?
Exploring Willingness and Commitment This exercise combines techniques from both ACT and Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) to help clients select a personal value and commit to one practical action they can take toward living in line with this value.
Personal Values Worksheet This worksheet helps clients explore what they view as meaningful and important, serving as a basis to determine how they might focus their energy and time.
Values and Problems This worksheet invites clients to reflect on the problematic thoughts and behaviors that contribute to their struggles and consider how they might replace these with value-driven goals and actions.
Commitment, Obstacles, and Strategies Worksheet
This three-part worksheet helps clients identify a life goal related to personal values, consider potential obstacles to achieving this goal, and develop a plan to strengthen goal commitment.
If you want to integrate the evidence-based principles of positive psychology into the classroom, consider this collection of 17 validated positive education exercises. Use them to enhance student engagement, resilience and wellbeing while also equipping students with valuable life skills.
A Take-Home Message
For many people, learning to be at peace with painful thoughts and feelings can be extremely challenging and too difficult to contemplate doing alone.
ACT is an evidence-based and highly effective form of talking therapy that can help people get on better terms with their thoughts and feelings and help them focus their commitment and energy toward living a full and meaningful life.
Training in ACT is currently a very open and inclusive process for health professionals, as there is no official certified training route. There’s an abundance of online acceptance and commitment therapy training courses available, which means you can typically learn at your own pace around your other commitments.
If you’re ready to embark on ACT therapy training in the near future, we hope this article has provided some useful food for thought and wish you all the best in your next learning adventure.
ACT is a form of psychotherapy that combines mindfulness and behavioral strategies to help individuals accept difficult emotions and commit to actions aligned with their values, enhancing psychological flexibility.
How can I become an ACT practitioner?
While there’s no official certification process, you can become an ACT practitioner by completing training programs, reading ACT literature, attending peer consultation groups, and participating in workshops or conferences.
What are some recommended ACT training programs?
Top ACT training programs include online courses by Dr. Steven C. Hayes, in-person workshops like ACT BootCamp by Dr. Diana Hill, and comprehensive courses offered by Udemy and Contextual Consulting.
Dr. Helen Brown is a freelance writer with a Ph.D. in Psychology and MSc in Organizational Psychology. She has a varied background working in mental health and wellbeing research and is passionate about all things psychological. As well as writing about many psychology and health topics, Helen loves to scribble away at fictional stories and screenplays too. You can usually find her in the countryside just south of Bristol, UK.
Painful emotions or unpleasant thoughts can be extremely hard to sit with and accept.
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