DBT Foundational

An online DBT training program for clinicians joining an established DBT team

A woman sitting on a chair, smiling and taking notes in a notebook, is engaged in a therapy session. She has long black hair and is wearing glasses, a light pink blazer, and gray pants. In the background, a partially visible person is seated, facing her.

Your Program at a Glance

Start date
Start anytime
Time
12 weeks | 12 months access
Who this course is for
For Mental Health Professionals
Accreditation
36 CE / CME Credits

DBT Foundational provides a clear, supportive, and hands-on introduction to Dialectical Behavior Therapy for clinicians joining an established DBT consultation team. Developed by Marsha Linehan, DBT has transformed the treatment of severe emotion dysregulation and complex behavioral patterns, and remains the gold-standard approach for clients who struggle with these difficulties. It integrates behavioral science, skills training, mindfulness, and dialectical strategies to help clients reduce harmful behaviors, strengthen emotion regulation, and build a more workable life.

Taught by world-leading DBT clinicians and Linehan-trained experts, this course shows how DBT is applied in practice. You’ll see how core principles guide treatment and how experienced clinicians use the model to support safety, engagement, and meaningful progress with clients presenting with high levels of risk and instability.

Across twelve parts, you will follow the full DBT model, from its theoretical foundations to the strategies used in individual therapy, skills groups, phone coaching, and consultation teams. Through demonstrations and in-depth case studies, you’ll see the treatment applied moment-to-moment in clinical practice.

This comprehensive learning experience, inspired by DBT founder Marsha Linehan, provides a reliable pathway into DBT for clinicians and for services onboarding new team members.

DBT Foundational
  • 12 part online course
  • Supplemental library
  • Learn at your own pace
Includes free e-books
Valued $202
DBT Skills Training Manual, 2nd Ed
DBT Skills Training Handouts & Worksheets, 2nd Ed
Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder
$1450
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What This Program Offers

DBT Foundational prepares clinicians to step confidently into an established DBT team by building the practical knowledge, applied skills, and competencies needed to deliver DBT with fidelity. You’ll learn how the treatment is organized, how the modes work together within a coordinated program, and how clinicians make decisions that maintain safety and guide progress.

The program also shows how to structure sessions, prioritize targets, apply strategies in line with the model, and participate meaningfully in the consultation team.

The modes of DBT
Skills You Will Develop

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

Work from a DBT perspective

  • Apply DBT assumptions and the dialectical worldview

  • Use the biosocial theory to understand emotion dysregulation and behavioral patterns

Structure treatment effectively

  • Conceptualize multi-problem presentations using DBT principles

  • Prioritize treatment targets using the DBT hierarchy

  • Complete pre-treatment tasks and build commitment to DBT

Deliver individual DBT therapy

  • Structure sessions around targets and goals

  • Use DBT stylistic strategies to keep treatment active and focused

  • Integrate case management when clients are involved across multiple systems

Address barriers and maintain the treatment frame

  • Identify and respond to therapy-interfering behavior

  • Use phone coaching to support skills generalization and protect the frame

  • Bring questions and dilemmas to the consultation team in a structured way

image of dbt group

Use DBT strategies skillfully

  • Conduct chain and solution analyses to understand and shift problem behaviors

  • Apply behavioral strategies including exposure, contingency management, and cognitive modification

  • Use mindfulness, acceptance, and validation skills to support engagement

Work safely with high-risk and trauma presentations

  • Assess and target suicidal and other life-threatening behaviors

  • Use the DBT suicide crisis protocol and plan next steps following crises

  • Consider when and how to address PTSD within Stage 1 DBT

Support DBT skills training

  • Understand the role of skills groups within the DBT model

  • Structure and deliver skills training using clear, practical teaching strategies

  • Draw on demonstrations and examples to support your own skills work

Learn from World-Leading DBT Experts

This program features teaching from senior DBT clinicians who trained and worked closely with Marsha Linehan in research and clinical practice. 

  • Alec Miller, PsyD Co-developer of DBT for Adolescents and DBT in Schools; international trainer for multidisciplinary DBT teams

  • Jill Rathus, PhD Co-author of the DBT Skills Manual for Adolescents; expert in adolescent suicidality, mood, and anxiety disorders

  • Annie McCall, LMHC Senior DBT therapist and trainer specializing in DBT and DBT Prolonged Exposure

  • Marsha Linehan, PhD Developer of DBT; pioneer in the treatment of chronic suicidality and complex multi-diagnostic presentations

The faculty also includes DBT-Linehan Board Certified clinicians, adherence coders, supervisors, and program leaders such as Melanie Harned, Erica Tan, Kelly Graling, Natalia Garcia, Samantha Yard, Dan Finnegan, Chad Brice, and colleagues. Their teaching reflects extensive experience across outpatient, inpatient, adolescent, trauma, and forensic settings, as well as the research clinics in which DBT was first developed.

You can explore each trainer’s background and contributions below.

How This Training Works

Enrollment begins once eligibility is approved. The training is self-directed and organized into twelve structured parts, allowing time to absorb each concept and revisit material as needed. Access lasts for twelve months, enabling clinicians and services to integrate the training at a pace that suits the needs of their DBT team.

This training aligns with the foundational requirements of the DBT-Linehan Board of Certification, providing preparation that supports future steps in the DBT certification pathway.

Course Trainers

What You'll Learn

Course modules

Course excerpts

 
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Your pathway to becoming certified in DBT

The DBT-Linehan Board of Certification’s mission is to ensure excellence and adherence to the highest standards in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT). Completing the DBT Foundational course is your first step.

The certification process rigorously assesses clinicians to ensure they possess the knowledge and skills essential for delivering DBT with adherence to the model as it has been researched. Similarly, they evaluate DBT programs to verify they have the necessary components and organizational structure to implement DBT with fidelity. This information is provided by the the DBT-Linehan Board of Certification. Find out more about their certification process here.

Marsha Linehan and the Linehan board of certification logo
Frequently asked questions