Our Philosophy
Existentialism focuses on the fundamental aspects of human existence, where each person is a unique, distinct, irreplaceable, and unrepeatable being, inextricably connected to others and to the ‘World’.
Our Trainers
Both the founders and the trainers of ‘Gignesthai’ possess extensive experience in Existential Psychology, with numerous distinctions, academic contributions, and publications in their field.
Our Certifications
‘Gignesthai’ holds all the necessary certifications from the relevant national and European authorities and has been honored with the Charlotte & Karl Bühler Award by the American Society for Humanistic Psychology.
Gignesthai | Hellenic Association for Existential Psychology
Over 20 Years of Experience
in Existential Practice and Training
Gignesthai 2004/2025
A beautiful journey that continues to unfold
‘Gignesthai’, the Hellenic Association for Existential Psychology, was founded in 2004 by a small group of four colleagues and friends — Evi Dalla, Eugenia Georganta, Katerina Zymni-Georgalou, and Alexis Charisiadis — sharing common interests and a commitment to the existential approach. The society was established to study and apply the existential approach in psychotherapy and counseling, emerging from the conviction that the fundamental questions posed by existentialism are crucial and defining in everyone’s life.
Gignesthai | Hellenic Association for Existential Psychology
Integrated Four-Year Training Program in Existential Counseling and Psychotherapy
The Integrated Four-Year Training Program in Existential Counseling and Psychotherapy has a total duration of four years, with each academic year beginning in September. The program consists of two cycles, the foundational and the clinical, each lasting two years. Both cycles focus on the personal development and enrichment of the trainees’ experiences, as well as their cognitive training, since education in the existential approach aims to create a framework in which each participant can explore and develop their personal approach to existential psychotherapeutic practice. It should be emphasized that the Integrated Four-Year Training Program in Existential Counseling and Psychotherapy is a long-term and demanding program of study, presenting a series of challenges essential for the thorough preparation of a future existential psychotherapist, both academically and personally. Consequently, it requires a conscious commitment to the program as a whole and to its individual components.
During the four-year Integrated Four-Year Training Program in Existential Counseling and Psychotherapy, students are expected to participate in the total required hours of training, while also attending to the initiation or continuation of their individual therapy mandated by the program, and completing the necessary hours of clinical practice and supervision in a structure of their choice.
Coursework Hours
Workshop Hours
with Volunteers
Supervision Hours
Gignesthai 2025/2026
Dates and Hours for the
Academic Year 2025/2026
Follow the link below for detailed information on the admission interview dates, the monthly online two-day seminars, and the plenary sessions and therapeutic skills study groups scheduled for the current year of the Integrated Four-Year Training Program in Existential Counseling and Psychotherapy.
Program Entry Requirements
Find here all the required documents to be submitted with your expression of interest for the final evaluation and approval of your admission to the Integrated Training Program in Existential Counseling and Psychotherapy.
Participation in the program requires a BA in Psychology or a specialization in Psychiatry.
It may include references to your undergraduate and, if applicable, postgraduate studies, your work experience, and possibly a brief summary of skills and personal qualities that you feel best characterize you.
A letter (approximately 200 words) describing your personal reasons for wishing to pursue existential training in Psychotherapy and Counseling.
Letters can be provided by former or current professors, psychotherapists, supervisors, or employers. They should offer a written assessment of your abilities, knowledge, skills, and personal qualities that are relevant to your studies in this program.
Interviews take place each year on set dates in early September. The leadership of Gignesthai meets with prospective students who have first expressed their interest by phone or email and submitted their CV.
Through this application – participation agreement, students confirm their intention to enroll in Gignesthai and participate in the Integrated Four-Year Training Program in Existential Counseling and Psychotherapy. You can access and print the application – participation agreement from the PDF linked below.
Gignesthai strives to provide equal opportunities for every individual interested in the program, prohibiting discrimination based on race, gender, color, religion, sexual orientation, age, family status, or disability, and encourages individuals belonging to these groups to participate in the four-year program.
Gignesthai | Hellenic Association for Existential Psychology
Specialization Program in Group Psychotherapy and Counseling, with a focus on the Existential Approach
Gignesthai is pleased to announce the launch of a new cycle of seminars for the Two-Year Specialization Program in Group Psychotherapy and Counseling for the academic year 2025/2026. Participants in the program will have the opportunity to study the main approaches to group psychotherapy, with particular emphasis on the existential perspective and the phenomenological way of working. The aim of the program is to provide both theoretical and practical training in the organization, facilitation, and management of psychotherapeutic and counseling groups. This two-year program is designed for practicing psychiatrists, psychologists, mental health counselors, and psychotherapists (regardless of their theoretical orientation) who wish to further develop their individual and interpersonal skills. Through intensive training and experiential practice, participants will gain valuable knowledge and experience in group psychotherapy.
The new Specialization Program in Group Psychotherapy and Counseling requires the in-person attendance of participants. The meetings take place at Gignesthai’s facilities in Marousi, approximately every second Friday of the month, with each training day combining theory and experiential practice.
Gignesthai | Hellenic Association for Existential Psychology
Meet the Founding Faculty Team and the Program’s Trainers
Evgenia Georganta
Psy.D., ECP | Psychologist
& Existential Psychotherapist
Katerina Zymni
ECP | PhD in Clinical Psychology,
Panteion University
Alex Charisiadis
M.Sc. | PhD in Clinical Psychology,
Panteion University
Gignesthai is currently under the direction of its three founding members: Eugenia Georganta, Psy.D., ECP, Katerina Zymni-Georgalou, Ph.D., ECP, and Alexis Charisiadis, Ph.D., M.Sc. All three possess extensive teaching experience in the existential approach, with numerous and significant publications in articles and books on existential psychotherapy. They frequently organize and participate in conferences and seminars in the field, while at the same time they have built a substantial professional path as existential therapists as well as supervisors for other psychotherapists.
GIGNESTHAI 2025/2026
Our Trainers
In addition to its three founding faculty members, Gignesthai is supported by a larger team of psychologists and existential psychotherapists, each with extensive experience in training the existential approach for counseling and psychotherapy.
A journey of a thousand miles… begins with a single step!
LAO TZU