In 2022, Colorado decriminalized the personal use of psychedelics like psilocybin and DMT. The legislation also called for the creation of a regulated psychedelic therapy industry. In March 2025, the state awarded its first legal mushroom licenses. To remove barriers to licensure, CU Denver is now launching the state’s first psilocybin therapy training program.
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The 16-week hybrid course that will train facilitators to “legally and ethically guide psychedelic-assisted experiences,” said CBS News. The Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies has approved this program, which will cost $7,500. Classes start in October.
The program’s curriculum contains three main facets. “Ethical Integrity” encourages practitioners to prioritize client safety by upholding ethical standards and providing culturally competent care. This section will include learning to conduct a proper screening and knowing when psilocybin therapy may not be appropriate for a prospective client.
“Psychedelic Expertise” is fairly self-explanatory. Students will end the four-month course with a multidisciplinary knowledge of psychedelics, including the historical and cultural background necessary to maintain trust and safety for clients.
“Embodied Presence,” the third core value, focuses on students being able to channel their own emotions into their work. By tapping into their own emotional regulation and groundedness, students should be able to serve as compassionate practitioners for future clients who wish to partake in psilocybin.
According to CU Denver, the class will include didactic coursework, which includes real-world clinical experience.
The first cohort will have 25 students. Applications are being accepted here until September 22.
CU Denver’s program marks the first psilocybin therapy training program affiliated with a university, a groundbreaking feat. Higher education institutions have, in recent years, rolled out similar programs for cannabis. In 2021, the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) began to offer an online cannabis education program to familiarize students in the fields of weed agriculture, law, and medicine.
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Psilocybin therapy programs already exist, but many of them require their users to leave the state to access them. In taking this step, Colorado is telling its residents who rely on the drug to feel healthy that they don’t need to be able to afford an out-of-country trip to access it.