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Teaching professional ethics in psychoanalytic institutes begins with two assumptions: (1) Students learn not only a code of ethics, they learn to develop their inner ethicist. (2) Institutes do not “train” students to become versed in a professional discipline, institutes educate, so students acquire a complex range of knowledge, developing intellectually and emotionally. Studying professional ethics begins with questions concerning freedom, free will, and responsibility, allowing students to contemplate emotionally charged topics: power politics, collegial relationships, organizational malfeasance, and boundary violations. Another area of concern involves the ability to observe and manage countertransference. Another related theme is trust: trust in supervisors, training analysts, instructors, and one's own ability to process countertransference. Processing countertransference is a necessary ethical obligation. Instructors need to be aware of the emotional stresses involved in studying professional ethics, particularly in discussions of sexual boundary violations. Students developing an ethical stance can enhance creativity in psychoanalytic work.