Graduate Training Opportunities
NOTE: DRUG TESTING, FINGERPRINTING, AND BACKGROUND CHECKS ARE REQUIRED OF ALL STUDENTS PRIOR TO BEGINNING THEIR TRAINING EXPERIENCES
Master’s Level Counseling Practicum
The Master’s Level Counseling Practicum, by design, enables students to establish their professional counseling competencies. The practicum is a highly individualized experience designed to assist the student in developing a higher level of functioning in the role of counselor. The overall focus is on developing helping skills, enhancing self-understanding and confidence, and integrating and applying counseling theory. WSTI clinical supervisors work closely with university faculty members to ensure appropriate development of the student’s clinical skills.
Master’s Level Social Work Practicum
The Master’s Level Social Work Practicum offers an opportunity for students to integrate and apply theoretical knowledge and social work practice skills in a multi-disciplinary setting which delivers service coordination, case management, psychosocial rehabilitation, and clinical counseling services. WSTI clinical supervisors work closely with university faculty members to ensure appropriate development of the student’s clinical skills.
APA Accredited Pre-doctoral Internship in Professional Psychology
The application for WSTI’s Pre-doctoral Internship in Professional Psychology is located at www.appic.org.
The Pre-doctoral Internship in Professional Psychology provides clinical training to those who have completed all academic work for their doctoral degree in clinical, counseling or school psychology. Clinical experience is obtained in individual, family, and group modalities with children, teens, adults, couples, and families. Clinical services are provided through the Warm Springs Counseling Center. Graduates of this internship have intermediate to advanced skills, knowledge, and confidence to provide competent, ethical, and responsible psychological services in outpatient mental health settings. Internship begins on the third Monday of August and lasts 12 full months.
The internship is a member of the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC) and is accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA).
The Pre-doctoral Internship in Professional Psychology educates interns in the business of psychology as well as providing clinical experience. To this end, expectations about the size and composition of interns’ caseloads are overtly communicated and interns are provided with tools for monitoring their billing productivity. Intern caseloads consist of individual clients, family therapy, group therapy, and psychological testing. Cases are assigned with an eye toward providing each intern with diverse clinical issues, ages, and cultural experiences.
At the beginning of the internship year, Interns participate in a one-week orientation process which includes all requisite clearances (background checks & drug tests), human resource paperwork, HIPAA training, and training in administrative and clinical procedures. Clinical supervisors are assigned and interns are provided time to ask questions of the agency and internship staff.
Interns receive and are expected to become familiar with the agency Policy and Procedures Manual. This manual provides information on the overall functioning of the agency and how specific services must function within state regulatory guidelines.
Distribution of a Typical Work Week
A typical week for interns breaks down as follows:
- Training & Supervision: 10 hours per week
- Psychotherapy (individual, family and/or group): 13-14 hours per week
- Intakes: 3-4 hours per week
- Assessments: 5 hours per week
- Discretionary - prep, research, etc.: 12 hours per week
Supervision & Training
Each intern receives a minimum of 2 hours of individual supervision from a doctoral-level psychologist each week. One hour is provided by the primary supervisor who works with that intern for the entire internship year. The second hour of supervision is provided by the secondary supervisor, which rotates every four months. Additional formal supervision and training activities include:
- Group Supervision: 3 hours per week
- Supervision of Family Therapy: Dr. Golden - 1 hour per week
- Supervision of Group Therapy: Dr. Hogan - 1 hour per week
- Supervision of Assessment: Varies - 1 hour per week
- Professional Seminar: Dr. Ward - 1 hour on alternate weeks
- Assessment Didactic: Dr. Eiguren - 1 hour per week
- Clinical Study Group: Varies - 1 hour per week
- Professional Development Didactic: 2 hours on alternate weeks
- Peer Consultation: 1 hour per week
- Case Consultation: 1 hour on alternate weeks
Interns have opportunity for informal supervision from other licensed/certified behavioral health professions (e.g., psychiatrist, physician, social worker, counselor, etc.) as needed. However, the ultimate clinical responsibility for cases lies with their identified psychologist supervisor. Interns collaborate with their supervisors to find a mutually agreeable supervision time.
Peer Consultation
Interns participate in weekly peer consultations that include a variety of functions including peer review of charts, case conferences, supervisor evaluations, and other activities that interns decide will enhance the training experience. This provides students the opportunity to present and hear cases in a group setting. Interns may invite graduate-level practicum students and other clinical staff to participate as they see fit. Each intern is expected to present at least four cases during the internship year. The intent of the case conference is to increase the intern’s experience and comfort with presenting cases in a group setting and to receive peer feedback. Case conferences are not designed to confront interns on the work being performed.
In-service Presentations
Near the end of the internship year, each intern presents a 2-hour in-service to agency clinicians on a topic of his/her choice. Interns may present on topics of interest and/or expertise to them or on topics which they would like to explore further. Topics should be discussed with their primary supervisor during the first quarter of the internship year, with the actual in-service presentation occurring between June and August.
Community Outreach Project
Each intern is expected to participate in one community outreach project during the course of the year. The Director of Training co-ordinates these opportunities and matches them with intern skills & interests.
Intern Evaluations
Interns complete a self-evaluation during Orientation Week, at mid-term (January) and at the end of internship. Primary clinical supervisors provide interns with written feedback regarding their performance at mid-year and at year -end. The Director of Training reviews all evaluations, co-signs them, and distributes copies to the training programs.
At mid-year and at year-end, interns (as a group) give written supervisor evaluations to each clinical supervisor. This format is adopted in recognition of the power differential between interns and their supervisors, with an eye to receiving useful feedback that will improve the contributions that each supervisor makes to interns’ training experience. Copies of supervisor evaluations are provided to the Director of Training. Data will be collected regarding didactics, supervision and the intern’s overall impression of how well the internship prepared them for the role as a professional psychologist. This data will inform internship planning processes.
American Psychological Association
Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation
750 First Street, NE
Washington, DC 20002-4242
Phone: 202-336-5979