This document discusses internship programs for distance-based education. It notes that internships are often required for clinical licensure and can provide applied experience. It then outlines various ways to facilitate internship placements, including orientation, handbooks, webinars, support staff, tracking software, vetting sites, and defining faculty and supervision roles. Specific requirements are discussed for clinical placements, which require both local and university supervision. Non-clinical internships in areas like forensic and organizational psychology are also mentioned.
1. A Whole New World:
Future Paths for Internship
Programs in Distance-Based Education
Dr. Bettina Shapira
Dr. Yulia Watters, LMFT
2. NCU Overview
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• Fully Online; no residency
• 1:1 teaching model
• Students from around the world
• Internship placements around the world
3. Why Offer Internships?
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Clinical Internships
Clinical Experience (client/patient contact hours)
Often required by accreditors
Needed for licensure requirements
Non-Clinical Internships
Applied Experience in Online Graduate Programs
Greater opportunity to apply academic knowledge to real world experiences
Improves graduates career opportunities and securing employment
4. How to Facilitate Internship Placements
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• New Student Orientation
• Internship Handbooks
• Webinars and Q&A Sessions (expectation setting)
• Support Staff
• Clinical Readiness (for clinical programs)
• HIPAA
• Background Checks
• Pre-requisite Courses
• Ethical Essay/Readiness for Clinical Work
5. • Tracking Software
• Vetting Placement Sites
• Placement Database
• Hours Tracking
• Evaluations
• Faculty Roles (teaching and administration)
• Finding: Networking with Potential Placements (sites and supervisors)
• Seeker Support
• Ongoing Faculty Meetings/Administration (Clinical Admin Meetings, Clinical
Faculty Meeting; Internship Coordinator Meeting)
How To (cont.)
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6. • For Clinical Placements BOTH Local AND University Supervision is needed.
• Requirements for Virtual Supervision
Technology Needs
Security and Confidentiality (HIPAA)
Informed Consent
Coverage across Time Zones
• Working with Local Supervisors
Kick-off meetings
Mid-Course Check-ins within each term
End of Course Evaluations each term
Ongoing communication as needed
Supervision
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7. Non-Clinical Applied Psychology
Internships
Program offerings
• Forensic Psychology
• Industrial/Organizational Psychology
• Child and Adolescent Developmental Psychology
• Health Psychology
• Educational Psychology
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NCU is a fully online university that has one-to-one learning model. We have continuous enrollment. While there is a standardized curriculum, there is no cohort experience. Students do not work together on any projects, but are rather assigned to a faculty member for each course in the program, to work directly with this faculty member and learn from his/her expertise.
We have students from all over the world and subsequently work to set up internship placements around the world.
Clinical Internships:
MAMFT program is COAMFTE accredited and requires to provide a clinical internship as part of the program. During this time students accumulate their direct contact hours (individual and relational) as well as meet with their local AAMFT approved supervisors to acquire their supervision hours.
Non-Clinical Internships:
Traditional internships or practicums are mostly offered in clinical or applied programs. However, research indicates that students reap significant benefits from the real world practice that internships can provide. Students consistently state that the exposure to their field of interest instills confidence and enhances learning. It also gives students the opportunity to apply their theoretical learning to real world situations, which deepens the understanding of the knowledge gained throughout the program.
Students are informed about the clinical internship at the applicant stage and then throughout the program. The School has a clinical faculty team including Director of Clinical Training and two Associate Directors for Mater’s and Doctorate programs. Students have access to an Internship handbook outlining policies and procedures as well as technology requirements. The support staff also helps with students’ background checks.
Students have to complete pre-requisite courses in order to enroll in Clinical courses that happen during their Internship placement. They also have to complete an ethical essay to demonstrate their readiness for clinical work.
Students are informed at the application stage of the program that they will need to find a clinical placement and secure a local AAMFT supervisor. The faculty member in the clinical courses does not serve as an AAMFT Approved supervisor. The clinical team helps student to review the site and participating in the vetting of the site, making sure that the site is acceptable for the student.
Clinical team also maintains the placement database and share the results with students.
During the clinical courses students have an opportunity to evaluate their site and their supervisor. The NCU faculty also meet with local supervisor and have their contacts to discuss any concerns or questions that might come up.
The clinical team is constantly networking with potential placements and looking for additional sites and supervisors.
Clinical team also has a standing meeting with NCU clinical faculty to seek their input and feedback.
NCU uses a tracking software for evaluations, hours audits, and help students to track their hours throughout the program. The hours are evaluated at the end of each clinical course.
For clinical placement both local and University supervision is needed:
Qualified Local Supervisors
Comprehensive supervision of the breadth and depth of student’s clinical work
Qualified Faculty as Supervisors
Process-focused supervision about clinical process, techniques, models, skills, etc.
Requirements for virtual supervision are presented to students and faculty. The University is using HIPAA compliant software for clinical courses. Students are provided examples of informed consent but encouraged to work with their local supervisor pertaining to any forms or requirements.
NCU faculty member maintain regular contact with local supervisor and evaluate students’ performance along with the local supervisor.
At NCU, students seeking a MS degree in
Forensic Psychology
Industrial/Organizational Psychology
Child and Adolescent Developmental Psychology
Health Psychology
Educational Psychology
may opt to complete their degree by taking an internship course instead of the Capstone course. Students interested in this option are required to submit paperwork approving their internship site prior to enrolling in this course and no later than their eighth course in the program. During the internship experience, students will meet weekly with their assigned NCU professor as well as their approved internship site supervisor to discuss their experiences. Weekly assignments include submission of required evaluations and preparation for the final theoretically grounded presentation summarizing the internship experience. Internship experiences are designed to guide candidates through specific standards-aligned experiences with resulting growth in competencies demonstrated through application in practice.
If students choose the internship course option, they will complete a 100-hour, non-clinical internship experience.
The internship experience is designed to guide candidates through specific standard-aligned experiences with resulting growth in competencies demonstrated through application in practice. Faculty and local NCU-approved supervisors engage students in a one-on-one process that invites students to grow both professionally and personally through the development of critical thinking skills, information literacy, an appreciation of research, a valuing of diversity, and an application theory and principles. In addition, Students are expected to develop and demonstrate competence in applying theoretical knowledge to real world situations. Also, students are expected to demonstrate competence in applying the APA Code of Ethics to situations.
