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The field of health service psychology demands a flexible and integrated repertoire of skills and competencies. In congruence with the Standards of Accreditation in Health Service Psychology, interns are expected to develop the following Profession-Wide Competencies:

Profession-Wide Competencies

1. Research
2. Ethical and Legal Standards
3. Individual and Cultural Diversity
4. Professional Values, Attitudes, and Behaviors
5. Communication and Interpersonal Skills
6. Assessment
7. Intervention
   • Individual Therapy
   • Group Therapy
8. Supervision
9. Consultation and Interprofessional / Interdisciplinary Skills
   • Outreach Programming
   • Consultation and Liaison relationships

Interns carry a caseload of up to 12 individual client hours per week. Interns also provide 4 hours of crisis hours per week. Individual counseling hours also include initial consultation appointments, psychological assessment, and alcohol assessment clients. Individual counseling is done primarily through short-term counseling.

Interns are expected to demonstrate the ability to:

• Establish and maintain effective relationships with the recipients of psychological services.
• Develop evidence-based intervention plans specific to the service delivery goals.
• Implement interventions informed by the current scientific literature, assessment findings, diversity characteristics, and contextual variables.
• Demonstrate the ability to apply the relevant research literature to clinical decision making.
• Modify and adapt evidence-based approaches effectively when a clear evidence-base is lacking.
• Evaluate intervention effectiveness and adapt intervention goals and methods consistent with ongoing evaluation.

Interns spend 1-1.5 hours per week providing group counseling services. In the Fall semester, each intern co-facilitates an interpersonal process group with a senior staff member.

In the Spring semester, interns are given the opportunity to co-facilitate a group with a fellow intern or with a senior staff member. CAPS groups intentionally serve a wide variety of student issues and presentations, therefore, our primary focus is on interpersonal process groups. CAPS also offers a rotating three-week psychoeducational group focused on distress reduction and coping skills for students. Interns lead these groups on their own after a period of observation of senior staff in the first part of Fall semester.

With attention to group professional, diversity and ethical issues, interns are expected to exhibit an understanding of significant issues of group work and to demonstrate effective group formation and facilitation skills.

Interns provide supervision to an advanced graduate practicum student for both the fall and spring semester. One hour is spent in face-to-face supervision and the remaining time is for tape review and case management.

Interns supervise two students over the course of the academic year; one student in the fall semester and another in the spring semester.

Interns are expected to develop and demonstrate competency in the:

• Establishment of effective supervision relationships
• Effective supervision structure
• Counseling skills assessment and development
• Establishment of learning goals
• Provision of feedback on counseling, diversity, ethical and interpersonal issues

Interns provide consultation and outreach services to the University community.

Interns are expected to:

• Demonstrate knowledge and respect for the roles and perspectives of other professions
• Demonstrate knowledge of consultation models and practices
• Develop effective liaison and consultant relationships
• Respond effectively to consultation requests
• Prepare and deliver effective workshops and psycho-educational programs
• Represent the agency well to other constituencies.

We are committed to training from a culturally competent perspective. Our internship program is based on the idea that psychology practice is enhanced, and more effective, with a broader and more adept view of what it is to be human – with infinite cultural variations and individual differences.

As such, our cultural competency training focuses on the development and demonstration of the following domains:

• Cultural Skills
• Cultural Knowledge
• Cultural Awareness
• Cultural Sensitivity

Our staff and trainees are expected to incorporate issues of culture and diversity in all aspects of their clinical work, including supervision, case consultation, assessment, treatment planning, crisis intervention, and outreach and consultation.

Doctoral Psychology interns conduct comprehensive assessments for common barriers to student learning (e.g., ADHD, Learning Disabilities, Mental Health Conditions). The assessment process involves conducting a clinical interview, administering a battery of neurocognitive and psychological tests, writing an integrated report, and offering a formal feedback session.

• Assessment is a required rotation and interns will complete this during one semester of their internship (Fall, Spring, or Summer).

• Interns receive training and supervision on the assessment battery during orientation and throughout their assessment rotation with our Assessment psychologist.

• Tests include well-known cognitive, achievement, learning/memory, executive functioning, and personality measures.  Tests are administered and scored electronically.