Doctoral School Psychology Internships in NonSchool Settings in the United States

Abstract

School psychologists in the United States work in a variety of settings outside of schools, particularly school psychologists with doctoral degrees. As interns are more likely to obtain employment in a setting similar to the internship site, this study reviewed non-school internship centres that indicated they would consider applications from school psychology doctoral students. Internship directors were asked to complete a questionnaire about the characteristics of the internship site and their perceptions of doctoral interns. School psychology interns devoted the majority of their time to individual and group counselling and psychotherapy and assessment. School psychology interns were perceived as having strengths in educational and psychological assessment and consultation and weaknesses in individual, group and family counselling/psychotherapy. Doctoral students from school psychology programs are perceived as strongest in areas equated with the traditional role of school psychologists in the schools, and weakest at the tasks in which they would devote most time in non-school settings. School psychology doctoral students seeking an internship outside of schools should select additional coursework in counselling and psychotherapy, diagnostic personality assessment and practica in settings similar to the desired internship site. Training programs can support students by providing mentorship and assistance in obtaining the requisite courses and field experiences.School psychologists in the US traditionally work in public school settings, and about 85 percent are currently employed in public schools (Reschly,

Internship Training Directors’ Perceptions of School Psychology Internship Applicants

“…These findings are consistent with those of Brown et al. (), who found that internship training directors perceived school psychology applicants as lacking adequate knowledge of psychotherapy and having less experience in individual and group therapy. However, given that these training directors do not accept or review applications from school psychology students, it is unclear how they are able to make this determination.…”

“…A 15‐ to 20‐minute survey was developed by the researchers in the present study to gain information about why some training directors of APA‐accredited programs that include one or more major rotations with children and/or adolescents choose to allow or prohibit school psychology doctoral students from applying for their internship program. Survey items were developed based on previous literature (i.e., Brown et al., ; Gayer et al., ) and aspects of the APPIC Application for Psychology Internship (AAPI) that are reviewed when considering applicants (Ginkel, Davis, & Michael, ). The survey included 38 questions that yielded information on 82 variables.…”

“…However, research conducted 12 years ago suggests that internship directors at that time perceived school psychology students as having relative weaknesses in the following areas: clinical personality assessment (36%); knowledge and experience related to counseling and individual and group psychotherapy (31%); family therapy (30%); and neuropsychological assessment (25%; Brown, Kissell, & Bolen, ). Further, 34% of the directors surveyed at that time believed that school psychology students often lacked appropriate practica experience for work outside of the schools (Brown et al., ). The role that these perceived strengths and weaknesses play in school psychology students being able to acquire APA or APPIC internships has not been investigated.…”

Comparing School and Clinical Psychology Internship Applicant Characteristics

“…When those training directors who did not permit school psychology students to apply for their internship programs were asked why such students were not permitted to apply, they generally reported that they perceived school psychology applicants as having less relevant practicum experiences in fewer settings and as having narrower training, with less knowledge of psychopathology and less non‐school intervention experience. These findings were generally consistent with those of Brown, Kissell, and Bolen (), who found that school psychology students were perceived by 34% of internship training directors as having less practicum experience in non‐school settings and having less experience providing individual, group, and family therapy services.…”

Internships in School Psychology: Selection and Accreditation Issues

“…Without a doubt, there is considerable support for the anecdotal reports from SP students about the limited choices of internship sites available to them through the APPIC Match, along with the experience of being “locked out” of many sites. Some previous research also supports this perspective (e.g., Brown, Kissell, & Bolen, ; Gayer, Brown, Gridley, & Treloar, ). It is reasonable to assume that many internship Training Directors perceive SP students as lacking in the skills, background, or experiences that are relevant to their internship sites and thus deem them as unqualified for their programs.…”