The Counseling Center offers both practicum and internship opportunities for graduate students in Counselor Education, Counseling, and Psychology. We prefer that individuals commit to a full academic year of training (August-May). We rarely grant summer-only (May-August) internships, and if we do, they are unpaid.
Our Practicum and Internship Program accepts talented students from a variety of academic programs such as Counselor Education, Psychology and Social Work at NC State University. In addition, we accept applications from students at other universities. The program allows all students to work with senior staff from varying disciplines.
Dr. Richard Tyler and Dr. Lari Jackson co-coordinate the Practicum and Internship Program, working with Dr. Monica Osburn, our director, and other senior staff members who volunteer to train and supervise. Many college counseling centers operate within a multi-disciplinary framework, and our training program is no exception. We expect a cooperative spirit and enthusiasm to learn from a variety of colleagues (peers, supervisors, senior staff, psychiatrists, and our office staff).
Practicum
Independently of any hours you commit to your academic program (coursework or supervision provided by your program), you generally work 10-20 hours a week at the Counseling Center. Typically you receive a minimum of 1 hour a week of group supervision and 1 hour a week of individual supervision. Once we have oriented you to the system here and assessed your skills, your supervisor will refer clients to you directly. Typically during a beginning practicum you will work with students on academic issues (such as study skills, time management, or procrastination), career issues and assessments, and mild personal issues. We assign advanced practicum students a greater variety of cases.
During group supervision all trainees meet together with one or more senior staff. We use group supervision time for orientation, explanation of procedures, questions from trainees, and processing work and professional development experiences. We dedicate many sessions to specific topics, and we often focus on relevant clinical issues and treatment techniques. Trainees have an opportunity to influence the topics we select for group supervision.
In addition, practicum students develop and lead workshops on various academic and personal issues. This type of activity is typically expected of most clinicians in a college setting and it is an important skill to develop. This direct service can often be counted as group hours. At times, therapy and psycho-educational groups are offered at the Counseling Center, and if appropriate, practicum students can participate as co-facilitators with senior staff.
Internship
Independently of the hours you commit to your academic programs (coursework or supervision provided by the program) you generally work 35-40 hours a week at the Counseling Center. You receive a minimum of one hour a week of group supervision and one hour a week of individual supervision. If your program requires additional supervision we must negotiate this prior to your acceptance of an internship placement.
As your skill level increases, so will the complexity of the cases to which we will assign you. Students can expect that they will get approximately two thirds of their direct service hours in the last half of the semester. This is due to the increase in demand for services as the semester progresses, as well as the increase in your skill level and comfort level that occurs as you gain greater experience.
In addition, interns will develop and lead workshops on various academic and personal issues. This type of activity is typically expected of most clinicians in a college setting and it is an important skill to develop. This direct service can often be counted as group hours. At times, therapy and psycho-educational groups are offered at the Counseling Center, and if appropriate, interns can participate as co-facilitators with senior staff.
Application Process
March 31st is the application deadline for both Practicum and Internship. Submit all the following materials prior to March 31st:
- Your professional curriculum vitae or résumé
- A letter of interest which outlines your professional goals and describes why you want to work both at the Counseling Center and with the university population.
- A complete Application for Training. [downloadable .doc format]
You may submit these items in person at the Counseling Center, or you may mail them to:
Dr. Lari Jackson & Dr. Richard Tyler
NCSU Counseling Center
Campus Box 7312
2815 Cates Ave, 2nd Floor
Raleigh, NC 27695-7312
Once we have received your application materials, we will invite you to an interview with the training program coordinators. We hope to complete the interviews quickly and should be able to reach a decision by early May. The number of practicum students and/or interns we select each year depends on a variety of factors: office space availability, availability of supervisors, and the number of qualified applicants. We typically have more students interested in training here than we have space available, and obtaining a placement may be competitive. If you have further questions, please call Dr. Lari Jackson or Dr. Richard Tyler at 919-515-2423.
