Supervised Field Training

• acquire and practice direct clinical service (assessment and intervention) skills
• develop the capacity for critical self-observation and evaluation
• observe and conceptualize various aspects of human behavior and interaction
• confront and resolve complex issues related to human service delivery and effectively utilize empirically-based findings
• formulate novel theoretical constructs and hypotheses about client systems and social contexts

Fieldwork activity follows a developmental model consisting of a sequence of nine-to 12 month training experiences of increasing complexity and responsibility. Each training experience is designed to accommodate the student's particular level of professional development: pre-practica (for Two-Plus students) familiarize students with the basic features and broad outlines of mental health service delivery; practica serve primarily to introduce students to professional setting and clinical roles, and expose them to supervision and the supervisory relationship; and externships emphasize the expansion and refinement of clinical skills and behaviors specifically according to the student's identified goals, competencies and training needs.

Required Clinical Experience

Pre-Practicum
Approximately 12-16 hours per week for nine months

The pre-practicum is the beginning experiential component of professional training designed for students entering the Two-Plus Curriculum. In conjunction with the three-hour per week, three-quarter course, 479 Introduction to Clinical Practice course sequence, this experience introduces students to the mental health system and provides an introduction to basic skills and concepts related to the practice of professional counseling. Under supervision, students are exposed to a broad range of clinical activities and client issues. Characteristic settings include milieu-based programs such as partial hospitalization programs or psychosocial rehabilitation outpatient programs housed in comprehensive mental health agencies. Students observe and participate in support groups, skills-based groups and treatment groups, interact with clients and assist staff with milieu activities. Often they participate in case consultation meetings with a multidisciplinary staff. In addition, they learn how to conduct clinical intake and diagnostic interviews. Two-Plus students then go on in subsequent academic years to complete a supervised practicum and supervised externship.

Practicum
Approximately 16-20 hours per week for nine-12 months

The practicum experience, taken in conjunction with the course sequence 480 Counseling Methods I, II and III, is designed to provide a general orientation to human service and mental health service delivery, the opportunity for systematic application of a basic repertoire of psychological skills, and an introduction to supervision and the intensive supervisory relationship. The Practicum field site is particularly equipped to introduce students to these dimensions of service delivery on a limited time basis. In addition to the clinical supervisor at the field site, every practicum student meets weekly with a Backhome Preceptor for intensive individualized self-reflection exercises.

Externship
Approximately 20-24 hours per week for nine-12 months

Students in the externship experience are expected to perform basic client management tasks with appropriate competence and responsibility, and to participate fully in additional role-related clinical service and training activities as permitted and/or required by the more extended commitment. The selection of a specific externship site, therefore, corresponds to the student's choice of specialization and reflects the facility's capacity to address the unique training needs and interests of the respective student. This includes the opportunity to experience a specialized client population, particular intervention approach, assessment procedure or combination of the above. Concurrent with the fieldwork commitment, externs enroll in the three-quarter 483 Professional Ethics/ Cultural Diversity/Professional Issues sequence where professional identity concerns and ethical and legal issues comprise the core focus of discussion. Students are encouraged to attend a weekly Case Conference in the externship year.

Summer Quarter Clinical Experiences

Several Summer Quarter clinical experiences are offered to enrich the clinical training experience. All experiences include registration for a fieldwork course and participation in concurrent clinical fieldwork. No tuition is charged for the Summer Quarter fieldwork courses and they are not part of the required curriculum. Direct service hours spent face-to-face with clients in a Summer Quarter fieldwork experience are separate from and do not count toward the 80 face-to-face hours required for the Practicum and the 240 face-to-face hours required for the Externship. Trainees are required to participate in the experience beginning the first day of Summer Quarter, typically the Monday of the third full week of June, and ending at the start of Fall Quarter, typically the Monday of the third full week of September. Please note that this schedule may vary for those trainees participating in a Summer Quarter clinical experience the summer before the externship year begins, especially if the externship takes place at an external site.

Pre-Program Clinical Experience (PPCE)
Before the Program officially begins in Fall Quarter, students in the Standard Curriculum are strongly encouraged to participate in a Pre-Program Clinical Experience (PPCE) at The Family Institute Clinic. PPCE students matriculate in Summer Quarter and register for an eight-week course, Coun Psy 481-0 Introduction to Supervised Practicum, which meets for two hours on Tuesday afternoons. Students also carry a caseload of 3-5 clients and attend group supervision for three hours weekly (day/time varies). The experience begins at the start of Summer Quarter, typically the Monday of the third full week of June, and continues until the beginning of Fall Quarter, typically the Monday of the third full week of September. During the first week, students receive an orientation to the Counseling Psychology Program, attend the first class, receive orientation and training at The Family Institute clinic and begin group supervision. Students can begin to see clients as early as July 1st. PPCE students enjoy a head start as they enter the program with a familiar group of students and fieldwork supervisors and carry an established caseload that will be increased by 3-5 cases over the course of the Practicum training year.

PPCE students are enrolled in a zero credit course and are considered by the University to be registered "less than half-time." They are not required to have university health insurance or to show proof of health insurance and while they qualify for Supplemental and/or alternative loans, they will not qualify for Federal Loans or have access to UPass. The PPCE schedule does allow ample time for students to work outside of the program in a job that offers a flexible schedule.

Summer Quarter Clinical Experiences for Continuing Students

• The continuing students complete a required Summer Quarter clinical experience as follows: Two-Plus students complete a summer clinical experience at The Family Institute between the Pre-Practicum and Practicum years
• All Standard and Two-Plus students who continue on for their Externship at The Family Institute are required to complete a summer clinical experience between the Practicum and Externship years
• All continuing students who complete an Externship that begins in Summer Quarter at an external site (a site other than The Family Institute) complete a summer clinical experience between the Practicum and Externship years. The start and end dates vary by site and will be arranged in conjunction with the students prior to their placement at the site. Some external Externship sites do not require summer training.

All continuing students who complete a Summer Quarter clinical experience register for a zero credit fieldwork course (no tuition cost) and participate in concurrent fieldwork. For students who are placed at The Family Institute, the experience begins at the start of Summer Quarter, typically the Monday of the third full week of June, and continues until the beginning of Fall Quarter, typically the Monday of the third full week of September. For students completing the Externship at an external site, the schedule may vary.