The George Washington University Colonial Health Center

The George Washington University Colonial Health Center

Doctoral Internship in Professional Psychology Brochure

Our APPIC Match Number is 118911

The Colonial Health Center (CHC) at The George Washington University is currently accepting applications for two (2) full-time internship positions for the 2018-2019 academic year. We hope that the information contained in this brochure provides a comprehensive understanding of what we have to offer in our internship program. We hope that this information will allow you to make decisions about the fit of our internship with your interests. If you have any questions, please call Amber Cargill, Psy.D., Assistant Director for Training and Education at 202-994-5300 or email .

Table of Contents

Application Information...... 2

Internship Setting...... 3

Philosophy of Training…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….5

Internship Overview...... 7

Internship Goals...... 8

Internship Activities...... 10

Sample Schedule...... 13

Meet the Training Staff...... 14

Application Information

Eligibility Requirements

We prefer applicants from Ph.D. and Psy.D. programs in clinical or counseling psychology. Stronger consideration will be given to applicants from APA accredited programs. Applicants should have a minimum of 500 intervention hours on the APPI by the application due date (see below for due date). All coursework, practicum experience, and comprehensive examinations required for the doctoral degree should be completed (or in progress) prior to the rank orderlist submission deadline, and must be completed prior to the internship start date. Applications are not considered complete until all materials are received. Individuals who are currently receiving Colonial Health Centermental health services or who have received Colonial Health Centermental healthservices in the past are not eligible to apply to CHC graduate training programs or postdoctoral fellowships.

Application Deadline

To be considered for the internship of the academic year 2018-2019, all application materials must be uploaded on to the AAPI Online byFriday, November 3, 2017 at 3:00 p.m. (EST). Interview notifications will be sent no later thanDecember 13, 2017. Interviews will be set up and conducted in early January.Match Day for Phase I is February 23, 2018.

Application Instructions

UCC is participating in the APPIC Match, as a APPIC member and APA Accredited program. Please contact the Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation at Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation, American Psychological Association, 750 1st St, NE, Washington, DC 20002, or contacted via phone at 202-336-5979 or email at . Please see APPIC’s website for more information regarding general application procedures ( Our APPIC Match number is 118911.

To apply electronically, please follow instructions for the AAPI Online. Please make sure that your AAPI includes the following:

1. A cover letter that includes information about your interests and how our program fits with your experience, training goals, and longer term career plans
2. Vita detailing educational, training, practicum, and employment experiences
3. Official transcripts of graduate coursework
4. Three letters of recommendation, two of which must be from persons familiar with your recent clinical/counseling work.
5. Completed and accurate Part I of AAPI
6. Academic Program's Verification of Internship Eligibility and Readiness

Internship Setting

The George Washington University was created in 1821 through an Act of Congress, fulfilling George Washington’s vision of an institution in the nation’s capital dedicated to educating and preparing future leaders.

Today, GW is the largest institution of higher education in the District of Columbia. We have more than 20,000 students—from all 50 states, the District and more than 130 countries—studying a rich range of disciplines: from forensic science and creative writing to international affairs and computer engineering, as well as medicine, public health, the law and public policy.

GW comprises three campuses—Foggy Bottom and Mount Vernon in Washington, D.C., and the GW Virginia Science and Technology Campus in Ashburn, Va.—as well as several graduate education centers in the metropolitan area and Hampton Roads, Va.

Foggy Bottom Campus

TheFoggy Bottom Campussits in the heart of the nation’s capital, in a vibrant neighborhood bordered by the Potomac River, the Watergate complex, the White House and the State Department. Its location is key to the University’s mission and critical to its success. The campus is home to the majority of GW’s schools and administrative offices, as well as classrooms, libraries, residence halls and the University’s medical center.

Since 1912, GW’s Foggy Bottom Campus has been a part of the historic Foggy Bottom neighborhood, only blocks from the White House, State Department, World Bank, and world-class museums. The campus is truly a part of Washington, D.C., and its range of architecture reflects that relationship. More than 100 campus buildings house classrooms, libraries, residence halls, fitness centers and the medical center. Landscaped outdoor spaces include pocket parks, the University Yard, a flourishing rose garden, the classical Tempietto and outdoor sculptures.

The Colonial Health Center

Mission Statement

The Colonial Health Center (CHC) serves as the primary mental health agency for GW students and the entire campus community. Our mission is to support students' mental health and personal development by collaborating directly with students to overcome difficulties and challenges that may interfere with their academic, emotional and personal success.

Through individual and group counseling, crisis intervention, assessments, and referrals, CHC strives to provide students with ample opportunities to:

• develop greater insight and self-understanding

• identify and solve problems

• reduce emotional distress

• improve cognitive, emotional, academic, and interpersonal functioning

In addition to our direct clinical services, we seek to promote emotional health and wellness as a value to the GW community through consultation, outreach activities, and collaborative partnerships with faculty, staff, administrators, family members, and others in the campus community.

In the spirit of the educational mission of the university, CHC is also committed to preparing current student paraprofessionals and future mental health professionals for ethically and culturally competent practice through training and other educational activities.

We are committed to respecting and promoting the value of diversity at the university, as well as providing culturally sensitive mental health services to the campus community.

Diversity Statement of CHC

CHC is committed to creating a safe, welcoming, and affirming environment for all GW students—an environment that is conducive to the exploration of personal, social, emotional, and academic concerns. To echo GW’s Statement on Diversity and Inclusion:

“We must intentionally act to create the diverse and inclusive community that enables everyone to flourish.”

We define diversity to include, yet not be restricted to: ethnicity & ethnic identity, race & racial identity, age, sexual orientation, sex & gender identity, religious beliefs & affiliations, socioeconomic status, educational background, nationality, citizenship status, veteran status & military affiliation, body shape & size, differences in ability.

We value DIVERSITY as a guiding principle as we PROVIDE direct clinical services, PROMOTE social justice & campus-wide health and wellness, and PREPARE future mental health professionals and current student paraprofessionals for leadership and practice.

In addition, we are sensitive to diversity issues when interacting, consulting, and collaborating with colleagues and with the GW community.

We recognize and examine the effects of PREJUDICE, DISCRIMINATION, OPPRESSION, and POWER & PRIVILEGE upon complex emotional experiences and processes.

As a mental health agency, we take active and purposeful steps to be culturally self-aware, knowledgeable, and competent in all work-related matters. To that end, we embrace LEARNING as a life-long process.

We strive to PROMOTE SOCIAL JUSTICE for all persons and to create a supportive campus climate for all GW students. We contribute to this environment by using cultural empathy, acceptance, and compassion to inform all of the services we provide and all of our professional interactions.

The university is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action (EEO/AA) employer committed to maintaining a non-discriminatory, diverse work environment. The university does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or on any other basis prohibited by applicable law in any of its programs or activities.

The Staff

The professional staff at CHC consists of four licensed psychologists, three licensed clinical social workers, andtwo licensed professional counselors. There are three psychology associates and three licensed graduate professional counselors on staff as well. There are a number of administrative staff who support daily operations of the health center. Additionally, we have two postdoctoral clinical fellows, two doctoral interns, three masters interns, and an assessment extern. Our staff represents a variety of theoretical orientations and clinical experiences.

Philosophy of Training

Our training program is consistent with the overall mission of the George Washington University Colonial Health Center (CHC), i.e., to promote students’ mental health and personal development to overcome challenges that may interfere with their academic, emotional, and personal success through individual and group counseling, crisis intervention, assessments, outreach, and consultation. We operate from a practitioner-scholar model of training, emphasizing observing, learning, and practicing while consulting scholarly research. Our training philosophy emphasizes each of the following domains:

Clinical Competence

We recognize that the field of professional psychology demands a flexible repertoire of well integrated skills (e.g., intake assessments, crisis intervention, psychotherapy, consultation and outreach, psychological assessment, and supervision) applicable to a variety of contexts. In keeping with this notion, our training program encourages trainees to engage and continually assess their participation in a variety of clinical roles (e.g., clinician, community liaison, consultant). Our training program encompasses the broad range of clinical services offered by a university counseling center. Trainees apply their repertoire of skills across different contexts, target populations, and theoretical paradigms. We acknowledge an increasing level of theoretical and cultural diversity in the field of professional psychology, and we strive to reflect that diversity in our staffing.We value the opportunities to discuss and play a role in increasing trainees’ awareness of diversity issues and ability to adapt theoretical perspectives to individual differences. Trainees learn these principles through training activities, observation, and collaboration with senior staff.

Diversity/Individual Differences

A guiding training principle of the CHC is enhancing multicultural clinical competence. Our counseling center honors "culture" with a broad lens, inclusive of social locations and cultural identities including: race and racial identities, ethnicity and ethnic identities, religion, social class, acculturation experiences, sexual identity, gender and gender identity, and disability. This perspective promotes our philosophy that all counseling and therapeutic interactions are multicultural and cross-cultural, to the extent that there are similarities and differences across clinicians' and clients' backgrounds and experiences of power. Our training program strives to sharpen trainees’ knowledge of mental health experiences across these domains, encouraging reflection on their self-awareness of these facets of human experience in the service of building and expanding upon clinical competence.

Supervision/Mentorship

Our staff place a high value on our training program and consider our trainees a vital part of our center. Our training program adheres to an open-door policy with all staff, including trainees. Trainees are encouraged to interact with staff who function in a variety of roles such as mentor, supervisor, consultant, teacher, advocate, and administrator. We afford trainees numerous opportunities to work closely and in consultation with staff members across the range of CHC services.

A priority is placed on establishing supervisory relationships quickly so that trainees develop a secure relationship with their mentors. We believe that supervision is integral in fostering trainees’ development of the self-awareness necessary to function as independent professionals. In addition to teaching pertinent clinical skills, all senior staff model and underscore the importance of the highest ethical, legal, professional, and culturally competent standards, and emphasize the development of the trainees’ capacity to work collaboratively with colleagues and other professionals.

Professionalism/Professional Identity Development

Each year, we seek trainees who have experience with a variety of clinical populations and presenting concerns. As emerging professionals, trainees are expected to have a high degree of self-motivation and self-direction as their responsibilities increase over the course of the training year. We believe that it is essential for trainees to be self-aware and to reflect upon, discuss, and learn from their experiences. These prerequisites are key ingredients to the overall hope for our trainees: to increase the depth and complexity of their thinking about clients, self, and clinical/professional issues. Trainees learn to adapt to a fast paced and busy work environment. Training at the CHC is sequential, cumulative, and graded in complexity. From orientation through the unfolding academic year, our program allows for increasing levels of role conceptualization, responsibility, and variety of tasks. We value the collaborative relationship with have with our colleagues within Mental Health Services and across the entire CHC. Therefore, interns will have ample opportunity to grow in the their professional roles through effective communication, interdisciplinary collaboration and consultation, and Intern progress is monitored with semi-annual evaluations.

Research

Our training program is strongly informed by the professional literature, modeling the integration of science and practice in various ways. Our training program emphasizes the use of clinical theory as a lens to filter the inherent complexity of clinical observations (StrickerTrierweiler, 1995). CHC staff integrate theoretical and clinical readings with the discussion of case material in seminars and in supervision with trainees. Training seminars are designed to parallel closely trainees’ clinical activities. Trainees are encouraged to engage in program evaluation and research projects at our center. Our staff is also committed to furthering the scientific body of knowledge by attending and presenting at professional conferences. Trainees are also encouraged to attend and present at conferences, and are encouraged to engage in other scholarly activities.

Professional Ethics

Trainees are expected to follow ethical guidelines and principles as established by their respective governing associations, American Psychological Association (APA) for psychology trainees, American Counseling Association (ACA) for counseling trainees, and National Association of Social Workers (NASW) for social work trainees. They are expected to be aware of and adhere to pertinent District of Columbia laws governing professional practice. Trainees must maintain ALL client information confidential as required by law and the respective ethics codes. Ethical issues are integrated into all discussions regarding service delivery and into all training opportunities, including seminars, individual and group supervision sessions.

Overall, we offer a comprehensive and structured training program with the flexibility to address the individual learning needs of each trainee.

Internship Overview

The internship year begins August 1 and runs through July 31 of the following year.

The internship experience at CHC is based on 2000 hours of practice with an expectation of at least 500 hours of direct clinical service. Interns gain experience with a variety of direct service activities throughout the year which are described in detail below. Although there is a predetermined set of expectations required to complete internship, the degree of involvement in some activities is negotiable and determined by the interest and experience of the intern, as well as the needs of the CHC.

The internship position offers a salary of $26,100 paid on a bi-weekly basis. Interns receive annual and sick leave, as well as professional development time for professional activities such as dissertation defense, job interviews, and conferences. In addition, there are approximately 11 university holidays. All interns have a private office with a personal computer linked to the University network, and library privileges. Interns are also offered medical and dental insurance, as well as other employee benefits. Interns have the same level of access to administrative and support staff as full-time staff members. Administrative and support staff assist in the daily operations of the center.

******Interns are strongly encouraged to take the bulk of their leave between semesters and during the summer session to ensure that internship requirements are reached.******

Internship Aims, Competencies, and Elements

In addition to preparing interns to meet the requirements for psychologist licensure, our internship program aims to produce competent and versatile generalists who are prepared to practice as entry-level professionals in university counseling centers as well as a variety of related clinical settings. During the training year, interns are gradually given greater degrees of responsibility and autonomy, and by the end of their training year, interns have consolidated their learning experiences into a comprehensive set of professional skills. To that end, the internship program seeks to accomplish the following goals:

Aim 1: To assist interns in the development of competence in a range of activities in the practice of health service psychology in order to be competent entry-level professionals at the conclusion of internship.

Competency 1.1:Intervention

Interns will demonstrate competence in evidence-based interventions consistent with the scope of Health Service Psychology and consistent with the treatment model of the Colonial Health Center.

Interns will be provided with experiences in the following areas:

1. Using Evidence-based practice in intervention and assessment
2. Creating and sustaining effective relationships with a wide variety of clients
3. Learning about the Stepped-Care Model
4. Utilizing evidence and clinical data to determine treatment plans (i.e., step)
5. Evaluating the effectiveness of treatment plans, and referring to higher or lower steps as needed

Competency 1.2: Clinical

Interns will demonstrate competence appropriate to their level of professional development in initial assessment, psychotherapy/counseling, and crisis intervention.