Department of Psychology

Internships in Psychology

Internships are an excellent way for students to gain real-word experiences with agencies, organizations, and businesses to apply psychological principles and knowledge.

Internships in Psychology require a written contract between the student and instructor and approval by the chair of the Psychology Department (Prereq: PSYC 101, 2.5 GPA). Students will participate in an out-of-classroom internship experience related to the field of psychology. Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Demonstrate the knowledge gained from the Internship experience in the field of psychology.
2. Apply psychological principles related to the Internship experience in the field of psychology.

Student attendance will be determined by the requirements of the Internship specified in the written contract. Typically, students complete 33 hours for the internship per credit hour (100 hours = 3 credits). The experiential nature of an internship requires that students adhere rigorously to attendance guidelines. The final grade for the internship will be determined by the requirements specified in the written contract. Weekly or biweekly updates and written assignments may be required.

If you are interested in completing an internship in psychology, please visit Career Services and/or a Psychology faculty member to learn more about the various agencies and organizations with which we have established relationships. Each individual faculty member may agree or not agree to supervise the proposed internship. It takes time to identify, arrange and coordinate internships, so we recommend you start the process the semester before you wish to complete the internship.

After you have identified an internship agency/organization and a faculty supervisor, please collect the following documents and bring them to the Chair of the Department of Psychology, Terry Pettijohn, Smith 210B:

From Career Services (Lib Jackson Student Union, A-203)

• Completed "Memorandum of Understanding" form with agency/organization.
  • If we have worked with this agency/organization in the past, there will be a MOU on file
  • If this is a new agency/organization, appropriate signatures and a site visit are required
• Completed "Internship Learning Contract" form
  • Faculty coordinator will complete the course number and credits
• Completed "Code of Professional and Ethical Conduct for Student Interns" form

From Faculty Supervisor

• Completed "Instructional/Course Contract for Non-Traditional Study" form
• Syllabus for PSYC 399/490/495

After the Chair of the Department of Psychology reviews the documents and makes a copy to be placed in your advising folder, you will be directed to take the packet to the Dean's office in the College of Science (Science II, 210).

After the Dean's office approves the internship, the Dean's office will have the Registrar's office create the section and then instruct the Department to enroll you in the section.

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