| Internship
During the internship, advanced school psychology students refine their skills in assessment, intervention and consultation under the supervision of certified school psychologists. They may be called upon to devise behavior modification plans and to address learning issues. Since school psychologists may be asked to address the needs of a variety of children, they benefit from diverse training experiences in the diagnosis and treatment of the wide range of childhood behavioral and learning disorders.
Interns are required to have two hours of weekly face-to-face supervision; this may be one hour of individual supervision and one hour of group supervision. The National Association of School Psychologists, which sets program accreditation standards, requires that the specialist-level internship be a 1200-hour experience, with at least 600 hours in a public school setting. (Any internship in a clinic or private school would therefore be considered part-time). If an intern misses hours for any reason, he or she must make up those hours in a manner arranged with his/her supervisor. If absences are deemed to be excessive in the judgment of the supervisor and the program director, the student may be required to extend the internship through the summer or beyond.
Each internship site is visited by program faculty at least once per semester. A faculty member also communicates with the internship site personnel during the school year. All interns are required to complete internship contracts and planning forms prior to the beginning of the internship placement. Each intern is evaluated in writing (using the Touro internship evaluation form) by the internship supervisor each semester. Three additional forms will be completed by supervisors in accordance with NASP requirements. All internships start at the beginning of the academic year except by special permission. Internships conclude when the hourly requirements have been met, with the understanding that these dates must also be satisfactory to the school/agency. Interns are expected to continue at their placements during Touro’s semester breaks if necessary.
Interns are required to maintain logs documenting days and hours spent and a summary of responsibilities at the internship site. Students are responsible for these logs, which must be signed by supervisors and submitted to the course instructor on a monthly basis. Electronic logs are acceptable provided they are sent from the supervisor’s e-mail address. Students will receive credit for the internship placement only if signed logs are submitted on time.
In addition to making interns participants in experiences at the internship agency and allowing them to observe administrative procedures, each internship opportunity must address training with the goal of novice-level competency in the following ten domains of practice that constitute the current training standards outlined by the National Association of School Psychologists (www.nasponline.org)
During the internship experience, students continue to attend college-based seminars that include additional supervision and introduce new material. Students interview for internships during the academic year prior to the internship; the requirements of different sites and the application deadlines vary. There are a limited number of highly competitive internships available with the New York City Department of Education. Additional details on internships and the application process are available through the program director.
Professional Conferences, Colloquia, and other Academic Events
Students are expected to attend professional conferences off-campus if such attendance is required by course instructors. Attendance at all on-campus school psychology events is expected. Attendance at conferences during internship may be counted toward required internship hours. Students are required to notify their on-site supervisor of their conference attendance. Students who are employed are expected to make arrangements so that they can attend the conferences.
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