Practicum/ Internship

The Radford University PsyD Program in Counseling Psychology is closing and no longer accepting students. The Program has been granted “Accredited, Inactive” status by the American Psychological Association’s Commission on Accreditation.

Given that we are a Psy.D. Program, there are high expectations regarding practical training. Students who are admitted must have a Master’s degree from a program where they provided counseling under the supervision of an appropriately credentialed professional.  Therefore, students are scheduled to begin their practica immediately upon starting the program and continuing at various sites until they leave for internship. The sections below provide some information about practicum and internship training.

Practicum Placements and Supervisors

Students typically participate in three practicum placements that run across Fall, Spring, and Summer semesters, spending an average of 16 hours a week on-site (e.g., two full days; this does not include commuting time to and from the placement) during the Fall and Spring semesters and 8 hours a day over the Summer. Within these 16 hours, the goal is for students to have face-to-face contact with an average of 10 clients per week (8 hours in Summer, with 5 of them spent with clients). Thus, the overall goal is for students to have  1500 or more total practicum hours before leaving for internship, at least 500 of which are client contact hours. This will maximize competitiveness for internship and may also help satisfy training hours required for licensure. In fact, the Virginia Board of Psychology changed the regulations so that practicum hours can count toward licensure in certain circumstances and we have designed our practica to meet the requirements. This means that our students will be eligible for licensure in Virginia upon graduation from the Program and passing the national licensing exam.

The following places have indicated a willingness to accept qualified Psy.D. students.

  • Carilion Clinic, Radford Hospital
  • Catawba Hospital
  • Center for Assessment and Psychological Services (CAPS)
  • Community Health Center New River Valley (Christiansburg and Giles County offices)
  • New River Valley Community Services
  • Radford University Student Counseling Center
  • Salem Veteran's Affairs Medical Center 
  • Tri-Area Community Health
  • Virginia Tech Cook Counseling Center

Internship

A 2000 hour-long internship is required.  We have included several components in the program to maximize the likelihood that our students will be placed in high-quality sites. For example, as discussed above, the practicum training sequence is designed to allow students to receive at least 1500 total practicum hours, 500 of which are in face-to-face contact with clients. The curriculum is also practice-heavy, with several assessment and applied courses. Below are some of the sites where our students have been accepted for internship:

  • Appalachian State University Student Counseling Services, Boone, NC
  • Boise Veterans Administration Medical Center, Boise, ID
  • Cherokee Health Systems, Knoxville, TN
  • North Carolina State University Counseling Center, Raleigh, NC
  • University of Virginia-Student Health, Charlottesville, VA
  • VA Eastern Kansas Healthcare System, Leavenworth, KS
  • Central Alabama Veterans Health Care System, Tuskegee, AL
  • Appalachian State Student Counseling Services, Boone, NC
  • AspenPointe Behavioral Health, Colorado Springs, CO
  • University of Akron Counseling and Testing Center, Akron, OH
  • University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler, Tyler, TX
  • College of William and Mary Counseling Center, Williamsburg, VA
  • Virginia Commonwealth University Counseling Center, Richmond, VA
  • Virginia Tech Cook Counseling Center, Blacksburg, VA
  • Federal Correctional Complex, Terre Haute, IN
  • W. G. (Bill) Hefner VA Medical Center, Salisbury, NC
  • Iowa City VA Medical Center, Coralville, IA
  • Grand Valley State University, Counseling and Career Development Center, Allendale, MI
  • Federal Correctional Complex, Petersburg, VA
  • University of Washington Counseling Center, Seattle, WA