Internship Child and Adolescent Psychology

Course goals

Course objectives
The objective of the internship is to prepare students to work as a clinical child and adolescent psychologist in a professional field. Students explore a professional field for child and adolescent psychologists, gain knowledge and insights, train skills and develop a professional attitude that starting child and adolescent psychologists in that professional field are expected to have. After completing the internship, students will:

• be familiar with a professional field, specifically the position of an academically trained child and adolescent psychologist.
• be able to demonstrate the ability to apply theoretical knowledge into practice in the professional field.
• have acquired (academic) skills and apply them in clinical practice.
• have developed a professional and academic attitude.
• be competent to reflect on the internship and their academic and professional experience.

Relation between assessment and objective         
The assessment of the internship is based on the knowledge, insights and skills that have been gained and the professional attitude that has been developed during the internship. These learning objectives will be translated into internship objectives formulated by the student and adapted to the specific professional field. The academic supervisor and external supervisor need to approve the internship objectives formulated by the student. The internship objectives will be discussed in two evaluations with the master student, the external supervisor and the academic supervisor. Moreover, the student writes an internship report and will do other assignments relevant to the internship as part of the internship group sessions at the University. The academic supervisor determines the final grade.
 

Content

Content
The internship focusses on research, treatment, policy or innovation within the professional field of clinical child and adolescent psychology. Students are prepared to work as a researcher / policy maker will acquire and practice research and policy skills, such as prepare a research study, collect data (interview, questionnaires, observation), analyze data, and report results.

Within the area of mental healthcare, internships can take place in institutions for youth services, childcare centers (for children with mental impairments), hospitals and clinics for child and adolescent psychiatry. Internships within the area of education could include school advisory or guidance services, special education schools or national pedagogic centers. Institutions can be oriented towards the problems of individual children (as emerging through education), as well as towards the broader or systematic problems of groups of students and educational institutions as a whole. Internships can also take place at research institutions.

After completing the programme, students can also register in SKJ (in Dutch: Stichting Kwaliteitsregister Jeugd).


Note that students who do a 15 EC internship, have to attend the clinical skills lab (5 EC) .