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Internship & Directed Study Options

Directed Study refers to learning experiences individually arranged between a University undergraduate student and a member of the University faculty for earning academic credit while gaining applied experience in educational or human service setting in the community.

Picture of Sharon Layon at her desk. Directed study credit will not be awarded for experience alone, but should be related to the description and analysis of that experience organized with information gained from selected readings and any information from classroom, textbooks, or personal interviews that are appropriate.

Requirements for an internship:

Psy 2010 Human Service Seminar. This class is required before you are able to register for an internship.
Psy 3996 Preprofessional Field Placement. The professor for Psy3996 will be your internship contact.

Supervised experience in human service organization. Contract, log, site evaluation, and written report required. Minimum of three hours approved experience on-site per week for each semester credit. One hour weekly group supervision required at UMD.

Supervision

Site Supervisor

This is the person in an agency or an office who is responsible for directing and supervising your directed study activity.

Academic Supervisor

This is the UMD instructor who is responsible for directing and supervising your directed study activity. Each student will be required to discuss their goals and the procedures they wish to use to attempt those goals.

The Process

Make an appointment with the academic supervisor.

Usually you will have in mind an age group you would like to work with or a specific agency where you would like to do your directed study. The academic supervisor will help you narrow down your choices and then give you the site supervisor contact and telephone number and contact. A file with former intern site options is available from the B.A.S. director.

Set up an appointment with your site supervisor.

Take the initiative to call the appropriate site supervisor to inquire about internship opportunities and arrange for an interview. Before the interview prepare a brief resume (see Career Services material) to leave. Have your schedule with you. Ask questions about the agency and what responsibilities you will be given. If your needs fit with the agency´s needs, establish the exact days and times when you will be expected. Ask the site supervisor to suggest reading materials that will be helpful to you in preparing for your new responsibilities.

Register for the appropriate number of credits.

Credits are determined by the number of hours you volunteer. The general rule is 3 hours/week for 15 weeks = 1 credit. In addition, the student must meet with the academic supervisor for group supervision 1 hour per week. (This hour can be counted toward the required hours.)

Fill out the contract that you received from your academic supervisor.

Refer to the pages in this packet on types of sponsored experiential learning and work abilities that may be acquired through service learning for your goals and objectives (pages 4 and 5). Have your completed contract signed by your site supervisor and your academic supervisor. This should be done no later than the end of the second week in the quarter. Copies will be made for the site supervisor´s file and for the academic supervisor´s file.

It is advisable to keep some form of a daily log to help remember your day to day experiences.

However, it is not ethical to include names or confidential information about a client that you may hear or see. The log is of and for your experience only. It will not be shared with the faculty member unless specifically stated in your contract. It will, however, be helpful for writing your final paper.

A required directed study experiential paper will allow you to combine the experiential learning with your readings and interviews so that you can organize, describe and analyze your experience.

Your site and academic supervisor will help you decide what readings are most appropriate and you will have listed these on your contract. These readings will prove useful not only academically, but also practically to help you get the most from your directed study experience. Papers should be 3 to 6 pages in length and integrate required readings as well as previous course work. They will not be returned. They will be placed in a file along with your contract and the written evaluation from the site supervisor.

A written evaluation will be requested from the site supervisor at the end of the placement.

An end of the quarter meeting will allow dialogue on the student´s strengths and weaknesses.

Responsibilities

Your main responsibility is to the agency. You represent both UMD and the Department of Psychology and Mental Health. You are expected to behave in a professional manner.
Your academic supervisor will send a letter of legitimacy and confirmation of the placement.
The site supervisor will take the responsibility to notify the academic supervisor if you are absent, tardy, or in any way unprofessional.
You take the responsibility of going to the academic supervisor immediately of you are in any way distressed about your experience and/or site placement.
The academic supervisor will call the site supervisor during the first week of placement.
The academic supervisor will visit the site at the end of the placement. Mid-quarter and observational site visits are required of certain sites, or may be arranged upon request of either supervisor or student. The student is responsible for setting up this meeting. Site supervisor, student, and academic advisor should all be present. Such a meeting should not take more than thirty minutes.
It is recommended that intern students send a letter or note of thanks to their site and site supervisor following a successful placement.

The Department of Psychology

The College of Education & Human Service Professions

Internship & Directed Study Options