Interns receive two hours per week didactic training, which alternates between Intern Seminar, which interns typically attend alone, and In-Services, which are also attended by staff. In-Services occur approximately once per month. The Intern Seminar Series is a two-hour activity designed to meet interns’ training needs by addressing topical areas germane to employment as a counseling center psychologist. Topics addressed assist in the interns’ movement from graduate student to entry level professional. Though seminar topics remain relatively consistent, they may be revised according to emerging staffing, clinical or training needs. The following is a list of topics typically offered for the Intern Seminar Series.
Alcohol and Drug Abuse Seminar covers methods of assessing and intervening in substance abuse.
Assessment Seminar focuses on developing interns’ skills in cognitive and personality assessment. This seminar begins in or shortly after orientation and continues throughout the academic year.
Empirically Supported Treatment Relationships leads interns in a discussion of the relationship factors supported by research as leading to positive treatment outcome.
Ethics and the Law reviews ethical principles and guidelines, as well as legal issues, pertinent to psychological practice.
Group Therapy Seminar discusses principles and strategies of group psychotherapy.
Interpersonal Therapy reviews the protocol for the empirically supported IPT model.
Multicultural and Diversity Issues addresses the impact of diversity in clinical practice. This seminar takes focuses primarily on self-awareness in the diversity realm. In addition, various population based seminars are provided, generally focusing on topics most interns do not tend to receive in graduate school (for example, Religion and Spirituality, and the Intersection of Sexuality and Racial Identity.)
Psychologist Career Development focuses on intern career development issues, with specific focus on the job search process.
Therapeutic Mistakes provides reading and discussion of the discussion of different mistakes therapists make, and impact of them.
Supervision reviews theories and principles of clinical supervision.
Time-Limited Dynamic Therapy Seminar introduces the concepts and strategies of time-limited dynamic psychotherapy. Research supporting this treatment model is also reviewed.
In addition to the intern seminars provided by staff at USD, we bring in outside presenters from the general San Diego community to provide interns with different perspectives and experiences. These topics currently include a two part series on cognitive-behavioral therapy evidence-based protocols, an additional two part series on couple counseling, and a seminar on self harm.
Inservices
In-service is a two-hour training activity attended on approximately a monthly basis by all clinical staff members. Didactic information relevant to psychological practice at a university counseling center is presented. In addition, the interns’ formal case presentations also serve as part of the in-service schedule. Presenters include USDCC staff, university members, and community professionals with expertise in relevant topics. Topics provide interns with information necessary for successful practice in this setting, but also to provide senior staff with ongoing professional development. To facilitate interns’ ability to share their growing expertise, to encourage self-perception as a professional, and to help prepare interns for the job search, each intern presents one formal case presentation.
Additional training activities
The USDCC is certified as a provider of accredited continuing education for psychologists by California’s Mandatory Continuing Education for Psychologists Accrediting Agency. Programs attended by all clinical staff are sponsored periodically. Recent topics have included Men’s Issues in Psychotherapy, Group Psychotherapy, Critical Incident Training, Eating Disorders, Competency Based Supervision and Training, Domestic Violence, and Ethics. In addition, the USDCC at times pays for all staff including interns to attend other local continuing education programs.
