The full-time internship at Counseling & Psychological Services (C&PS) at San Diego State University is located on a beautiful campus in the heart of San Diego. Home to more than 35,000 undergraduate and graduate students, SDSU is a proud, Hispanic-Serving Institution and Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution with a diverse student body, faculty, and staff.
The internship program at C&PS is designed to prepare interns to excel at the responsibilities of a counseling center professional with appropriate support from licensed faculty. The primary focus of the training program is to develop generalist skills in the following areas: individual and group therapy, biofeedback, alcohol and other drug interventions, assessment and triage, crisis intervention, teaching, and outreach/prevention activities. All of these tasks are undertaken within a short-term model that is strengths-based, and which seeks to affirm the uniqueness, resiliency, and adaptability of each student we see in the Center. Our training and supervision activities are thoughtfully designed to scaffold intern learning, while encouraging growth toward the independent functioning expected of a professional at the end of the internship year.
We value the diversity and uniqueness of our faculty, staff, students, and interns. It is expected that interns, like our faculty and staff, will continually engage in the process of learning and self-reflection with respect to the development of cultural competence. Connecting to this process from a place of authenticity and openness is essential to our training approach.
Our workplace is collegial, and we value the relationships we cultivate with each other, including our interns, while in the service of supporting our students. While we acknowledge the power differential and professional boundaries and expectations inherent in a training environment, we also consider interns to be valued colleagues with much to teach us. We offer the opportunity to connect with and to be mentored by a diverse and passionate faculty who have varying personal and professional styles, but who are all dedicated to providing a quality training experience. Diverse theoretical backgrounds are represented on our faculty, and are encouraged in our interns.
Our site is not currently APA-accredited. We have submitted our self-study and have been approved for a site visit during the winter 2025 window (January - May 2025). Please be advised that there is no assurance that we will be able to successfully achieve accreditation during the 24-25 cycle. That being said, we have a rich history of providing training and mentorship to Psychology doctoral students in the San Diego area, having been a local training site since 1968.
