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Site Name: Danielsen Institute at Boston University

Department: Psychology Internship Training Program

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Department : Psychology Internship Training Program

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Member Site Information
APPIC Member Number: 1327
Program Type: Internship
Membership Type: Full Membership
Site: Danielsen Institute at Boston University
Department: Psychology Internship Training Program
Address: 185 Bay State Road
Boston, Massachusetts 02215-1584
Country: United States
Metro Area: Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH
Distance from Major City: 2
Phone: 617-353-3047
Fax: 617-353-5539
Training Director Email: drupert@bu.edu
Co-Training Director Email:
Web Address: http://www.bu.edu/danielsen/
Brochure Website's Address: https://www.bu.edu/danielsen/training/doc/
Primary Agency Type: Other
Additional Agency Types:
  • Community Mental Health Center
  • Private Outpatient Clinic
Member of APPIC since: 09/01/1999
Accreditation
APA Accreditation Accredited
CPA Accreditation Not Accredited
Internship Staff/Faculty Information
Training Director: David Rupert
Chief Psychologist: George Stavros
Number of Full-Time Licensed Doctoral Psychologists on Staff/Faculty 5
Number of Part-Time Licensed Doctoral Psychologists on Staff/Faculty 5
Position Information
Start Date: 09/01/2026
Funded
Number of Full Time Slots Expected Next Class: 2
Number of Part Time Slots Expected Next Class: 0
Stipend
Full Time Annual Stipend for Next Class: 58656
Part Time Annual Stipend for Next Class: 0
Fringe Benefits: Dental Insurance, Health Insurance, Life Insurance, Sick Leave, Vacation
Other Fringe Benefits (not indicated above): Access to university resources, e.g., library, email/internet, fitness facility (fees apply for fitness center). The university leave time package (holidays and vacation) is generous, and the Danielsen takes a few additional holidays.
Brief description of the typical work day for an intern at this training site We are currently utilizing a hybrid approach to clinical services and training that includes both in-person and telehealth meetings. We have approximately 13 hours for meetings and supervision in a full week. Interns have an assigned time for testing, supervision, and certain meetings, and are expected to be available to work 2 nights per week; otherwise interns make their own schedule for clients within clinic hours. There may be opportunities to work from home 1 - 2 days per week.
Does this site have practicum psychology students on site? No
Is this program fully affiliated with one or more doctoral programs? No
Is this program partially affiliated with one or more doctoral programs? No
Internship Application Process
Accepting Applicants: Yes
Application Due Date: 11/01/2025 11:59 PM EST
A Virtual Interview are: Required
Interview notification date: 12/04/2026
Tentative interview date: 01/06/2026
Interview process description:

We interview several candidates on the same day using a rotation system.  Each applicant has 3 interviews with different staff teams (one intern applicant, several staff), a meeting with current interns, and an exit interview with the Training Director. The interviews last 35 - 40 minutes apiece. We use open-ended questions that invite you to share your interests, prior experiences, strengths, areas for growth, and goals. You will be asked to reflect on your identity and values in relation to working with identity, values, and diversity in clinical practice.

We utilize video interviews. Applicants who wish to visit the clinic in person should feel free to contact our administrative staff to arrange a brief, informal visit.

How to obtain application info: Visit Website
Preferred method of contacting the program: Email the Program
We have matched with interns from these programs:
Internship Applicant Requirements
US Citizenship Required: No
If NOT a U.S. Citizen, Authorization to Work or to Engage in Practical Training (CPT or OPT) in the US is Required: Yes
Canadian Citizenship Required: No
If NOT a Canadian Citizen, Authorization to Work in Canada or to Engage in Practical Training (CPT or OPT) in Canada is Required: No
Masters Degree Required: No
Comprehensive Exams Passed: Yes, by application deadline
Dissertation Proposal Approved: Yes, by ranking deadline
Dissertation Defended: No
Minimum Number of AAPI Intervention Hours (if applicable): 250
Minimum Number of AAPI Assessment Hours (if applicable): 20
Minimum Number of Combined Intervention and Assessment Hours (if applicable):
Does your program require applicants to submit supplemental materials (i.e., an assessment report and/or a case/treatment summary): No
Minimum Number of Years of Grad Training Required (if applicable): 3
Accepted / Not-Accepted Program Types
Clinical Psychology Accepted
Counseling Psychology Accepted
School Psychology Not Accepted
APA-Accredited Accepted
CPA-Accredited Accepted
PCSAS-Accredited Accepted
Non-Accredited Accepted
Ph.D Degree Accepted
Psy.D. Degree Accepted
Ed.D. Degree Accepted
This institution, department, internship, or postdoctoral program requires trainees to sign a statement about personal behavior and/or religious beliefs as a condition of admission and/or retention in the program: No
How to obtain text of statement:
Other Requirements: 1. We seek applicants with experience or demonstrated interest and readiness for (a) engaging spiritual, religious, or existential issues in clinical practice; (b) conducting relational/psychodynamic/depth-oriented psychotherapy; (c) engaging cultural humility and social justice in clinical practice; (d) conducting personality testing and writing integrated reports including Rorschach admin/scoring (R-PAS); (e) supporting research activities; 2. Boston University and Massachusetts have vaccine requirements for health care providers including COVID, MMR, Tdap, Hepatitis B, Varicella, and TB testing. Interns must update vaccines if they cannot document prior vaccination. COVID and flu allow for declination. 3. All new Boston University employees must pass a university mandated background check.
Program Description

The Doctoral Internship in Psychology at the Danielsen Institute focuses on clinical skills and clinical practice in an outpatient setting. The program integrates relational approaches to psychotherapy, religious/spiritual/existential concerns and resources, cultural humility and social justice
commitment, therapist formation, and salient research. Our clinical approach emphasizes developmental theory and research (attachment, differentiation, intersubjectivity), psychodynamic perspectives, and systems theory. Our approach to spirituality and religion is pluralistic and includes attention to diverse traditions, spiritual dwelling and seeking, spiritual struggles, positive and negative impacts of religion, dialectics, and flourishing. We seek to provide formative training, that is, training that attends to personal growth and important qualities, awareness, and resources as well as the acquisition of knowledge and skills. Training fellows will be asked to reflect on their identities and backgrounds as relevant for working with identity and diversity in clinical practice. Supervisory staff remain committed to their own ongoing formation and growth, and seek to build sturdy and supportive professional relationships with training fellows. We value the research-practice interface and collaborating with
professional and community leaders.

In terms of broader professional development themes and aims for future practice, we have organized the internship to ensure that interns leave the program with (a) strong skills in outpatient psychotherapy informed by relational approaches (psychodynamic, developmental, and systems), (b) generalist knowledge of psychological testing including assessment for clergy and seminarians, (c) working knowledge of our Relational Spirituality Model (Sandage, S. J., Rupert, D., Stavros, G., & Devor, N. G. (2020). Relational spirituality in psychotherapy: Healing suffering and promoting growth. American Psychological Association), (d) established and committed engagement with diversity and social justice in professional psychology, (e) foundational skills for engaging spiritual, religious, and existential issues in clinical practice; (f) exposure to and engagement with practice-based research and integration of research in professional development and clinical service; (g) a strong and growing sense of one’s professional identity and integration of self in professional practice, and (h) professional skills in clinical administration.

Our interns typically extend their training at the Institute by transitioning into a second year as postdoctoral fellows. The internship program and the internship match are separate experiences, but successful interns automatically move into a postdoctoral fellowship. We strongly prefer internship applications from candidates who want a two-year total training experience. 

Internship Training Opportunities

Populations
Infants:
Toddlers:
Children:
Adolescents:
Adults: Yes
Family:
Older Adults: Yes
Inpatients:
Outpatients: Yes
LGBTQ+: Yes
Ethnic minorities: Yes
Spanish-speaking:
French-speaking:
Deaf/Hearing-impaired:
Students: Yes
International Students: Yes
Rural:
Urban: Yes
Low income: Yes
People without housing:
Other:

(training opportunities continued)

Treatment Modalities
Assessment: Experience (21% to 30%)
Individual Therapy: Major Area of Study (50% or Greater)
Couples Therapy: Exposure (1% to 20%)
Family Therapy:
Group Therapy: Exposure (1% to 20%)
Community Intervention:
Consultation/Liaison:
Crisis Intervention:
Brief Psychotherapy: Exposure (1% to 20%)
Long-term Psychotherapy: Major Area of Study (50% or Greater)
Cognitive Rehabilitation:
Primary Care:
Evidenced Based Practice:
Evidence Based Research:
Supervision of Practicum students :
Other: Attachment, differentiation, intersubjectivity, culture, and systems in an overarching relational/dynamic approach

(training opportunities continued)

Experience
Health Psychology:
Women's Health:
HIV/AIDS:
Eating Disorders: Exposure (1% to 20%)
Sexual Disorders: Exposure (1% to 20%)
Sports Psychology:
Rehabilitation Psychology:
Physical Disabilities:
Learning Disabilities: Exposure (1% to 20%)
Developmental Disabilities:
Assessment: Experience (21% to 30%)
Neuropsychology-Adult:
Neuropsychology-Child:
Serious Mental Illness:
Anxiety Disorders: Exposure (1% to 20%)
Trauma/PTSD: Exposure (1% to 20%)
Sexual Abuse: Exposure (1% to 20%)
Substance Use Disorders: Exposure (1% to 20%)
Forensics/Corrections:
Sexual Offenders:
Geropsychology:
Pediatrics:
School:
Counseling:
Vocational/Career Development:
Multicultural Therapy: Experience (21% to 30%)
Feminist Therapy:
Religion/Spirituality: Experience (21% to 30%)
Empirically-Supported Treatments:
Public Policy/Advocacy:
Program Development/Evaluation:
Supervision:
Research:
Administration:
Integrated health care - primary:
Integrated health care - specialty:
Other:

1. Relational psychotherapy attending to spiritual and existential issues and themes in clinical practice from a pluralistic framework.

2. Working with clients who suffered childhood abuse or neglect.

 

 

Additional information about training opportunities: Not all rotations or training experiences may be available as described in the APPIC Directory. Please consult the program's application materials or their website at: www.bu.edu/danielsen/  for a complete description of the training opportunities available at this training site. IF the site has not updated their information by August 1, feel free to contact the Training Director for additional information.

Summary of the Characteristics of the Specified Internship Class
2017-2018 2018-2019 2019-2020 2020-2021 2021-2022 2022-2023 2023-2024 2024-2025 2025-2026
Number of Completed Applications: 65 63 62 75 91 96 107 102 136
Number of applicants invited for interviews: 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12
Total number of interns: 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
Total number of interns from APA/CPA accredited programs: 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
Total number of interns from Ph.D. programs: 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 0
Total number of interns from Psy.D. programs: 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 2
Total number of interns from Ed.D. programs: 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Number of interns that come from a Clinical Psychology program 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2
Number of interns that come from a Counseling Psychology program 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Number of interns that come from a School Psychology program 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Range of integrated assessment reports: lowest number of reports written 15 10 7 2 5 2 2 3 3
Range of integrated assessment reports: highest number of reports written 19 15 8 4 33 11 11 5 6
Summary of Post Internship Employment Settings of Each Internship Class (1st Placement)
2022-2023 2023-2024 2024-2025
Academic teaching:
Community mental health center: 2 2 2
Consortium: 0 0 0
University Counseling Center: 0 0 0
Hospital/Medical Center: 0 0 0
Veterans Affairs Health Care System: 0 0 0
Psychiatric facility: 0 0 0
Correctional facility: 0 0 0
Health Maintenance Organization: 0 0 0
School district/system: 0 0 0
Independent practice setting: 0 0 0
Other (Academic Psychology Department): 0 0 0
Link to Program's Trainee Admissions, Support, and Outcome Data: https://www.bu.edu/danielsen/training/doc/internship-admissions-support-and-initial-placement-data/
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