Practica, Internship and Field Experience Information

Practica, Internship and Field Experience Information

1. The second internship course (COUN/CNDT/CNSC 591) is to be taken in the last semester of the program. Special cases require written approval of the Graduate Counseling Services faculty.
2. The field experience is to be for a minimum of 2 consecutive semesters.  The field experience should be obtained at least 6 months prior to the semester when planning to take the practicum. Exceptions are made only with written permission by a Program Advisor. The practicum courses (COUN/CNSC 580/581; COUN/CNDT 585; CNDT 584) are to precede and be completed prior to the internship courses. Internship I and Internship II may be taken concurrently. In fieldwork courses, students will be supervised by site supervisors and faculty supervisors.
3. Students taking Counseling Services field courses must obtain a professional insurance policy.
4. Students planning to start their fieldwork should contact Adam J. Lucas, Director of Clinical Internships, in the Office of Field Placement and State Certification at least one year prior to their planned practicum semester. Currently enrolled students may also access forms and information via the Canvas Practicum and Internship Resources site.

Field Experiences

The field experience is a planned placement in which the intern is expected to fully participate in the activities which are an integral part of the counseling agency or school counseling services. An appropriate agency or school setting for the intern is one which provides a program of services designed to help individual's function to their optimal capacity. Such programs exist in a wide variety of settings, such as: mental health clinics, correctional facilities, hospital settings, family service centers, comprehensive rehabilitation centers, social service organizations, vocational counseling programs, private counseling programs, substance abuse treatment programs, EAP services, college counseling centers, school counseling centers, and other appropriate sites.

In each setting, the intern must be supervised by an employee of the agency or institution who has a minimum of a Master’s degree in counseling or a related profession with equivalent qualifications, including appropriate certifications and/or licenses, and a minimum of 2 years of experience.  The field supervisor oversees the total learning process of the intern in the field placement setting.

The faculty supervisor is responsible for all campus individual and group supervision. The intern will have weekly group supervision seminars throughout the semester. The faculty supervisor will be available for individual supervision and/or consultation with the intern or field supervisor in order to facilitate an optimum field experience.

Field Experience Course Requirements

A minimum of nine credit hours of practicum and internship placement is required of all M.A. in Counseling Services students at Rider University. For the following practicum courses (COUN/CNSC 580/581; COUN/CNDT 585), the minimum requirements are:

• 100 on-site hours
• 40 direct contact hours
• 5 audio and/or video tapes of counseling sessions
• 5 case notes with a sign-off by both field and faculty supervisors
• a weekly supervision session with field supervisor
• 3 supervision sessions with faculty supervisor
• an average of 1.5 hours a week of group supervision with faculty supervisor

For the COUN/CNSC/CNDT 590 and COUN/CNSC/CNDT 591 internship courses, the minimum* requirements are:

• 600 on-site hours
• 240 direct contact hours
• audio and/or video tapes may be required
• case notes may be required
• a weekly supervision session with field supervisor
• supervision sessions with faculty supervisor as required
• an average of 1.5 hours a week of group supervision with faculty supervisor

*Students enrolled in CNDT 590 and CNDT 591 complete an additional 150 hours of internship fieldwork hours (75 hours per course) in direct contact hours.

For additional information about field placements, please see the Counseling Services Handbook (PDF), (Practicum/Internship Placement Agreement Booklet at the end of the Handbook).