The Psychology Internship Experience
The Internship Experience has been an opportunity valued by many psychology students at Mansfield University for over three decades. Junior or senior students may elect to spend a semester, a summer, or a portion of the summer, off campus in an applied setting where they gain first hand exposure to critical issues in the work place. Mansfield's psychology faculty believe that such an experience can provide students with valuable practical training not available in the classroom and assist them in making important career decisions.
We believe that the format of Internship Experiences should be flexible to permit placement in a variety of agencies and institutions as the needs and interests of individual students require. The Department has established informal working relationships with various health care and mental health facilities, correctional agencies, social welfare agencies, human resource departments in government and businesses, and so on.
Regardless of the type of placement, we believe (a) it is important for students to receive adequate supervision from a staff member of the organization, and (b) tasks must be carefully selected to meet each student's training needs and interests. Experiences are always based on a planning process that requires identification of specific goals and tasks to meet the goals. We ask that a supervising staff member meet regularly with the student, review progress toward the goals, and provide an evaluation at the end of the experience. A faculty member from the Psychology Department typically visits the placement to meet with the student and supervisor. Students normally work at least 40 hours to receive 1 academic credit. A minimum of 6 credits is required to meet the basic expectations; a maximum of 12 credits may be awarded.
To begin the process of exploring internship possibilities and application for an internship, read the Internship Manual and follow the procedures outlined there.
You can see a sample of the settings where students have interned in recent years here: Internship Sites.
If you have questions about this process, see either Dr. Brian Loher (Human Resource Management students) or Dr. Gretchen Sechrist (all other students).