The Clinical Psychology Psy.D. Program Doctoral Practicum Manual 2014-2015

Transcription

The Clinical Psychology Psy.D. Program
Doctoral Practicum Manual
2014-2015
Applied Professional Practice (APP)
For training-related questions or concerns, contact:
Megan O’Banion, Psy.D.
Director of Clinical Training: Clinical Psychology
[email protected]
213.283.4253
Teresa Masi, LMFT
Senior Director of Clinical Training
[email protected]
213.615.5203
For academic-related concerns and questions, please contact:
Claudia Owens Shields, Ph.D.
Department Chair: Clinical Psychology
[email protected]
213.615.7273
David Sitzer, Ph.D.
Associate Chair: Clinical Psychology
[email protected]
213.615.7202
Updated July 2014
The Chicago School of Professional Psychology
Clinical Psy.D. Practica Manual
PSY.D. CLINICAL PRACTICUM
Important APP 2014-2015 Application Dates
Check
Box
Due Date
Form/Item
Submit To
Early – Mid
November
Mandatory PRACTICUM APPLICATION INFORMATIONAL (days to be
announced)
DCT
Mid-End
November
FINAL DEADLINES Submit Practicum Guide Acknowledgement Form
to Alcea (only after receiving the new Practicum Manual).
ALCEA
2014-2015 Student Page
November 27 & 28
Early January
January 12th
th
January 12-16
January 17
th
th
January 19
th
January 26
Thanksgiving Holiday (school closed)
Begin to identify and formally request letters of recommendation
from chosen letter writers.
FRIST DAY OF SPRING 2014 SEMESTER
Students to upload the following information into your 2014-2015
Alcea Student Page by 5pm:
1. Practicum Intent Form
2. Professional Comportment Contract
3. Up to date Curriculum Vitae
… Data sheet for Academic Advisor recommendation (not
required)
Students will discuss a list of 7-10 sites to which they would like to
apply with PD Group/Practicum Seminar Instructor in class and
narrow list down to 7 sites.
Rank-ordered list of 7 sites finalized in Alcea for the Director of
Clinical Training’s review by 5pm.
th
March 16
The month of April
th
April 13
ALCEA
Practicum Seminar
ALCEA
Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday (school closed)
1. (6pm PST) Practicum sites approved & posted by DCT in Alcea
(students must and can only apply to these sites unless otherwise
approved)
2. Begin applications directly to approved sites.
February
LOR Writers
PRACTICUM INTERVIEWING INFORAMTIONALS (Mandatory for
Basic Prac applicants; Strongly recommended for all others)
ALCEA
Practicum Agencies
DCT
1. SCAPTP site notification of students’ INTERVIEW STATUS
2. Contact DCT if you have received no interviews.
DCT
Practicum Placement Notification Begins
---
SCAPTP Universal Notification Day
---
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
IMPORTANT APP DATES
LIST OF COMMON CLINICAL TRAINING ACRONYMS
INTRODUCTION
Overview & Rationale of Practicum Training
Practicum Sequence & Types
Prerequisites for Eligibility
Practicum Site Requirements
PRACTICUM APPLICATION PROCESS EXPECTATIONS & GUIDELINES
2
5
6
7
8
9
10
12
Alcea
Correspondence, Deadlines, & Etiquette
13
13
IMPORTANT LEGAL NOTE FOR STUDENTS: Liability Insurance & Background Clearance
15
Time Commitment to Practicum
Professional Comportment & Conduct
Practicum Responsibilities
Practicum Seminar & Grading Policy
Tracking Your Hours & Activities
Removal from Practicum/Internship
General Petition Rules
15
16
18
19
21
21
21
THE PRACTICUM APPLICATION
22
APP Application Related Forms
Choosing a Practicum Site
Submitting Your Rank-Ordered Site List to ALCEA
Policy on Contacting Sites
Application Guidelines & Materials
PRACTICUM INTERVIEWS & OFFERS
23
24
27
28
29
30
Interviewing
Guidelines Governing SCAPTP Sites
Non-SCAPTP Training Site Offers
What if I Don’t Get an Offer on the SCAPTP UND?
PAPERWORK
31
32
35
36
37
All Required APP Forms
Supervisor Access to Alcea
Evaluation of Student Performance
Student Evaluation of Site
38
38
39
40
REMEDAITION, WITHDRAWALS & DISMISSALS
Defining a Practicum Remediation, Withdrawal & Dismissal
Difficulties & Conflict Resolution
Students Demonstrating Lack of Clinical Competency &/or Judgment
Procedures for Practicum & Internship Remediation
Practicum Repeats
OTHER RELATED PRACTICUM DETAILS
41
42
42
43
45
49
51
Supplemental Practicum
Policy on Training Sites with Creedal Statements
Policy Regarding Private Practice
Page 3 of 53
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APPENDICES
(see separate “Clinical Psychology PsyD Program Doctoral Practicum Manual APPENDIX” document)
Appendix A: Cover Letter Tips & Sample
Appendix B: Curriculum Vitae Tips & Sample
Appendix C: Interviewing Tips
Appendix D: Sample Thank You Letter
Appendix E: Sample Acceptance Letter
Appendix F: Other Application Materials & Tips
Appendix G: Conflict Resolution Model
Appendix H: Professional Comportment
Appendix I: Student Evaluation of Training Site
Appendix J(a):
Monthly Paper Hour Log
Appendix J(b):
Monthly Update Form
Appendix K: Example Training Agreement
Appendix L: Example PsyD Hour Log and Evaluation
Appendix M: Clinical Psychology General Petition Form
Appendix N Practicum Intent Form
Appendix O: Practicum Guide Acknowledgement From
Page 4 of 53
LIST OF COMMON CLINICAL TRAINING ACRONYMS
AAPI
APPIC Application for Psychology Internships
ABD
All But Dissertation
ACCTA
Association of Counseling Center Training Agencies
ADP
Academic Development Plan (supportive)
ASPPB
Association of State and Provincial Licensing Boards
APA
American Psychological Association
APP
Applied Professional Practice (DCTs)
APPIC
Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers
Alcea
The “familiar” name that we all the APP Training Database
BBS
Board of Behavioral Sciences
BOP
Board of Psychology (typically referring to the California BOP)
CAPIC
California Psychology Internship Council
CANVAS
(formerly “e-college”) Web-based portal for on-ground courses
CCE
Clinical Competency Exam (vignette)
CERF
CAPIC Eligibility and Readiness Form
CP-SAC
Clinical Program Student Affairs Council (Departmental Disciplinary Body)
CTC
Clinical Training Coordinator
CTO
Clinical Training Office (DCT and CTC)
CUA
CAPIC Uniform Application
CUDCP
Counsel of University Directors of Clinical Programs
CV
Curriculum Vitae
DCT
Director of Clinical Training
D & D Digital
CAPIC online match organizer and host
EAT
Early Assessment Team (a bi-monthly meeting of all Clinical Psychology Program Faculty & DCT)
EGO
Online Student, Staff and Faculty resources
E-Portal
Online attendance and grading
GPA
Grade Point Average
ICA
Integrative Case Analysis (oral and written examinations)
LOR
Letters of Recommendation
NCSPP
National Council of School and Programs of Professional Psychology
NMS
APPIC online match organizer and host (“National Matching Service”)
OCLA
Office of Compliance and Legal Affairs
PPE
Professional Performance Evaluation
SAC
Student Affairs Council (Institutional Disciplinary Body)
SAP
Satisfactory Academic Progress
SAF
CA BOP Supervisor Agreement Form
SCAPTP
Southern California Association of Psychological Training Programs (practicum training partnership)
SPE
Supervised Professional Experience as defined by the CA BOP
VOE
CA BOP Verification of Experience (form)
Page 5 of 53
Chicago School of Professional Psychology
Guide to Clinical Psy.D. Practica
INTRODUCTION
Overview & Rationale of Practicum Training
Practicum Sequence & Types
Prerequisites for Eligibility
Practicum Site Requirements
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INTRODUCTION
TCS-Downtown LA Campus bases its clinical psychology programs upon the Practitioner-Scholar
educational model developed by the National Council of Schools and Programs in Professional
Psychology (NCSPP). Accordingly, the school believes that quality practicum training is essential to the
process of becoming a competent practitioner of clinical psychology.
Applied Professional Practice (APP) is comprised of clinical psychologists with expertise in the area of
clinical training for each doctoral program here at TCSPP. The Clinical Psychology PsyD Program’s
Director of Clinical Training (DCT) is the Clinical Psychology student’s representative in APP. APP is
committed to serving the mission and philosophy of The Chicago School by:

Providing support, guidance, and mentoring to students, faculty, and site supervisors around all
aspects of professional training,

Developing and maintaining a sufficient number of high quality training sites for students in all
programs, with an emphasis upon creating opportunities for students to serve the underserved,
diverse populations, and the local community,

Utilizing progressive assessment strategies to assess and subsequently improve student
performance and learning at their training sites, and

Coordinating and overseeing the placement of all students seeking to fulfill the training
requirements of their academic programs.
OVERVIEW & RATIONALE OF PRACTICUM TRAINNG FOR CLINICAL PSY.D. STUDENTS
At The Chicago School (TCS), Clinical Psy.D. students participate in three years of organized, sequential,
and well-supervised practica that increasingly expose them to the range of roles and responsibilities of a
clinical psychologist. All practica are an extension of the students’ academic coursework, and are
defined by an annual training agreement that details such things as supervisory contact information,
duration of training experience, available clinical activities, and methods of evaluating the students’
performance and the site’s training program. When engaged in practical training, Clinical Psy.D.
students are enrolled concurrently in a consultative practicum seminar course that is facilitated by
program faculty.
It is important to note that the Clinical Psy.D. program had a history of a discrete clinical training model.
Traditionally, the Basic Practicum training experience, formerly known as the Assessment Practicum,
was considered to be the primary opportunity for students to gain intensive exposure to and training in
psychological testing and integrative report writing. Likewise, the Intermediate Practicum training,
formerly known as the Therapy Practicum, was considered the principal opportunity through which
students gained intensive exposure and training in various therapeutic modalities. Lastly, the Advanced
Practicum, which is the third year of training, provided opportunities for students to engage in more
integrated and complex assessment and/or therapy services.
However, over the past several years, APP has gathered data that indicated that over half of the
assessment practica required students to provide therapy in addition to completing their required
testing cases. In a sense, the language used to describe the first practicum experience (i.e. assessment
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or diagnostic) was misleading, as it inaccurately captured the richness of many students’ experiences. In
addition, some clinical site supervisors provided feedback that a blended training model would be better
suited to their settings and/or the needs of their clientele. For all of these reasons, the label
“Assessment Practicum” did not capture students’ robust clinical activities and the conceptually driven
assessments completed during the first year of training.
Given these findings, the Clinical Psy.D. faculty and staff collaborated in a discussion to explore how the
program’s timing and sequence of coursework impacts students’ readiness to both commence practical
training and meet sites’ expectations. Because the Clinical Psy.D. program encourages students’
involvement in diverse clinical duties throughout the continuum of their training, adjustments were
made to the language used to describe the training model. Thus, all students are required to take six
semester hours each of Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced Practica.
Practica Sequencing:
The first three-semester practicum (Basic) sequence is focused on developing rapport with clients,
developing proficiency with diagnostic interviewing, differential diagnoses, developing case
formulations and beginning to understand how to implement treatment and evaluate its outcome.
The second three-semester (Intermediate) sequence is focused on strengthening case formulation
skills, understanding how to identify, implement, and appropriately modify evidence-based
interventions, understanding how to evaluate treatment outcome and implementing relapseprevention strategies. The third three-semester (Advanced) sequence enables students to work with
specialized populations and begin to develop a specialization. All practica require individual and group
supervision offered by the practicum site, as well as small group seminars offered by the school.
Practica Types:
Practicum training content will vary depending on the site’s context, services, population(s) served,
training methodology, and practicum position responsibilities. TCSPP has developed relationships
with a broad array of community partners for training of our MFT and PsyD students in order to
promote the grates breadth and depth of field training.
For the PsyD students, our sites define themselves as three general categories of positions:
A) A diagnostic focused position (the student is required to complete at least 8 testing batteries by
the end of the training year);
B) A mixed focus position (the student is required to complete at least 4 testing batteries by the
end of the training year as well as carry a therapy caseload); or
C) A psychotherapy focused practicum position.
The diagnostic (assessment) and mixed focused practicum positions will require a number of supervised
integrated psychological batteries to be administered with resulting integrated reports. As defined by
APPIC, an Integrated Report includes at minimum, a clinical interview, a biopsychosocial history, and
two measures from one or more of these categories: intellectual, personality (objective, subjective, &/or
self-report), neuropsychological and cognitive assessment. All integrated reports must be synthesized
into a comprehensive report providing an overall picture of the patient.
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Disability Statement: Students with a disability are encouraged to make an appointment with their
PD Group instructors to discuss accommodations as they relate to practicum and internship
requirements. Information disclosed after the beginning of the term may affect evaluation of the
student’s performance before such disclosure, so early disclosure is advised. APP actively works with
students to ensure that appropriate accommodations are developed, if necessary.
PREREQUISITES FOR PRACTICUM ELIGIBILITY
There are prerequisites to be eligible for practicum. For all Psy.D. students, these are:



A cumulative GPA > 3.0,
Approval of program faculty and the Director of Clinical Training, and
Completion or planned of required coursework with a grade of a B- or better for each class.
Beginning in Fall each cohort of students must successfully complete prerequisite courses prior to
beginning practicum each year. Below is an example of such courses. For accurate core course
descriptions for your cohort, please review your cohort year’s Course Matrix (see your Advisor and/or
the Clinical Psychology Program Department Manager, Steve Albers).
Basic Practicum Students
Before beginning the Basic Practicum, students are required to have satisfactorily completed two
semesters of residency and the following prerequisite courses:
Professional Development Group I & 2
Intellectual Assessment
Diversity in Clinical Psychology I & II
Psychopathology I & II
Clinical & Diagnostic Interviewing
Intro into Psychometrics
Personality Assessment
Advanced Assessment
Psychology of Aging
Professional Issues & Ethics
Basic Intervention: CBT
Lifespan
Intermediate Practicum Students
Before beginning the Intermediate Practicum, students are required to have satisfactorily completed the
following prerequisite courses:
Successful completion of Basic Practicum Seminar and Basic Practicum
Research Methods
Basic Intervention: Systems
Biological Basis of Behavior
Basic Intervention: Psychodynamic
Statistics II
Basic Intervention: Humanistic/Existential
Introduction to Neuropsychology
Basic Intervention: CBT
History and Systems
Advanced Intervention I
Advanced Practicum Students
The Advanced Practicum is designed to provide opportunities for extended or specialized clinical
training. Thus, the exact nature of any advanced practicum will vary with the needs of the student, and
the activities may either involve assessment, therapy, or a combination of both. Before beginning the
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Advanced Practicum, students are required to have satisfactorily completed their CCE and the following
prerequisite courses:
Successful completion of Intermediation Practicum Seminar and Intermediate Practicum
Proposal Development Seminar
Advanced Intervention II
Social Basis of Behavior
Dissertation Maintenance I & II
Alcohol & Chemical Substance Abuse
Cognitive Affective Bases of Behavior
Introduction to Clinical Pharmacology
All Psy.D students may be withheld from the process, at any time, by faculty or the Director of Clinical
Training if they are:



No longer eligible to proceed in the process,
Not in good academic standing, and/or
There is a significant concern about their professional development and ability to meet the
demands of practicum training.
PRACTICUM SITE REQUIREMENTS
Practicum training sites are rigorously evaluated by APP. Sites must articulate a training philosophy, and
demonstrate a clear treatment approach. Sites must have at least one licensed mental health clinician
who is qualified to supervise practicum students. All practicum training experiences must include:
1) The site MUST be a non-profit mental health agency or licensed health-care facility. Students are
generally not permitted to train in a private practice setting.
2) A 9 – 12 month placement on site,
3) A 16 - 24 hours per week on site,
4) A minimum total of at least 600 hours on-site,
5) 40-60% of their total hours onsite will be providing direct services to clients (e.g., psychotherapy
in all formats, consultation with the consenting party present, classroom observations,
assessment administration and feedback, psychoeducational groups, etc.)
6) Supervision: 2 hours of supervision each week, with one hour being individual face-to-face
supervision that must be provided by a doctoral-level licensed clinical psychologist. The second
hour can be spent in either individual or group supervision with a mental health clinician who
possesses at least a Master’s degree and is licensed or license-eligible.
Notes on Credentials:
o
Hours of supervision will not count toward your requirements if they are from staff not
licensed or license-eligible in the field of mental health.
o
Please refer to California’s Board of Psychology website if you have any questions about
a specific supervisor’s credentials
(http://www2.dca.ca.gov/pls/wllpub/wllqryna$lcev2.startup?p_qte_code=PSX&p_qte_
pgm_code=7300). You are also encouraged to consult with APP.
Supervision via teleconference:
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o
In rare and extenuating circumstances, The Director of Clinical Training may approve a
student to receive supervision via video conferencing (i.e., Skype). The student or the
supervisor may contact the DCT to discuss this option and have this approved BEFORE it
may be utilized. In all circumstances using video conferencing, the student and
supervisor must develop an agreement to also meet face-to-face (for example: 1x
month). Meeting for supervision 100% via videoconferencing is not permitted.
7) By November of their internship application year, all students must complete a minimum total
of 8 integrated psychological batteries and reports.
o
An INTEGRATED BATTERY is defined by APPIC as, at minimum, including: Biopsychosocial
history; Clinical Interview; and at least 2 tests from 1 or more of the approved
categories (objective/self-report/objective personality, intellectual, cognitive, and
neuropsychological assessments).
8) Though not required, many sites also offer additional learning experiences and training activities,
such as grand rounds, case conferences, didactics, program development, and/or professional
presentations. These are strongly encouraged for trainees to attend.
It is the students’ responsibility to ensure that a minimum total of eight test batteries and reports
have been completed by November 1st of the year of internship applications, typically the fourth year
of graduate school. Failure to satisfy this criterion will result in an immediate referral to the Director
of Clinical Training and Psy.D. Department Chair and possible postponement of applying for
internship. Students are welcome to seek consultation from the Director of Clinical Training regarding
this and other training questions and concerns at any point during their graduate education.
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Alcea
Correspondence, Deadlines, & Etiquette
Professional Comportment & Conduct
Practicum Responsibilities
Practicum Seminar & Grading Policy
Tracking Your Hours & Activities
Removal from Practicum/Internship
General Petition Rules
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13
13
15
15
16
18
19
21
21
21
This is an opportunity for students to develop and refine employment search skills. Therefore, we have
established several professional behavior guidelines:
1) Alcea. This is APP’s online training database and resource. Every enrolled student, supervisor,
seminar instructor, advisor, and DCT has access to the database. Each supervisor and student is
responsible for maintaining their own Alcea page regularly. Your DCT can assist all users with
Alcea if issues arise.
Beginning in Mid-November students who are applying to practica will have access to Alcea,
TCS’s professional training database. Each student applying to practica will receive a username
and password to access the database. Students will be able to research practica sites accepting
applications from TCS students in their training year, submit their rank order of sites, and once
on practicum, submit all APP forms required for a passing grade for each practicum training
semester and year (please see APP Grading Policy for reference).
Alcea will also contain important information regarding the practicum search process, site
closures, newly developed sites, recent changes to contact information, etc. Students should
check Alcea daily during the practicum search process to be sure they are up-to-date on the
latest information. It is APP’s goal that Alcea will enhance and streamline students’ practica
application process and do away with paper submission of forms, as each student will have
his/her own account on Alcea that will store all necessary information unique for each training
year. The Chicago School owns the information contained in the database, and students are
strictly prohibited from disseminating it in part or in whole to anyone outside the institution.
IMPORTANT ALCEA DETAILS:
Always start any practicum application process by signing into Alcea and then selecting your correct
student page. Throughout this process of applying for your next year’s training experience, ALWAYS
work in your next year’s Alcea page.
If you are currently in the 2013-2014 training year but you are applying for a 2014-2015 placement,
please be sure to be working in your 2014-2015 Alcea Student Page.
This is pertinent for all required APP intent documents, practicum searches, and site rankings.
2) Correspondence. All practicum applicants are expected to maintain consistent contact with the
Director of Clinical Training and your PD Group/ Practicum Seminar Instructor.
Email. In order to support and assist you in successfully securing a field placement, you must
remain in active communication with the Director of Clinical Training AND your PD
Group/Seminar Instructor on a weekly basis. They will provide you with a significant amount of
information, general as well as personalized. APP’s primary mode of communication will be by
posting information on Alcea and e-mailing students at their “thechicagoschool.edu” accounts.
In the professional world, e-mail is used as the primary mode of communication. Therefore, it is
something that professionals must check DAILY. This will also be the method of communicating
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late-breaking information regarding the practicum search process, recent changes in site contact
information, helpful tips, answers to commonly asked questions, etc.
Proactive Approach. APP and the Psy.D. Department, particularly your advisor and/or
Department Lead, expect that you will correspond with us about important information at your
earliest possible convenience. We need to know your status throughout the practicum search
process, and are happy to answer any of your questions.
If you fall out of communication with your DCT, your DCT will:
 Involved your Advisor and the Department Lead Faculty
 May require you to prepare a written petition (see page 21 of this manual) explaining
the circumstances behind your non-compliance and asking for reinstatement (also
obtain your advisor’s signature endorsing your petition),
 Obtain permission to re-enter the process by the Director of Clinical Training
 Meet personally with an APP representative, if required.
3)
Deadlines. There are a number of steps that must be observed in order to initiate applying for
practicum. It is critical that students complete all necessary paperwork by the posted
deadlines, to not only remain in the practicum search process, but also because it demonstrates
professionalism.
If you miss a deadline, you will need to:
 Prepare a written petition (see page 21 of this manual) explaining the circumstances
behind your non-compliance and asking for reinstatement,
 Obtain your advisor’s signature endorsing your petition,
 Obtain permission to re-enter the process by the Director of Clinical Training
 Meet personally with an APP representative, if required.
Keep in mind that a deadline indicates the absolute last moment that something will be accepted.
4)
Etiquette. As a practicum applicant, you represent not only yourself but also TCS-Downtown LA
Campus and the wider population of professional psychology graduate students. Positive
impressions go a long way, while negative impressions will undermine your candidacy, as well as
the reputation of TCS-Downtown LA Campus. Professional etiquette includes but is not limited
to:
 Submitting materials in a neat and timely fashion,
 Dealing politely with EVERYONE involved in the process (at the sites, as well as at TCSDowntown LA Campus),
 Representing yourself in an accurate manner,
 Attending all interviews you schedule,
 Compliance with application and offer timelines, and
 Responding promptly and professionally to requests for information or additional
contact.
If you suspect that you may have violated search process etiquette, IMMEDIATELY bring the matter to
your PD Group/Practicum Seminar instructor. Student etiquette violations could potentially damage
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relationships between the site and the school. If you believe that a site has violated a rule or somehow
treated you unfairly, immediately seek consultation, guidance and support through your PD
Group/Practicum Seminar instructor.
Please note that TCS provides liability insurance for students on practicum but this does not extend to
volunteer experience (even if at a practicum site); however students are strongly encouraged to obtain
their own professional liability policies. Low cost policies for students can be purchased from the APA
TRUST (apait.org). If you site is requesting verification of the TCS provided limited professional liability
coverage, please contact your DCT/CTC via email and copy the practicum site that is requiring the
information. We will provide the document in reply.
Also, before the start of the practicum, some sites may require background checks and/or drug screens.
It is not uncommon for sites to require this and they are usually completed after an offer is
made/accepted and before commencing training. Agencies generally require completion of their own
background checks, therefore the background checks completed by TCS for enrollment will likely not be
accepted; your placement at the site is tentative until you pass these screens. While most sites will
financially arrange for these screens, some sites will ask that students cover the expense.
If there is any legal reason why you may not pass a background check (e.g, DUI, misdemeanor, etc.) that
occurred in the past or recently, please speak with your DCT immediately for guidance in these matters
as these legal issues can impact practicum placement and even licensure as a psychologist – depending
on the gravity of the issue. There are a select few sites that the DCT’s will not permit applicants to apply
to due to specific site requirements permitting no exceptions to background check issues. Not being
transparent and forthcoming with your DCT can impact your placement, your program progress, and
TCSPP’s public and valuable relationships with trusted practicum training partners.
The practicum training year runs from the start of the Fall Semester to the end of the Summer Semester.
While it is possible some of you may start later and end earlier, this will REQUIRE DCT approval AND you
are not to begin accruing hours UNTIL you have successfully completed the necessary prerequisites from
your previous academic year. However, you may begin volunteering at the site prior this; this may
include completing a required orientation. These hours accrued may be included on internship
applications as volunteer experience.
The minimum number of total service hours for each practicum experience is 600. However, students
cannot leave their practicum simply because they have met this minimum hours requirement.
Remember, you are committed to training at your practicum site for a predetermined period of time
that was determined by the site (9 to 12 months depending on the site). Your contract length is
determined by the training objectives of the placement, the mission of the site, and the needs of the
clients the site serves. Requesting to leave the site early due to this reason alone is unprofessional and
may cause deleterious impacts for the site, the clientele, and possibly for future TCS-Downtown LA
Campus applicants.
For those of you in Advanced Practicum, it is strongly recommended that once you start your placement,
schedule a time at the start of the training year to transparently discuss your internship application
process and maintain an open dialogue regarding interview dates and internship start dates. It is
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important that you are proactive about these discussions with your site. The site is not obligated to
permit you extra time for internship interviews and to term your practicum contract early because you
secured an internship. Most sites are very understanding but it remains professional and in your best
interest to be actively forthcoming, humble, reasonable, fair, and honest with them.
PROFESSIONAL COMPORTMENT & CONDUCT
The Clinical Psychology PsyD Program and TCS-Downtown LA Campus expects that its students conduct
themselves in a legal, ethical, and appropriate manner during all phases of their education and applied
clinical training placements (i.e., initial application through completion of the training year). Therefore,
students must possess and apply a working knowledge of their discipline’s respective code of ethics. The
applicable code of ethics is the American Psychological Association’s (APA) Ethical Principles of
Psychologists and Code of Conduct (2002) which can be found at the APA’s website (www.apa.org),
along with the APA’s Specialty Guidelines for Delivery of Services by Clinical Psychologists (1981), and
the TCS Student Code of Conduct (as written in the TCS Student Handbook under Student’s Rights and
Responsibilities). A violation of the TCS Code of Conduct, APA Ethics Code of Conduct, as well as a
demonstration of poor professional comportment and/or illegal behavior may merit remediation and/or
disciplinary action that can even earn a dismissal from the program and TCS. Each student is held
accountable for the knowledge of the Program’s and Institution’s policies regarding comportment, code
of conduct, remediation, and disciplinary actions ( see the TCS Student Handbook and this manual for
more details).
The following are examples of illegal, unethical, and/or inappropriate behavior:













Acting in a manner inconsistent with ethical or legal guidelines that govern the practice of
Psychology;
Violating City, County, State and/or Federal statute;
Failure to follow APP guidelines;
Failure to appear for scheduled practicum events or responsibilities without approval or proper
notification;
Taking vacation or personal time without approval;
Taping a client without a properly executed consent and release of information;
Removal or private use of practicum site property without permission (including but not limited
to charting documentation);
Violating patient confidentiality (e.g., playing a session tape to anyone not included in the
consent form, failure to redact personally identifiable information from written or taped
materials before seminar presentation, etc.);
Failure to report a known or suspected incidence of child abuse or neglect, or suspected
incidence of dependent/elder abuse or neglect;
Withdrawing from a practicum for any reason without prior permission from APP;
Accepting a practicum position and then turning it down for an offer made from another site;
Having more than one practicum site on “hold;”
Insubordination with your supervisor and/or Director.
The TCS Student Code of Conduct reads:
“Students are required to conduct themselves in a manner that is suitable for professional study
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and practice. Violation of this standard includes, but is not limited to, conduct that contravenes
the General Principles and Standards set forth in the Ethics Code promulgated by the American
Psychological Association. Additionally, academic departments may require compliance with
other discipline-specific ethical codes (the American Counseling Association’s Ethical Code for
Counselors, the Behavior Analyst Certification Board’s Guidelines for Responsible Conduct for
Behavior Analysts, the National Association of School Psychologists’ Principles for Professional
Ethics, and the Specialty Guidelines for Forensic Psychologists, American Association of Marriage
and Family Therapy Code of Ethics). Students should consult with their academic departments for
clarification of all applicable ethical codes to which they are accountable.
Additionally, students are prohibited from engaging in conduct that is detrimental to the school,
poses a threat to the welfare of the school’s employees or students, is prohibited by school
policies, or is illegal. In extreme circumstances, Chicago School administrators may ban
individuals believed to pose a significant risk to others from school events and/or programs; such
a ban would restrict the individual’s ability to enter school property for an indefinite amount of
time until the matter can be thoroughly investigated and a final disposition can be rendered.
Students may be restricted from campus or disciplined for improper or illegal conduct whether it
occurs on- or off-campus (including cyberspace), and regardless of whether the conduct is
specifically tied to a school activity.
While it is impossible to list all types of misconduct, the following illustrates the types of activities
that will subject students to disciplinary action:
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Violations of any policy, procedure, or regulation of The Chicago School of
Professional Psychology
Acts of dishonesty, including but not limited to, knowingly or recklessly furnishing false
information to the school, forgery, and alteration, or misuse of school documents, records, or
identification and any materials submitted to employers (application, CV/Resume, cover
letter, portfolio)
Disorderly, indecent, or obscene conduct or expression, including inappropriate conduct in
online environments such as abusive language toward or about instructors and classmates
Obstruction or disruption of teaching, research, administration, disciplinary procedures,
other Chicago School activities, or the freedom of expression of others
Conduct that threatens or endangers the health, safety, or welfare of any person, including
threats of violence toward others and any action that unreasonably interferes with the
psychological well-being of another
Unauthorized use, possession, or storage of any guns, weapons, or other unreasonably
dangerous instruments
Unauthorized entry into or use of the school’s facilities or services
Theft or conversion of property or services belonging to The Chicago School, members of the
school community, or others
Intentional or reckless destruction, damage, abuse, or misuse of school property or the
property of others
Illegal or unauthorized possession, use, sale, or distribution of narcotics, drugs, or other
controlled substances defined as such by local, state, or federal law
Violation of the school’s published technology and computer use guidelines
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
Failure to comply with directions of Chicago School officials acting in the performance of
their duties including, but not limited to, a requirement to provide unprivileged testimony at
a disciplinary hearing or failure to comply with provisions of academic warning or an
academic development plan and
 Violations of Federal, state, and municipal laws, or any other conduct not included above,
which unreasonably or unlawfully interferes with the operations of The Chicago School, or
which renders a person unfit or unsuitable for practice within the psychology profession
Students may be held independently accountable to both external authorities and to The Chicago
School for acts that constitute violation of law and/or school policies, regulations, or procedures.
Disciplinary action will not be subject to challenge on the ground that criminal charges involving
the same incident have been dismissed, reduced, or are in process.”
Consequences for such behavior range from disciplinary letters from APP, collaborative remediation
plan developed with APP and your practicum site, to referral to the C-SAC.
See Appendix for Additional Information
Presenting Case Material
Students will be asked to present psychological assessment and treatment data obtained at the site
for coursework requirements. At times, this may include client audio and video tapes. The student
assumes full responsibility for presenting this material to the site supervisor for review prior to
presenting material in class. Supervisor review should be scheduled far enough in advance to provide
ample time to discuss the purposes of the materials and to initiate appropriate release(s) of
information. While a formal consent for audio/video taping is required by the school, the students
should discuss their site specific informed consent and release of information forms. The student
assumes full and final responsibility for cleansing all identifying information from the case materials in
order to protect confidentiality. Lastly, it is always a students’ responsibility to provide informed
consent regarding their student status and the role of the school and supervisor.
PRACTICUM RESPONSIBILITIES
Practicum training unites students, site supervisors, and TCSPP in a unique professional and working
relationship. Each party has certain obligations and responsibilities that can be summarized as follows:
Students must:
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Conduct themselves in a legal, ethical, and professional manner in all activities;
Integrate smoothly into their training sites and develop good working relationships with
staff and clients;
Display appropriate attitudes including an openness to self-examination and new learning;
Inform their Practicum Seminar instructors and/or the Director of Clinical Training of any
difficulties encountered at their practica sites and of any permanent change of individual
supervisor;
Turn in all required application materials on time;
Keep a record of practicum hours;
Be engaged in ongoing, on-site, practicum training activities from Fall Semester through the
end of Summer Semester.
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Site Supervisors must:
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Communicate clear expectations at the beginning of the training year;
Provide regularly scheduled supervision time;
Provide adequate clinical opportunities to meet TCS-Downtown LA Campus practicum
requirements;
Complete at the end of Fall and Summer I Semesters the Practicum Supervisor Evaluation of
Student Competence evaluations;
Offer clear, ongoing, and constructive feedback to students regarding observed strengths
and weaknesses;
Inform the Director of Clinical Training of any difficulties encountered with students as early
as possible;
Inform the Director of Clinical Training and students (as appropriate) of any significant
changes that will or may affect student training.
APP must:
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Provide students with accurate and current practicum resource materials;
Advise and assist students throughout the practicum application process to help secure
good matches between students and training sites.
Monitor students’ progress during practicum training and provide consultation and
advisement to students, site supervisors, and seminar leaders as needed;
Develop new training sites and monitor the quality of existing ones through maintaining
close working relationships with professionals in the community and performing regular site
visits.
Maintain current records of students’ progress and distribute the needed training
evaluations each semester.
APP reviews and monitors all existing training agencies annually and periodically through scheduled site
visits, routine phone calls, and e-mailings. At the end of every training semester, APP reviews the
Student Evaluation of Practicum Site form submitted by practicum students (Appendix I) as a rating of
their training experience.
ENROLLMENT & GRADING FOR THE PRACTICUM SEMINAR SERIES
Enrollment in Practicum Seminar: While on practicum, students are concurrently enrolled in a
Practicum Seminar. These seminars provide a venue for student discussion of practicum experiences
and opportunities for peer support and professional consultation. The seminar extends and
compliments the on-site learning process, and it is not a substitute for supervision. The seminar leader
and peer group members serve as consultants, not supervisors, to the cases presented in the seminar.
As such, when documenting your training hours, practicum seminar does NOT count toward group
supervision hours, and students must always defer to and follow the instructions of their on-site
supervisor. More detailed information about the practicum seminars are provided in respective course
syllabi.
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Once you know who your Practicum Seminar Instructor will be, it is imperative that you add them to
your Alcea Student Page. Locate your “Student Detail” tab once you are logged in and open the
“Student Detail” page. On the top and right –hand side of your page, you will see:
Adviser
Seminar Leader
Please use the drop down boxes to select both your (academic) Advisor and Seminar Leader.
Grading: Each semester, the Practicum Seminar Instructor assess progress based upon performance
on the in class assignment, attendance/tardiness, engagement in the learning process, and on the
clinical competencies evidenced in the course discussions and curriculum. The instructor will provide a
mid-term and annual Training Evaluation regarding the student’s performance (see above) that will be
reviewed with the student and submitted to the DCT.
APP’s DCT will review all the required documents listed below and render the Practicum Seminar grade.
The grading policy for the Practicum Seminar Course series will follow as such:
1. Complete the Training Agreement on the APP database (Alcea) by the second week of your
practicum placement for the DCT’s final review and approval.
2. Log onto APP database and begin Hour Log by fourth week of the semester (students are
required to register their supervisor on their Alcea student page – if the supervisor is not listed,
email their DCT with the supervisor’s name and email so that they can be sent directions to how
to sign electronic documents in Alcea).
4. Maintain monthly hour logs for their own records that are signed monthly by the onsite and
primary supervisor. These paper logs are to be checked off in class by each Practicum Seminar
Instructor monthly.
5. Complete the “PsyD Hour Log and Evaluation” by end of the Fall semester (mid-term) and the
end of the practicum placement year (annual) with the a) practicum instructor’s & b) site
supervisor’s electronic signature on the APP database (Alcea) for the DCT’s final review and
approval.
6. Complete the Student’s Evaluation of the Site survey (mid-term and annual).
If any of the above steps are not met, the student’s registration will be placed on HOLD, as per current
APP policy. The hold will be removed after the steps are completed. A HOLD is not placed if the
required document is not submitted solely due to a non-compliant supervisor. If a student does not
submit required documentation indicated by the end of the semester, then the hold will remain on
his/her record and s/he will receive a grade of ‘In Progress’ (IP). The IP grade will be changed to an
‘Incomplete’ (I) after 6 weeks of student noncompliance. Following that 6 weeks of an (I), the grade will
revert to a (NP) and the student will be required to repeat the practicum placement and seminar class.
Note that the (IP) grade may be used for an extended period of time at the discretion of APP (i.e., the
Clinical Psychology Program DCT).
In order to receive a passing grade for the seminar class, the student must have a compete training
agreement, passing site supervisor evaluation, passing seminar leader evaluation, completed hour log,
and student evaluation of site (all mid-term and annual versions). In order to be considered eligible for
a passing grade in the practicum seminar course, the student must receive a recommendation of
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“pass” from both the course instructor and the site. If a student does not pass a section of the
practicum seminar series, the student will not pass the series as a whole.
Tracking Your Hours and Activities
It is very important that you closely document all of your hours and activities while on practicum this
should now be in three formats: 1) Monthly paper hour logs; 2) Review by your Practicum Instructor
(including monthly “hours to date” totals); and 3) Using Alcea electronic hour log forms (submitted at
the end of the Fall semester and the end of your practicum placement as the “PsyD Hour Log and
Evaluation compendium document). Tracking your hours helps to ensure that you adequately satisfied
and/or exceeded the TCS practicum requirements, and you will need to report this detailed information
when you apply for internship.
MyPsychTrack Tool: This online tool will allow you to track your hours and import them directly
into the APPIC (internship) Online Application. This is not a requirement but, an offer for you
(and for YOU only as a Clinical Psychology PsyD Student).
MyPsychTrack.com
Coupon Code: 7779a79f-9fe5-4338-afd7-99d783a86981
REMOVAL FROM THE PRACTICUM/INTERNSHIP APPLICATION PROCESS
If ANY deadline is missed related to practicum (course or field training), if demonstrated comportment is
not in line with the expectations defined by the TCS Professional Comportment Contract, or if any
concern is raised regarding your eligibility to enter the application processes for the next practicum
training year, you may be immediately REMOVED from the process by the DCT.
To PETITION TO RE-ENTER the practicum/internship process, you will need to:
o Prepare a “Clinical Psychology General Petition Form” explaining the circumstances behind
your non-compliance and asking for reinstatement,
o Obtain your advisor’s signature endorsing your petition,
o Submit the petition for consideration to the Director of Clinical Training for review (in
collaboration with the Clinical Psychology Program Chair).
o Meet personally with the Director of Clinical Training (if required)
General Petition Rules:
As with any petition, it is incumbent on the student to articulate a reasonable explanation for their
behavior and evidence personal responsibility. Depending on the nature of the behavior, an Academic
Development Plan may be developed to further support the student in their professional development.
Each petition will be individually and objectively evaluated based on merit.
The DCT and department Chair will review and consider each petition and are under no obligation to
approve any or all elements of any petition of exception. If a student is petitioning for more than one
exception to departmental policy, elements of the petition and even the entire petition may or may not
be approved. (See Appendix M)
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THE PRACTICUM APPLICATION
APP Application Related Forms
Choosing a Practicum Site
Submitting Your Rank-Ordered Site List to ALCEA
Policy on Contacting Sites
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APP FORMS FOR THE PRACTICUM APPLICATION PROCESS
APP requires several forms and documents to be completed and submitted/uploaded to Alcea during
the practicum process. This allows APP to keep track of the numerous students in the search process.
Students are strongly encouraged to save electronic versions or make photocopies of all forms for their
personal records prior to submission. Sample forms are included at the end of this manual.
Clinical Psy.D. Practicum Intent Form
This is the first form you will complete to begin the search process. In order to be considered for a
practicum placement, you must complete and upload this to Alcea by the posted deadline. Failure to
meet this deadline may result in being delayed in the practicum application process.
This form includes your intent to apply for your next practicum experience, your plan for completion
of any prerequisite course for matriculation to the next level of practicum training experience in which
you have earned a NP, W, or a grade of less than a B-, and your proposed list of 7-10 practicum sites of
interest. (see Appendix N)
List of 7-10 Chosen Practicum Sites with your Strengths, Weaknesses, and Reasons for the
Choices
Once APP makes Alcea available, students should generate a list of sites to which they would
like to apply. Students are requested to create a list of your personal and professional strengths
and weaknesses for each practicum site, as well as reasons you are choosing to apply to a
particular site. In order to be considered for a practicum placement, you must demonstrate
thorough consideration of no less than 7 sites and no more than 10 sites. Save a copy of your list
to bring with you to your Practicum Seminar or PD Group the first week back from the Holiday
break. Failure to meet this deadline may result in being delayed or removed from in the
practicum application process.
Curriculum Vitae & Generic Cover Letter
In order for your DCT to help determine suitability for application approval to practicum sites, it is
important for us to review the aforementioned documents, as well as your CV and a Generic Cover
Letter. It is expected that each student will work with your PD instructor and Student Services before
submitting your CV and Cover Letter to Alcea by the posted deadline. Please upload this document
into Alcea no later than the posted deadline. Failure to meet this deadline may result in being
delayed or remove from in the practicum application process.
Professional Comportment Contract
Attestation that each student understands and will adhere to the outlined expectations of conduct
that is legally and ethically in line with that of the profession and state of California. The contract also
emphasizes professional appropriateness and policy adherence throughout all phases of the practica
application process, placement, and departmental programming.
Clinical Psy.D. Data Sheet (only for letters of recommendation)
This should be given to faculty members who are writing you letters of recommendation if required by
a specific practicum site. Please put adequate time into completing this form, especially the narrative
sections. It is standard professional practice to formally request letters of recommendation in writing
2 months prior to the application deadline.
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Requesting and obtaining these letters are solely the students’ responsibility. Also note, that if you are
applying to sites with a January deadline, you will need to let your letter writer’s know this so that they
will have ample times to complete the letters prior to this deadline. Most site will prefer Letters of
Recommendation from Clinical Supervisors, Advisors, and Faculty teaching curriculum particularly
pertinent to the site you are applying to (in this order). Personal references are not appropriate here
unless explicitly asked for. It is very important that you only submit the requested number of letters (no
more, no less) in the format requested. In general, most sites would like to receive mailed letters by
your Letter Writers in sealed individual envelopes with the Letter Writer’s own signature across the seal.
Some will accept emailed letters directly from the Letter Writer but, this is a preference indicated by the
site specifically.
CHOOSING A PRACTICUM SITES
When selecting practicum opportunities, it is important to remain flexible. Think about challenging
yourself by considering a training experience in an area that you have no previous experience. Remain
open to new opportunities, and consider the strong generalist base that is necessary before one can
specialize. Please note that simply because you are approved to apply, does not guarantee the site will
offer an interview or a position – this is solely at the site’s own discretion.
Students should keep in mind that some sites have an assessment focus, some a therapy focus and
some sites will provide students with a mixture of training experiences. During their time in training at
TCSPP students should aim to have practicum experiences that will permit them to enhance both their
assessment and therapy skills.
Practicum positions vary in terms of their competitiveness and this is another important factor that
should be considered when selecting sites to which you will apply. Bear in mind that position
competitiveness is not necessarily an accurate measure of training quality; rather name recognition,
geographic location, accessibility by public transportation, and the number of applications that a site is
willing to receive more directly influence competitiveness level.
Students are encouraged to create a balanced list of sites to which they want to apply. Specifically,
students are encouraged to research and select training programs that are: located throughout the Los
Angeles area, meaning in both the city and suburbs; housed within different settings (e.g., school,
community mental health center, hospital, etc.); and that serve diverse populations related to their
clinical interests (e.g., some child and some adult sites).
Importantly, APP is committed to assisting you in your efforts to secure a practicum. Additionally, there
are several other good sources of information to assist you in your search, including:
o
o
o
o
o
Alcea, the professional training database,
Fellow students who have already completed a practicum,
Your academic advisor/practicum instructor,
Your current/former place of employment,
The internet, such as a site’s own website.
Alcea: Alcea will be accessible by TCS faculty, students, and site supervisors. Now, students, advisors,
seminar instructors and supervisors will have access to pertinent areas of the training database. Alcea
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will serve as a one-stop-shop for all training documents, site information, and other practicum training
needs. Alcea should facilitate aspects of training in several ways:
1. Supervisors will have the ability to update information regarding their own sites. APP will
continue to reach out to sites to facilitate this process. Additionally, students are still
encouraged to contact APP when they are aware of a change in a site (supervisor, location,
etc.).
2. Seminar Instructors will have access to the student’s required APP documents in order to
provide their electronic and real-time evaluation of the student’s performance in the
practicum courses (the student, DCT, and the clinical supervisor can now view all levels of
training evaluation for each student under their purview).
3. Students will have access to all of their training documents through this electronic medium.
4. Clinical Supervisors will have access to the student’s required APP documents in order to
provide their electronic and real-time evaluation of the student’s performance in the
practicum courses (the student, DCT, site supervisor and practicum instructor can now view
all levels of training evaluation for each student under their purview).
If you have technical questions, please contact your Clinical Training Coordinator, Dr. Sepida Sazgar at
[email protected] (feel free to cc your DCT, Dr. Megan O’Banion at
[email protected] )
APP and site supervisors maintain this interactive database of practicum site information. It will be
available on the internet portion of the school’s website. Students will be welcome to search the
database as much as they like to identify sites of interest.
The database is TCSPP community property and responsibility, and an updated database is to the
benefit of all TCSPP students. APP annually requests that sites provide us with the most current
information about the training programs. We also are in contact with sites throughout the year.
However, sites are often changing and, unfortunately, sites may not inform APP of these changes.
Students who are currently placed or searching may be the first to hear of these changes. Therefore, it is
imperative for students to let APP know of errors found in the database as soon as they are
discovered. This can be done by sending a quick email, calling, or stopping by the Director of Clinical
Training’s office. The database is updated as soon as APP is made aware of errors or changes, based on
information provided by either sites or students. For example, the person listed in the database may not
be the current contact. If students come across such discrepancies, they are encouraged to notify the
Director of Clinical Training immediately so that the site can be assessed and updates can be made.
Please keep in mind that TCSPP owns the information contained in the database, and you are strictly
prohibited from disseminating it in part or in whole to anyone outside the institution. Sharing practicum
site information with any non-Chicago School party will result in an immediate referral to the Student
Affairs Committee (SAC).
Information from Fellow Students:
Fellow students are often a great source of information
about practicum sites. However, keep in mind that an individual student’s perspective is just that
(i.e., a personal opinion). Therefore, look beyond broad, categorically positive or negative
statements about a particular site; instead, ask specific questions about what types of trainees
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would do well at a given site and who would not, the types of activities available to trainees, the
climate of the site, etc. Accurate site appraisals only stem from numerous points of evaluation (e.g.,
site information, fellow student opinion, faculty or APP input, and, most importantly, a personal
review of the site during an interview). For your convenience, there is a list of all practicum sites and
their student assignment in your DCT’s office.
PD Group/Practicum Instructor Meetings:
Students applying for practicum must discuss
their sites choices with their PD Group/Practicum Instructor in order to review how the sites chosen
match with their interests and training goals. Prior to this discussion students should review Alcea,
as described above. PD Group/ Practicum Instructors have been encouraged to utilize time in their
classes to discuss practicum choices with their students. On the day(s) that your PD
Group/Practicum Instructor will be reviewing your site choices with you in class please bring: a print
out of the practicum site information available on Alcea for each site in which you are interested
(approximately 7-10 sites), a copy of your vitae, a sample cover letter, and a writing sample (which
some sites require as part of your application). You and your instructor should review your
materials and site choices and narrow your site selection down to seven sites which you will rank.
Your instructor is not expected to have personal information about training sites; rather, expect that
your advisor will challenge you about how you selected those sites in light of your training goals and
interests for the upcoming year.
The Internet: Some sites may have a website that advertises it services to the public. Students are
encouraged to research the sites online (e.g., web addresses may be found on Alcea or by Google
search) to learn additional information about the history of the organization, its staff and clientele,
and the services offered there. This information may complement that which is offered on Alcea.
STAYING AT THE CURRENT TRAINING SITE
Every year, some students consider staying on at a current training experience. There may be some
significant positives in doing so (e.g., you like your site, great training experience, additional
responsibilities; you can forego the application process, etc.). If your site offers different rotations and
experiences (e.g. a therapy vs. assessment rotation, placement in a program that serves children vs. a
program that serves adults, etc.) this may be worthwhile and valuable. However, if your training
experience does not vary, it is possible that disadvantages exist (e.g., lack of breadth in training,
limitation in setting/population, as well as other numerous indicators internship sites might be looking
for). While APP does not have any specific encouragement or restriction on training at sites for a second
year, we do recommend that you discuss your options, as well as the future impact your decisions may
have on your clinical training with your Practicum Instructor and the Director of Clinical Training.
PRACTICUM AT PLACE OF EMPLOYEMENT
A practicum may only be done at a student’s place of employment if the site meets all of the training
requisites of APP, can ensure an appropriate range of professional experiences for the practicum
student, and is approved by the Director of Clinical Training. Before approval will be granted the student
must have a separate supervisor for work and practicum and there must be a clear delineation between
work and training responsibilities. Students cannot waive a practicum under any circumstances.
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SUBMITTING YOUR RANK-ORDERED SITE LIST TO ALCEA
Always start any practicum application process by signing into Alcea and then selecting your correct
student page. Throughout this process of applying for your next year’s training experience, ALWAYS
work in your next year’s Alcea page. This includes all required APP intent documents, practicum
searches, and site rankings.
Based on your interests, goals, strengths, weaknesses, etc., you will narrow down your site selections to
7 sites. Ranking 7 sites are required to rank in order to receive the maximum number or approvals from
your DCT.
How to Rank Your Sites in Alcea
From your Site List tab, select a site and go to the site’s Alcea page.
Scroll down on the site’s own Alcea page to “Add Site Preference List” hyperlink.
Once you are back on your own student home page, in your Agency Preference table, put your sites in
rank order by choosing up/down arrows to move your selected sites into rank position (#1 being your
most favorite and best match).
Once finalized, you will submit your rank ordered list in Alcea by the posted deadline.
IMPORTANT NOTE: If you rank less, you may receive significantly less approvals or none at all. Once
finalized, you will submit your rank ordered list in Alcea by the posted deadline.
How does APP decide which sites I can apply to?
APP cannot always approve every student’s request to apply to every site. To not overwhelm sites
with more applications than they desire, The Director of Clinical Training monitors and makes cutoffs
for highly competitive sites. Limiting the number of highly competitive sites to which you request to
apply significantly reduces the overall need to make cutoffs. However, site interest changes yearly;
therefore, there is no guarantee that you will be approved to apply to any site that you rank. Because
you will have reviewed your sites with your instructor to ensure that your list contains only those sites
that represent a “good fit” for you, The Director of Clinical Training makes necessary cutoffs based
primarily on your rank ordering. Therefore, it is critical that you rank order sites according to your
true preference. Otherwise, you may be cut from a site that you really want, while being approved to
a site that is of less interest to you. However, students are required to apply to all sites to which they
are approved, so do not rank any sites which you are not interested in.
APP will not send more than 8 applications per position to any given field placement program (unless
the site specifically requests more applications). If a site trains students from multiple TCS programs,
we may allow additional applications per each additional slot. Many sites inform us that they want
fewer applications and, in such cases, we abide by their requests. In the event of a tie (i.e., two or
more students with the same rank order for the same site with only one application position left), the
Director of Clinical Training will review the students’ vitaes, consult with their advisors, and possibly
the site and make the determination of which student is best suited for that particular training
program.
During APP deliberation where students are approved to apply to sites they ranked across all doctoral
programs, Alcea will be LOCKED. On the posted NOTIFICATION deadline, APP will unlock Alcea and
your will be able to see on your Alcea student page for next academic year, which sites have been
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approved or declined.
Please note that you may only apply to those sites that you have been granted approval for by APP.
SITE DEVELOPMENT
Training sites are continuously being developed by both APP and the Psy.D. program administrators and
faculty. However, TCS-Downtown LA Campus also encourages students who may have ideas or current
relationships with potential sites to work with APP in developing these training relationships.
If you are interested in establishing a training program that is not currently approved by the school
(visible in Alcea), first bring your ideas to your DCT who will work with you in determining if the site can
provide quality training. The DCT may choose to contact the site themselves or approve contact with
the site by the student. If the latter is the case, the student must follow all direction by the DCT, as well
as cc the DCT on all email contact with the site. The student is to always make clear their role as a
Clinical Psychology Graduate Student of TCSPP under the training of your DCT. It is fundamental that
you represent yourself accurately and professionally as the ambassador for TCSPP in all communications
with the community.
The site must be officially approved by APP before any student can contact the site let alone begin a
placement there.
POLICY ON CONTACTING SITES IN ALCEA
Students should not contact any site in the database during the search process unless specifically
directed to do so by APP. Contacting any Alcea site without documented approval by your DCT is
strictly prohibited as it is against policy.
Keep in mind that the primary mission of training sites is to provide services to the community, and
frequent calls from students will disrupt the site’s ability to provide these needed services.
POLICY ON CONTACTING SITES NOT IN ALCEA
When students log into Alcea, only the sites that meet the training requirements for their academic
program and training year are viewable. Each year APP contacts approximately 1,000 sites to discuss
clinical training possibilities. Thus, if a site is not viewable, the chances are that it either does not meet
your program’s clinical training requirements or it is not accepting practice students for the training
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year. However, please feel free to check with your DCT to ask if the site have been contacted. If it has
not, the following process will occur:

Bring your sites of interest to your DCT

You and your DCT will discuss each site and then determine if the site can provide quality
training.

The DCT may choose to contact the site themselves OR approve contact with the site by the
student.

If the student is given the responsibility, they are expected to follow all direction by the DCT, as
well as cc the DCT on all email contact with the site. The student is to always make clear their
role as a Clinical Psychology Graduate Student of TCSPP under the training of your DCT.

Once the student received interest from the site, the DCT will formally reach out to vet the site
and proceed to set up a training experience.

The student will be given an opportunity to apply.
APPLICATION GUIDELINES AND MATERIALS
Students may begin submitting application materials after the DCT approves your sites via Alcea. You
must apply to all approved sites. The DCT will also be sending out lists of approved students to each site
so the site knows from whom to expect applications.
Students should pay careful attention to Alcea to learn what each site requires in terms of application
materials. Do not send any more or less application materials than what is asked by the site, except for
CV and cover letter. Sites commonly require the following:






Cover letter (see Appendix A for tips and a sample cover letter)
Curriculum Vitae (see Appendix B for tips and a sample CV; also visit the Career Services
website for useful information and tools to generate a CV)
Letter of Recommendation(s)
A copy of your transcript
Writing Sample(s)
Site specific documents, if necessary (e.g. an additional application form, essay)
It is strongly recommended that each student connect with TCSPP’s Career Services who provide
individual advisement, workshops, webinars, and online resources for the practicum, internship, and
career hunting processes. Email our wonderful partners in Career Services at
[email protected] to schedule 1:1 advisement appointments to review your CV, Cover
Letter, schedule mock-interviews, and review licensure requirements.
To help prep for interviewing, practice makes confident! Visit Interview Stream through the online
Career Services eGo webpage or go directly to www.thechicagoschool.interviewstream.com for these
interview options:
1) Behavioral Interview
2) TCSPP Interview
3) Dr. O’Banion Practicum/Internship Interview
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PRACTICUM INTERVIEWS & OFFERS
Interviewing
Guidelines Governing SCAPTP Sites
Non-SCAPTP Training Site Offers
What if I Don’t Get an Offer on the SCAPTP UND?
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INTERVIEWING
APP will host mandatory information meetings for first year Clinical Psy.D. in February to talk in detail
about interviewing. Students are strongly encouraged to complete a practice interview online using a
program called Interview Stream (located on the TCS Career Services webpage). Mock interviews will
also be conducted in PD Groups in order to support students on mastering interviewing skills. In the
meantime, keep in mind the following general guidelines about the interview process.
Interviews can be offered any time between the middle of February and the end of March, with some
interviews extending into April and beyond. Keep in mind that Spring Break falls in the middle of this
process. Plan your Spring Break activities accordingly, as interviews will be occurring during that time!
Please note that it is entirely each site’s discretion of who they invite for an interview to and ultimately,
who they offer a position to. When you are called and offered an interview, accept it graciously. You
are strongly discouraged from declining any interview opportunity. Each interview will provide you
with another chance to practice and hone your interviewing skills, learn about the current professional
market, and develop professional relationships. When scheduling interviews, be sure to confirm the
date, time, and location of your interview, as well as notify your DCT. Ask about special parking
instructions or directions to the location of the interview.
If you accept and schedule an interview, YOU MUST ATTEND THAT INTERVIEW. It is
unprofessional and impolite to cancel an interview on short notice, after business hours, or on
voicemail or email. If APP learns that you failed to show for or cancelled an interview without DCT or
Clinical Training Coordinator’s approval, you could be referred to the Clinical Department’s Student
Affairs Committee (C-SAC). However, and in some instances, such as illness or emergency, it may be
necessary to reschedule an interview. Please consult with the DCT to further discuss how to address
these situations.
Before each interview, review the Alcea Site Detail information page and the site’s website, if there is
one. During the interview, and when asked if you have any questions, be sure to inquire about: the
number of batteries typically completed during the training year and if you will have the opportunity to
provide any psychotherapy services, such as individual of group therapy, to clients. Having a written list
of individualized questions for each site is a standard expectation for your level of training. It is
important to treat everyone at the site with absolute respect and comport yourself professionally. It is
an honor to be selected for an interview at the training sites we collaborate with therefore, please
evidence your appreciation, your professional maturity, and clinical knowledge. Interviews also provide
an opportunity to network with future employers, and to develop your professional identity in the
community.
Although, the information should be in Alcea, please double-check with the site to see if they abide by
SCAPTP notification guidelines. Many of our sites are NOT SCAPTP and thus, they have their own
timelines for application reviews, interviews and offers. If they are SCAPTP affiliated, please review the
SCAPTP policy herein to insure that you are comporting yourself accordingly.
If you have received one or no interview offers by the beginning of March, contact the Director of
Clinical Training to discuss additional practica to which you may be able to apply. It is easier to arrange
additional applications at this stage of the process, rather than waiting until late April when many
positions have already been filled.
More Interviewing Tips can be found in Appendix
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THANK YOU LETTERS: After the interview, it is a professional courtesy to send a very brief thank you
note to sites for taking the time to consider you and your application. This note should NOT go into
detail about your interests, raise new questions, etc. Keep it “short and sweet,” while succinctly
highlighting your interest and perception of a good match between you and the site. If you have
communicated with a Practicum Site Training Director by email, you may send an email to thank
him/her. If you have only communicated with the site by phone, draft a thank you note and send it by
post. See Appendix for a sample Thank You letter
GUIDELINES GOVERNING SCAPTP SITES
Some training sites abide by the Southern California Association of Psychology Training Programs
(SCAPTP) guidelines. Please check each agency’s Site Detail page on Alcea to find out whether the site
does or not. If students apply to these sites they are also bound to adhere to SCAPTP deadlines and rules
governing site offers and acceptances. The following section only applies to SCAPTP sites (please see
below for guidelines regarding non-SCAPTP sites).
EMAIL NOTICE OF IMPENDING SCAPTP PLACEMENT
In accordance with SCAPTP, and in advance of the second Monday in April (April 14th), some sites may
opt to send an email to those students who will definitely receive a placement offer. Only some sites
provide this early notification of an impending placement offer. Students should not be concerned if
they did not receive such early notice from any site.
NOTE: Students are prohibited from contacting the sites that sent them this type of email, and sites are
aware that students will not be returning contact prior to April 14th. Whether a student receives this
email or not, students should expect that sites will make and/or confirm all formal offers on April 14th.
SCAPTP OFFERS
Offers and acceptances of practicum positions can begin at 9:00 a.m. on the second Monday of April.
The Chicago School of Professional Psychology, Los Angeles recognizes the second Monday in April as
the first day that Psy.D. students may formally accept SCAPTP practicum offers. It is important to note
that April 14th is only the beginning of a long placement season that can continue through the Spring,
Summer, and Fall.
TCSPP will not recognize or endorse any SCAPT practicum offers made to students until after this agreed
upon time. Students CANNOT, under ANY circumstance, accept a SCAPTP practicum offer prior to 9:00
a.m. of the SCAPTP UND. Sites have been notified that you cannot accept before that time and have
been strongly encouraged to not make any formal offers before that date. However, TCSPP cannot
control when sites make their offers. Nevertheless, you must abide by the school’s rules about offer
acceptance. If APP learns that a student accepted a SCAPTP offer before the SCAPTP UND, the
practicum offer will be considered void, the practicum will be notified that the student was not
permitted to accept, and the student will be referred to the Psy.D. Clinical Program Lead, APP, and
possibly the C-SAC for disciplinary action. This policy has been created to give students a reasonable
amount of time to consider all their practicum opportunities while limiting sites’ ability to pressure
students into decisions they may later regret.
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SCAPTP training sites are acutely aware that TCSPP students who are applying to these sites must abide
by these guidelines. Therefore, if you encounter any pressure for an early acceptance, you should
evaluate how this reflects the administrative or supervisory style of the site. Regardless of your interest
in the position, the only acceptable response to an early offer should sound something like:
“Thank you very much for the offer. I am very impressed with your training program, but my
Training Director strictly forbids me from accepting any offer until 9:00 a.m. on April XXth. I
have a few more interviews to complete, and I would like for my decision to be fully
informed. I look forward to hearing from you on April XXth.”
Sites are encouraged to notify academic institutions about inappropriate student communications or
revoked formal acceptances. Likewise, students are encouraged to report coercive behavior to their PD
Group/ Practicum Seminar Instructor. As these types of behaviors (for both students and site
supervisors) are considered unprofessional and unethical, APP will review students reported by sites for
such conduct, and reported sites will be openly reviewed amongst other academic Training Directors.
EXAMPLES OF SCAPTP CONDUCT
Acceptable Conduct
Greattraining Hospital interviews ImaGood student prior to April XXth. The hospital is
impressed with Ima Goodstudent and tells the student that it would like to make an offer on
April XXth. Ima says “Thank you very much for the offer. I am very impressed with your
training program, but my Training Director strictly forbids me from accepting any offer until
9:00 a.m. on April XXth. I have a few more interviews to complete, and I would like for my
decision to be fully informed. I look forward to hearing from you on April XXth .” On April
XXth, Greattraining Hospital makes the formal offer and Ima Goodstudent either accepts,
rejects, or “holds” the offer (see more information below about acceptable ways to “hold” an
offer).
OR
Greattraining Hospital interviews Ima Goodstudent prior to April XXth. The hospital is not
sure if it would like to make an offer to this student. No levels of interest are shared, and an
offer/acceptance may or may not occur on or after April XXth.
Unacceptable Conduct
Greattraining Hospital interviews Ima Goodstudent prior to April XXth. The hospital tells the
student that an offer will be made on April XXth, and the student tells the hospital that the
offer will be accepted. In this example, the student violates protocol because it is
communicating an early acceptance.
POTENTIAL RESPONSES TO SCAPTP OFFERS
Upon receiving an offer (on the second Monday of April at 9:00 am – 11:00) students have one of three
choices: (1) accept, (2) reject, or (3) “hold” the offer.
Verbally Accept an Offer
Once you verbally accept an offer, you are bound to that “match.” Under NO circumstance can you
accept another offer. Rather, you should call every other site to which you applied and inform them
that you are no longer a candidate for their position. Explain that you remain very interested in
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working with them in the future. This will help to keep bridges intact should you decide to pursue an
additional professional relationship in the future. More likely than not, sites will remember your
courtesy and the sincerity of your interest. Similarly, they will remember any lack of courtesy or
unprofessional conduct (i.e., it’s a very small training world).
Please remember that you are an ambassador of TCSPP, thus your actions in the practicum search
process reflect not only upon yourself, but TCSPP and your colleagues. If, at any point after verbally
accepting an offer, you fear that you have made the “wrong choice” you are NOT to contact the site
directly. Because your verbal acceptance is a binding agreement between you and the site,
immediately contact the Director of Clinical Training, Dr. Megan O'Banion at
[email protected], NOT the site.
Please contact Dr. Megan O'Banion, immediately after accepting an offer. We need to know WHEN
you were offered and when you accepted the position, as well as WHERE you are going. Then, you
should draft a brief acceptance letter that you must send to the site, as well as to APP. When all your
responsibilities are complete, go out and celebrate! See Appendix E for a sample Acceptance letter.
Verbally Reject an Offer
If you reject an offer made by a site, this too is binding. The site is free to extend that offer to another
student, and students are free to accept another offer. Please be polite when rejecting an offer. Also,
be thoughtful when rejecting a site, and seriously consider that you may not have other offers
immediately available to you. You should be prepared to re-enter the search process, including resending materials, going on additional interviews, and/or potentially developing your own training
site.
Putting a Site on Hold
Academic institutions do not dictate the time allowed for students to “hold” an offer; rather, sites
determine the conditions of their offers. In this model, sites can determine if they want an “answer
on the spot,” or if they will allow a period of time during which the student may consider the offer.
Some sites may choose to allow as little as five minutes, while others may allow several days. To allow
adequate time for students to receive and make follow-up phone calls, SCAPTP has suggested that
sites allow a waiting period that is no less than thirty (30) minutes. However, this is completely up to
each site. It is appropriate to ask a site if they will allow you some time to consider their offer, but you
must be considerate and operate within the site’s parameters.
In order to increase students’ ability to adhere to and meaningfully respond within these “hold times,”
sites should clarify with applicants, at the time of the interview, the parameters of their offers if an
offer is made on April 14th. For example, if a site allows thirty minutes to accept an offer made on
April 14th, they should tell the student at the time of the offer that decisions must be made within this
time frame. You should think about your site preference ranking before offers can be made, so you
will have a better idea of how to respond when you get offers from any of the sites at which you
interviewed.
If you place an offer “on hold,” you may then contact other sites from which you are hoping to
receive an offer to inquire about your candidacy. If you are made an offer from a site that you want
at that time, you can accept it. Of course, you then must call the site that you placed “on hold” to
remove yourself from their consideration. You cannot “hold” more than one site at a time. In
other words, if you put a second site on hold, you must call the first site and inform them that you
will not be accepting their position.
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NON-SCAPTP TRAINING SITE OFFERS
The process for sites that do not abide my SCAPTP is much less formal. Some sites will extend an offer to
students immediately after the interview has concluded, while others will contact students at a later
date by phone, letter, or e-mail. Regardless of how the offer is communicated, students have three
choices: 1) accept, (2) reject, or (3) “hold” the offer.
Verbally Accept an Offer
Once you verbally accept an offer, you are bound to that “match.” Under NO circumstance can you
accept another offer. Rather, you should call every other site at which you interviewed and inform
them that you are no longer a candidate for their position. Explain that you remain very interested in
working with them in the future. This will help to keep bridges intact should you decide to pursue an
additional professional relationship in the future. More likely than not, sites will remember your
courtesy and the sincerity of your interest. Similarly, they will remember any lack of courtesy or
unprofessional conduct (i.e., it’s a very small training world).
Please remember that you are an ambassador of the Chicago School, thus your actions in the
practicum search process reflect not only upon yourself, but the Chicago School and your peers. If, at
any point after verbally accepting an offer, you fear that you have made the “wrong choice” you are
NOT to contact the site directly. Because your verbal acceptance is a binding agreement between you
and the site, immediately contact your office of Clinical Training (Dr. O’Banion and/or Dr. Sazgar).
Please contact Dr. Megan O’Banion at [email protected] immediately after accepting
an offer. She needs to know WHEN you were offered the position, when you accepted the position,
as well as WHERE you are going. Then, draft a brief acceptance letter. Send or email a copy to the
site and email a copy to Dr. O’Banion. When all of your responsibilities are fulfilled, go out and
celebrate!
See Appendix E for a sample Acceptance letter.
Verbally Reject an Offer
If you reject an offer made by a site, this too is binding. The site is free to extend that offer to another
student, and students are free to accept another offer. Please be polite when rejecting an offer. Also,
be thoughtful when rejecting a site, and seriously consider that you may not have other offers
immediately available to you. You should be prepared to re-enter the search process, including resending materials, going on additional interviews, and/or potentially developing your own training
site.
Putting a Site on Hold
You should think about your site preference ranking before offers can be made, so you will have a
better idea of how to respond when you get offers from any of the sites at which you interviewed.
Academic institutions do not dictate the time allowed for students to “hold” an offer; rather, sites
determine the conditions of their offers. In this model, sites can determine if they want an “answer
on the spot,” or if they will allow a period of time during which the student may consider the offer.
Some sites may choose to allow as little as five minutes, while others may allow several days.
However, this is completely up to each site. It is appropriate to ask a site if they will allow you some
time to consider their offer, but you must be considerate and operate within the site’s parameters. If a
student receives an offer from a non-SCAPTP site before the SCAPTP notification deadline the student
may want to consider telling the site that he/she is interested in the offer, however, he/she has
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applied to several SCAPTP sites and would the current site consider waiting for an answer regarding
the offer until SCAPTP notification day. The site may or may not agree to waiting and it will be up to
the student whether or not to accept or reject the offer if the site is unwilling to wait for an answer.
If you place an offer “on hold,” you may then contact other sites from which you are hoping to receive
an offer to inquire about your candidacy. If you are made an offer from a site that you want at that
time, you can accept it. Of course, you then must call the site that you placed “on hold” to remove
yourself from their consideration. You cannot “hold” more than one site at a time. In other words, if
you put a second site on hold, you must call the first site and inform them that you will not be
accepting their position.
WHAT IF I DON’T GET AN OFFER BY THE SCAPTP UND?
SCAPTP has a Universal Notification Day (UND) that is the second Monday of April every year. If you do
not receive and accept an offer on the this UND, don’t panic. Remember that it is merely the beginning
of a long placement season. If you do not secure a site by the middle of April, please promptly contact
the Director of Clinical Training.
Next, review your application materials, such as your CV and cover letter, to ensure accuracy and
thoroughness. Ensure that you have access to additional copies of other application documents, such as
external letters of recommendation and writing samples. Check your TCS email accounts several times a
day, as APP will provide updates regarding late-breaking position information, sites that report
openings, newly developed training positions open to applications, meetings to support ongoing search
efforts, etc. APP and the Psy.D. department expect that all unplaced practicum students will:

Remain in active and consistent contact with the DCT;

Seek consultation from Academic Advisors;

Brainstorm alternative ways to manage factors that may be complicating your efforts, such as
lack of personal transportation;

Network with professors, mentors, peers, etc. and bring proposals to your DCT;

Express interest in as many available positions presented through email by your DCT as
possible;

Learn about the site development process.
It is important that all students secure their practicum site before registering for Fall courses, so that
they can better plan their course and practicum schedules. All students should secure a practicum site
by the 1st week of the fall semester.
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PAPERWORK
All Required APP Forms
Supervisor Access to Alcea
Evaluation of Student Performance
Student Evaluation of Site
38
38
39
40
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SUPERVISOR ACCESS TO ALCEA E-FORMS
As soon as you secure a practicum site and are assigned supervisors, be sure to register your
supervisor(s) on your Alcea page under “Field Assignments.” Select the blue Change hyperlink next to
each row available to search for your supervisor(s). If your supervisor is NOT in Alcea as an option,
notify your DCT with their full name, credential, contact information, and site name so APP can add
the supervisor promptly.
Once you have enrolled in a practicum seminar, make sure you register your Practicum Instructor on
your Alcea home page, as well.
Without these two steps, your site, supervisor, and your practicum instructor will not have essential
access to your e-forms for electronic signatures.
ALL REQUIRED APP FORMS
In accordance with the APP Grading Policy:
1) Clinical Psy.D. Practicum Training Agreement (ALCEA e-Form)
(Appendix K - example)
o Completed within the Alcea database (e-form) by student with input/review from site
supervisor
o Electronic signatures provided to the e-form in Alcea by the student and Primary
(Individual) Supervisor (Licensed Clinical Psychologist).
o Due within two weeks of starting Fall practicum
2) Professional Comportment Contract (ALCEA Program Document)
(Appendix H)
o Must be signed and uploaded to Alcea within two weeks of starting your Fall practicum.
* Hours will not count for more than two weeks prior to the training agreement and professional
comportment contract being accepted by the TCS Clinical Training Office
3) Clinical PsyD Hour Log and Evaluation (ALCEA e-Form)
(Appendix L - example)
o This is a combined e-form the includes BOTH mid-term (Fall) and annual log of accrued
hours, as well as performance evaluations by your Clinical Supervirsor and Practicum
Instructor.
o The student will complete the hour log portion at mid-term and annual intervals.
o The Primary Supervisor AND the Practicum Instructor will provide evaluative scoring per
competency category at mid-term and annual intervals within Alcea. They will each
provide an electronic signature before reviewing the document with the student (who
will also provide an electronic signature).
o Supervisors are required to electronically sign off on all accumulated hours (in the PsyD
Hour Log and Evaluation e-form) at mid-term and annual due dates.
o The DCT will provide the final review, approval, and signature to the form.
4) Student Monthly Hour Logs (PAPER)
(Appendix J(a))
o Completed monthly by the student and signed off manually by the onsite and primary
supervisor (if different professionals).
o The form is to be brought to their Practicum Seminar class to be reviewed and checked38 of 53
off at the end of each month by their instructor.
5) Student Monthly Update Form (PAPER)
(Appendix J(b))
o Completed monthly by the student, singed by the practicum instructor, and submitted
to Dr. O’Banion’ s (DCT) faculty mailbox.
o This form is as a confirmation for the DCT that there is expected progress, meeting of
practicum training requirements, and communication of said progress and/or concerns
between the student and their practicum instructor. This form also gives the
opportunity for the practicum instructor to document any questions, concerns, and/or
mediation recommended to the student, as well as an opportunity to document seeking
immediate consultation with the DCT.
o The form is to be brought by the student to their Practicum Seminar class to be
reviewed and checked-off at the end of each month by their instructor – then the
student will submit the form to Dr. O’Banion’ s office (mailbox or office directly).
5) Clinical PsyD Student Evaluation of Site (PAPER)
(Appendix I)
o Completed by student mid-term and at the conclusion of the training year.
o The document can be found in Program Document section on your Alcea student page
for your current training year. Your DCT will either have you complete this survey in
your practicum class or download, complete, scan and upload the document back to
Alcea.
EVALUATION OF STUDENT PERFORMANCE
Site supervisors evaluate practica students each semester. Their evaluation form assesses student
standing and progress related to several areas of professional competency in psychology. APP expects
that supervisors review their evaluations with students and provide direct feedback regarding observed
strengths and weaknesses. Therefore, students must countersign every evaluation form
We encourage all Psy.D. students to visit the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship
Center’s (APPIC’s) website at www.appic.org before beginning their first practicum and create a student
account so they may access the APPIC application. This application demonstrates how students will
need to carefully detail their practica activities on their internship application. Therefore, the
application provides a good template for how to record practica activities for future reference.
Recording hours in a manner consistent with APPIC’s application will save students a great deal of time
when they apply for internship (Also see Appendix J, L & M)
The Director of Clinical Training is prepared to intervene for any problems encountered at a training site.
Therefore, students experiencing difficulty at their site should consult with the Director of Clinical
Training and their Practicum Seminar Instructors. Similarly, site supervisors are encouraged to contact
the Director of Clinical Training with their concerns about a student’s performance. All problems
presented to APP, by either students or site supervisors, receive a comprehensive and objective review
of the pertinent information prior to rendering interventions and dispositions.
Practicum Seminar Instructors complete evaluation forms each to provide feedback on each student's
standing and progress toward attaining the goals of the seminar.
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STUDENT EVALUATION OF SITE
Many site supervisors have asked about students’ feedback of their sites and training programs. APP has
a form that is given to students at the end of the training year to evaluate their practicum site and
experience. While this information may be valuable to sites, APP does not release it directly to sites.
Students often feel much safer knowing that they can provide direct feedback of the site to APP when
they are assured that the information is confidential. However, APP encourages sites to solicit feedback
from students at different points in the training. (Appendix I)
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REMEDAITION, WITHDRAWALS & DISMISSALS
Defining a Practicum Remediation, Withdrawal & Dismissal
Difficulties & Conflict Resolution
Students Demonstrating Lack of Clinical Competency &/or Judgment
Procedures for Practicum & Internship Remediation
Practicum Repeats
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42
43
45
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DEFINING A PRACTICUM REMEDAITION, WITHDRAWAL & DISMISSAL
REMEDIATION: Students may earn a Practicum Remediation Plan (PRP) when a concern is raised by
the DCT, the clinical supervisor or the site administration regarding an element of the student’s training.
These can be concerns that are related to the insufficient demonstration of clinical skill, professional
comportment, conduct, and/or interpersonal skills. A PRP is designed to be collaborative and supportive
rather than punitive in nature. A PRP are brief, behavioral in nature, and focused on the identified
competencies that are outlined in the performance evaluation forms. PRP’s are typically designed to be
60 or 90 days in lengths. Parties involved in the PRP include: the student, supervisor, and the DCT/CTC.
Parties that may be included in the PRP are: the Advisor and practicum site administration.
Not successfully remediating the concern(s) will conclude in not successfully completing a PRP. Not
successfully completing the PRP may earn a non-pass for the practicum training year, a DCT withdrawal
of the student from the site, a dismissal from the site, and/or Clinical Program Student Affairs
Committee.
WITHDRAWAL: The Clinical Training Office (DCT/CTC) will generally attempt to initially collaboratively
remediate issues that are raised about the student and the site’s performance. Every effort will be made
to act in good-faith and to preserve the training experiences and relationship. Ultimately, when a
concern is raised regarding the site’s conduct and policies, after initial attempts to resolve the issues but
the issues remain un-remediable, the DCT may choose to withdraw the student from the practicum
placement. Most withdrawals are made early in the training year, are collaboratively determined, and
are related to fit or out of protection for the individual student’s training experience.
Furthermore, the DCT/CTC makes every effort to not disrupt the student’s completion of the training
requirements for the training year. On occasion, the withdrawal may also involve concerns about the
student’s performance. In this situation, the student may be required to complete a PRP with the
DCT/CTC and/or departmental Academic Development Plan (ADP) with their Advisor prior to a return to
or during an alternate practicum setting (selected by the DCT) the same training year.
PRACTICUM DISMISSAL: When a student is dismissed by the practicum site it is typically for an
egregious issue related to an ethical, legal, or policy violation(s) that is outlined in the site’s procedures,
TCSPP manuals/handbooks, the APA Ethical Code of Conduct, the laws that govern the practice of
psychology, and/or an illegal act as defined by State and/or Federal statutes. Once a student is
dismissed from their practicum site, the training for the year is terminated.
A practicum dismissal triggers the DCT to investigate the merit of the dismissal via an objective
evaluation of all parties’ courses of action that lead up to the dismissal, the adherence to the site’s own
identified due process procedures, and the management of the dismissal itself. If the dismissal is found
to be without merit, the student may earn an ADP, a PRP, and the DCT may select an alternate
practicum setting. If the dismissal is found to have merit, the student will earn a non-passing grade for
the practicum year and will be referred to the Clinical Program’s Student Affairs Committee.
DIFFICULTIES ON PRACTICUM & CONFLICT RESOLUTION
If you encounter anything unusual or problematic at your site, and/or if you have any questions,
contact your Practicum Seminar Instructor and the Director of Clinical Training immediately. In
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general, the best solution occurs as early as the problem is identified and through informal means.
Therefore, The Director of Clinical Training will only directly intervene with a site after reasonable
attempts have been made by the student to resolve the problem at hand. However, APP staff is
available to consult with students on an ongoing basis while they attempt informal resolution.
APP routinely reviews practicum sites in order to ensure that the training sites provide experiences
consistent with the goals and philosophies of the school. Information for this on-going assessment is
derived from interactions between APP and site personnel, as well as from feedback from seminar
leaders and students about their practica experiences. Sites are required to review and update their
site information on an annual basis. If a site's training goals change after a training agreement has
been made, it is expected that the site will make such changes known to APP, which will then
determine if the site remains eligible to train TCS-Downtown LA Campus students. If your practicum
site substantively changes its training program any time after you accept their offer, you must
contact APP.
Conflict Resolution
Over the last several years, APP has noted that students and site supervisors often only indicate
problems in the final evaluation. At that point, there is often little that can be done to remediate the
situation. Workplace conflict is common and it is our responsibility to consult about these problems
and resolve them, if possible. At times, conflict may arise between a site and the student in training,
and APP makes a concerted effort to work with students to learn and practice conflict resolution skills.
Our approach is multi-tiered. We begin by outreaching to students before their practicum training
commences, and specifically through didactic presentations that focus on a variety of issues that may
come up on site and/or in supervision. For example, we encourage students to share training goals, be
active participants in the supervisory process, and clarify supervisory expectations when in doubt. For
a more detailed description of our multi-tiered approach, please see Appendix.
In general, APP expects that sites have clearly articulated policies and procedures for trainee selection,
supervision, and performance evaluation. Increasingly it is important, for both students and sites, to
have documented remediation and due process procedures. Students are encouraged to discuss
these procedures with their site upon commencement of their training experience. If they find that
their site does not have a formal policy, students are encouraged to begin a dialogue with their
supervisor(s) to learn about the site’s grievance procedures, as well as contact the Director of Clinical
Training.
STUDENTS DEMOSTRATING LACK OF CLINICAL COMPENTENCY AND/OR JUDMENT
All clinicians involved in training must address any issues that may arise regarding a student’s lack of
clinical competency and/or judgment. TCS-Downtown LA Campus faculty has obligations to students as
well as the profession and the public receiving services. As “gatekeepers,” APP occasionally must
exercise these responsibilities by preventing unfit students from continuing in the program. Because of
the gravity associated with such decisions, recommendations for retention, significant remediation,
and/or dismissal from the program require an intensive and individualized formal review. However,
avoidance of such matters does not serve in the best interest of the student, the school, the profession,
or the public.
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TCS-Downtown LA Campus’s clinical training philosophy rests upon the belief that clinicians must
demonstrate academic and clinical competency and that one is not sufficient without the other.
Academic competency requires an adequate fund of knowledge plus the conceptual skills to integrate
and apply this knowledge to case material. Clinical competency pertains to the ability to accurately
assess psychological phenomena, to intervene effectively, and to adhere to legal, ethical, and
professional duties associated with the mental health professions. Lack of clinical competency and/or
judgment refers to those students who are unable to fulfill the minimal standards of clinical and/or
academic competency.
TCS-Downtown LA Campus understands that emotional and/or behavioral problems may underlie lack
of clinical competency and/or judgment. If a student believes that accommodations are needed for a
psychiatric disability, the student is responsible for requesting a reasonable accommodation by
following the accommodations procedures listed on the Schools website. The request will be reviewed
and assessed in the same manner as other accommodations requests but may require that the School
temporarily or permanently remove students from the practicum as a matter of patient safety.
Furthermore, such problems only become an academic or training issue when they impact upon a
student’s ability or potential to become a competent professional. Concerns about a student’s lack of
clinical competency and/or judgment may be raised by the student, TCS-Downtown LA Campus faculty,
site supervisors, or student peers. Examples of behaviors suggestive of lack of clinical competency
and/or judgment include:







Provision of services beyond one’s scope of competence
Conviction of a crime that directly bears upon the ability to continue training
Insufficient and/or harmful application of psychological theory or practice
Provision of direct clinical services despite being emotionally or mentally unfit to do so
Impairments in functioning due to the direct or indirect effects of substance abuse or
addictions
Demonstration of unethical, illegal, or unprofessional conduct with patients, supervisors,
peers, or instructors
Significant deficiencies in clinical, academic, or professional judgment.
Once a question about a student’s lack of clinical competency and/or judgment is raised, APP will
conduct a comprehensive review of the circumstances according to established institutional policies. All
involved parties must respect the student’s rights to a thorough and objective review and to selfrepresentation of the facts in question. Details and correspondence about concerns pertaining to a
student’s suspected emotional and or behavioral difficulty are kept in a confidential file in the Director
of Clinical Training’s office until a final determination is made. A report of the findings may enter the
student’s Academic File as deemed appropriate by APP and/or the C-SAC.
APP may designate the C-SAC to oversee and/or conduct an initial investigation. After a review of
preliminary information, the designated faculty body renders a recommendation for a formal
assessment if the initial concerns of lack of clinical competency and/or judgment have merit. The formal
evaluation may consist, though is not limited to, any of the following:

Expert opinions from the academic faculty, training faculty, and/or professional consultants
to the faculty;
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



A review of the student’s willingness to accept responsibility for the concerns in question
and to engage in meaningful remediation;
Consideration of the extent to which continued enrollment places unreasonable or
excessive demands upon other students, faculty, and potential training sites;
An assessment of the student’s ability to function as a trainee in direct contact with clinical
populations;
A review of opinions submitted on behalf of the student by her or his professional
consultant.
On the basis of all information, the faculty makes a final disposition. If the concerns are substantiated in
part or in full, consequent actions may include, though are not limited to, any of the following:






Allowing the student to continue in the curriculum on either a part- or full-time basis
according to a remediation plan developed, implemented, and monitored by the school;
Referring the student to appropriate professional assistance while continuing in the
program on a part- or full-time basis with a remediation plan;
Allowing the student to take a voluntary leave of absence;
Referral to the Student Affairs Committee for a hearing and possible sanctions.
Placing the student on a required leave of absence while undergoing required remediation
or participation in professional assistance;
Recommendation to the Dean for Dismissal from the program.
PROCEDURES FOR PRACTICUM & INTERSHIP REMEDIATION
Faculty Procedures
Students experiencing difficulty meeting acceptable standards of training on a practicum deserve an
intervention proportionate to the problems in question. The student, a seminar leader, a site supervisor,
APP or anyone else connected to or involved in the student’s training may raise such concerns. The
primary goals of any intervention should be clarification of the problem and resolution through
appropriate remediation.
Many concerns, especially those of “minor” shortcomings, can be resolved informally. For example, a
Practicum Seminar Instructor may request a re-submit of a case analysis to better present the contained
ideas. So long as such informal interventions ameliorate the problems identified, no further action is
necessary.
When significant problems arise (e.g., those that cannot be remedied through informal means), more
intensive interventions become necessary. Depending on the situation, the student, seminar leader, site
supervisor(s), program chair, and/or Director of Clinical Training meet to evaluate if legitimate deficits
exist, and, if so, to clarify their specific nature. Once identified, the evaluator(s) may submit a written
Academic Development Plan (ADP) for review, input, and final approval. In some instances a referral to
the C-SAC may be warranted. The following are a list of steps that may be taken to remediate the
problem.
1. If a Seminar Instructor or other faculty member has concerns about a student’s mastery of
seminar and/or practicum-related objectives, she or he may bring this to the attention of the
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student’s advisor who may, upon consultation with the Practicum Seminar Instructor and DCT,
put an ADP in place. The ADP should target the areas of deficiency and outlines steps that the
student needs to take in order to achieve the goals of the remediation. Whenever possible it is
recommend that faculty members collaborate with the student who is assigned the remediation
in devising the plan. The student may be required to complete the ADP prior to earning a
“Credit” grade for the Practicum Seminar that semester. However, once the student achieves
these goals and an ADP is no longer warranted, he or she may be assigned a grade of “Credit”
for the Practicum Seminar.
2. The DCT will also contact the student’s site supervisor in order to “touch base” and gather
information about how the student is progressing on her or his training goals at the site.
3. The student’s advisor will present the ADP to the DCT for input and approval. In their review,
APP may request a personal presentation by the student to ensure consideration of all pertinent
information.
4. If APP requests a supplemental practicum or internship, APP will assist the student in finding
appropriate placement and oversee her or his progress. If fundamental clinical deficits exist, the
student may be required to complete certain pre-practicum or internship requirements before
enrolling in another school-approved training experience. In such circumstances, students
undergo a formal evaluation process as described in the Students Demonstrating Lack of Clinical
Competency of Judgment section above.
5. If the remediation takes longer than the semester in which it is developed, the Practicum
Seminar Instructor will assign a grade of “Incomplete” for the Practicum class. An “Incomplete”
grade should be assigned only when the instructor has expectations that the problems or
concerns raised about the student’s competency in a particular domain(s) has potential to be
resolved. The student must complete the remediation plan prior to the end of the following
semester in order to change the “Incomplete” to a “Credit” grade.
6. If a faculty member has serious concerns about the competency of a student, and a remediation
plan does not seem sufficient to address the deficiencies, the faculty should consult with the
student’s advisor and the DCT. This may result in a referral to C-SAC and the student should be
provided with a clear explanation in writing regarding the referral.
7. A No Pass, or “NP”, grade equals failure with no opportunity to receive credit for that semester.
This option should be utilized after a formal remediation plan has been attempted and failed.
The only exception to this situation would be if a student does not fulfill the requirements of the
seminar as outlined by the course syllabus (e.g., attendance, not presenting if slated to present,
etc.). Any student receiving a “No Credit” grade will be automatically referred to the Director of
Clinical Training to review her or his training requirements and be required to repeat the
training year in its entirety along with the six-credit practicum seminar course sequence.
8. If a case moves forward to a C-SAC hearing, the student is required to make a personal
appearance before the committee. Students may also choose to submit their own
documentation and select an appropriate support person to accompany them to a dismissal
meeting.
Training Site Procedures
Students experiencing difficulty meeting acceptable standards of training on a practicum deserve an
intervention proportionate to the problems in question. The student, the Practicum Seminar Instructor,
the site supervisor, APP or anyone else connected to or involved in the student’s training may raise such
46 of 53
concerns. The primary goals of any intervention should be clarification of the problem and resolution
through appropriate remediation.
site supervisor may arrange a special meeting with the student to discuss the importance of timeliness,
professionalism, and/or competency areas that need more attention in the student’s training plan. So
long as such informal interventions ameliorate the problems identified, no further action is necessary.
These instances rarely warrant any written communications (other than evaluation forms as required by
the school) or contact between the site and the Director of Clinical Training.
When significant problems arise (e.g., those that cannot be remedied through informal means), more
intensive interventions become necessary. When these situations occur, the following procedures
should be followed in order to provide due process and a fair assessment of the problem or concern:
1. The site representative (e.g., clinical supervisor, site Training Director) contacts the Director of
Clinical Training to evaluate if legitimate deficits exist, and if so, to clarify their specific nature.
2. Once the concerns are identified, the site representative submits a written remediation plan to
the Director of Clinical Training for review, input, and final approval. In their review, APP may
request a personal presentation by the student to ensure consideration of all pertinent
information. Regardless, the student always has the option to present her or his case (orally
and/or in writing) to APP. The Director of Clinical Training will also communicate with the
student’s academic advisor and/or seminar instructor in order to obtain feedback about the
student’s academic and clinical history in the program, and to include them in the decision
making process for the remediation plan. If APP has any questions or concerns about the
remediation plan, The Director of Clinical Training will consult with the site representative.
3. A final remediation plan is then generated between all involved parties. This contract serves to
specify the target deficits, actions required to remedy the problems, timeframe in which the
remediation is to occur and to be re-evaluated, and to outline the consequences if the student
is unable to fulfill the terms of the remediation plan. The plan must operationally define what
constitutes successful completion and what the consequences are for failure, how and when
progress will be monitored, and how completion/termination will be determined and by whom.
The student will be on “Remediation Status” at this point, and will not receive credit for the
practicum experience until he or she meets the terms of the remediation plan and is removed
from this status by the Director of Clinical Training. The DCT will notify the student and his/her
advisor in writing, of the student being placed on “Remediation Status.” A copy of the
notification and the plan will be placed in the student’s file. At any point the faculty has the
option to also place the student on an Academic Development plan which will be implemented
by the student’s advisor (please see Faculty Procedures, p. 27)
4. As outlined in the remediation plan, the plan will be re-evaluated by the student, site
representative, and the Director of Clinical Training to assess the student’s progress. At that
time, all parties will discuss the necessity of continuing the plan or officially removing the
student from the remediation status.
5. If it is mutually decided that the student has successfully met the terms of the remediation
plan, she or he will be removed from “Remediation Status” and will be eligible to receive a
“Credit” grade for practicum when all training forms and documents are submitted for that
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semester. Once removed from “Remediation Status” the DCT will notify the student and the
advisor, in writing, and confirmation of the removal will be placed in the student’s file.
6. If it is decided that a student will remain on “Remediation Status,” she or he will not receive a
“Credit” grade for the practicum at that time and will instead receive an “Incomplete” grade. In
this situation, the Director of Clinical Training will consult with the student and site
representative to gather more information about the student’s progress, and explore ways to
further tailor the remediation plan to address the outlined concerns. If this is the case, step four
as outline above will be followed again in order to re-evaluate the revised remediation plan.
7.
The Director of Clinical Training may also require a supplemental practicum or internship, and
she will assist the student in finding appropriate placement and oversee her or his progress. If
fundamental clinical deficits exist, the student may be required to complete certain prepracticum or internship requirements before enrolling in another school-approved training
experience as a repeat of the failed training experience. If a practicum or internship repeat is
required, the student shall repeat all of the requirements entailed in the practicum or
internship experience in its entirety.
8. APP encourages the site to follow the above-outlined steps prior to consideration of
terminating a student from a training site. Sufficient documentation must exist to demonstrate
that a student has not adequately addressed the terms of the remediation plan in order for APP
to formally recognize a termination from a practicum or internship site. These decisions have
lasting implications on a student’s training and academic work, as well as her or his application
for a pre-doctoral internship. As a result, the training site and APP weighs these decisions very
carefully. In the event that the Site decides the student has engaged in an irremediable, serious
violation or infraction, termination from the training site would be deemed appropriate without
needing to follow the above outlined steps.
Student Procedures
student may arrange a special meeting with a supervisor to discuss the importance of meeting his or
her training requirements as outlined by the school if deficiencies are occurring (e.g., low on
supervision hours, direct services hours, etc.). So long as such informal interventions ameliorate the
problems identified, no further action is necessary. These instances rarely warrant any written
communications or contact between the student and APP.
When significant problems arise (i.e., those that cannot be remedied through informal means), more
intensive interventions become necessary. Examples of these situations might include: The site does
not provide opportunities for the student to meet his or her training requirements as outlined in the
Practicum Training Agreement or a site supervisor acts in an unprofessional or unethical manner that
directly affects the student. When these situations occur, the following procedures should be followed
in order to provide due process and a fair assessment of the problem or concern raised about a TCSDowntown LA Campus -affiliated training site:
1. The student should schedule a meeting with his or her Practicum Instructor to discuss the
concerns and to generate ideas about how to further address them with the site directly.
48 of 53
2. If step one does not result in a remedy of the situation, student’s academic advisor will
recommend student to contact the Director of Clinical Training in order to discuss her or his
concerns.
3. At this juncture, a student does not need to notify his or her site that the Director of Clinical
Training has been notified. This initial meeting is for information gathering and advisement. The
student is required to continue to fulfill her or his responsibilities to the site as outlined in the
Practicum Training Agreement throughout the process of notifying the school of her or his
difficulties unless the Director of Clinical Training instructs the student to cease practicum
duties due to safety, ethical, or legal concerns.
4. If after the above-stated meeting takes place, a student may choose to put her or his concerns
into a formal written complaint or concern about a site’s ability to meet the training
requirements as agreed upon in the training agreement or due to mistreatment by the site’s
training representatives. A student must put concerns in writing in order for the Director of
Clinical Training to intervene on the student’s behalf. Documentation of the steps a student has
taken in order to informally resolve the difficulty should be outlined, as well as the attempts at
resolution suggested by the student’s practicum instructor and/or academic advisor.
5. The student’s written formal complaint will be forwarded to APP review. In their review, APP
may request a personal presentation by the student to ensure consideration of all pertinent
information. Regardless, the student always has the option to present her or his case (orally
and/or in writing) to APP. The Director of Clinical Training will also communicate with the
student’s academic advisor and/or practicum instructor in order to obtain feedback about the
student’s academic and clinical history in the program, and to include this person in the
decision making process.
6. The Director of Clinical Training will contact the training site with any questions or concerns
about the issues raised by the student. The representative will contact the student prior to
contacting the site in order to inform him or her of the DCT’s decision to do so.
7. APP will make a decision about how to proceed based on all of the information presented. The
disposition may include: dissolution of the Practicum Training Agreement, development of a
remediation plan for the site and/or student depending upon the circumstances and
information presented, development of an action plan to address the concerns and to work
toward a successful completion of the training experience with the current site.
PRACTICUM REPEATS
Should any student fail the practicum experience (either the seminar portion, site portion, or both), she
or he will be required to repeat the practicum training year in its entirety including the six-credit
practicum seminar course sequence. The accrued practicum hours will not transfer over to the repeated
practicum training year. The entire 600-hour minimum requirement is necessary to accrue anew for any
student required to repeat a practicum training year. As such, partial training years and one semester of
practicum seminar cannot be repeated for full credit of a training year.
Reasons that students must repeat a training year include, but are not limited to the
following:

Dismissal from practicum site subsequent to an unsuccessful remediation.
49 of 53

Dismissal from practicum site due to a serious, irremediable infraction perpetrated by the
student.

Lack of expected clinical competency and/or judgment in order to move on to the next training
experience as determined by the practicum seminar instructor and practicum site supervisor in
conjunction with APP.

Transfer from another graduate program.

Failure of the student to submit required documentation to APP and/or failure of the student to
successfully complete all requirements of the practicum seminar course sequence.

Failure to successfully pass the Integrative Case Analysis Written and Oral Defense during your
Intermediate Practicum year (NOTE: while your practicum hours accrued may still count, you
will not matriculate to the following practicum year – you will repeat the Intermediate
practicum year).
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OTHER RELATED PRACTICUM DETAILS
Supplemental Practicum
Policy on Training Sites with Creedal Statements
Policy Regarding Private Practice
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52
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SUPPLEMENTAL PRACTICUM
Some students gain additional experience by completing supplemental practica. These experiences are
in addition to the required training experiences and are completely optional. Supplemental practica are
similar to other practica, but may only last for a few months or have a lesser weekly time commitment
than the required practica. For example, a site at which you previously trained may welcome you back
for a few months over the summer to gain additional training in testing. Prior to commencing this
supplemental practicum experience, a student should 1) consult with the Director of Clinical Training to
review the nature of the experience and receive approval; and 2) complete a Supplemental Practicum
Training Agreement. Note that the student and supervisor will submit practicum evaluations and hour
logs just as they would for a required practicum experience. A supplemental practicum can only occur
when a student is concurrently engaged in a full Practicum Experience and enrolled in a Practicum
Seminar. Under no other conditions can a practicum be school sanctioned.
POLICY ON TRAINING SITES WITH CREEDAL STATEMENTS
Some sites restrict their trainee applicant pool based upon race, age, gender, disability, ethnic or racial
background, religious affiliation, or sexual orientation. Because TCS-Downtown LA Campus strongly
endorses a non-discrimination policy, sites are likewise expected to conduct their selection and training
in a non-discriminatory manner unless they have compelling legal and/or therapeutic reasons for doing
so. Sites that utilize discriminatory creedal statements must notify the school of this and clarify
rationales for such policies. Such sites are only approved if adequate rationales exist, and this
information will be clearly noted in the practicum placement literature kept on file in The Director of
Clinical Training’s office.
Legitimate rationales for the use of creedal statements typically fall into one of the two following
categories:
1. A site serves a specific clientele who have special needs or share unique problem areas. For
example:
 A shelter for battered women may only utilize female counselors
 A program mentoring African-American boys may only use African-American male
counselors
 A program serving ethnic immigrant populations may prefer counselors who have
similar ethnic and/or immigration experiences
2. A site may exercise a legal right to restrict their applicant pool. For example:
 Some government agencies and branches of the armed forces may apply selection
restrictions supported by law
 Religiously oriented programs may legally restrict hiring based on religious affiliation
If a student feels she or he experienced any form of discrimination or harassment at their training site, a
report should be made immediately to the APP Department which will then conduct a full investigation
of the matter and intervene accordingly.
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POLICY REGARDING STUDENTS IN PRIVATE PRACTICE
TCS-Downtown LA Campus expects that its students conduct themselves in an ethical and legal manner.
It is both illegal and unethical for students (or any clinician) to practice outside the scope of their
professional training and qualifications. Therefore, TCS-Downtown LA Campus restricts their
matriculated students from engaging in their own private practice activities or other employment
involving the limited functions of psychotherapy and/or psychological testing (e.g., for-profit delivery of
therapy or counseling services) unless qualified to render such services. For this reason, a self-employed
private practice may never be used as a practicum or internship setting.
A “qualified” student is one who holds a current registration, certificate, or license by the appropriate
state regulatory agency in which the delivery of service takes place. Thus, qualified students may legally
and ethically practice independently in her or his area of expertise. For example, a student possessing a
clinical social worker license (LCSW) can provide psychotherapy in a private practice setting, though it
would be unethical and illegal for this student to provide psychological testing services to the public.
“Unqualified” persons, independent of experience and training, do not hold a professional designation
entitling them to practice independently. Some employment settings have a “Department of Mental
Health waiver” status, and are therefore legally able to employ unlicensed persons to perform
psychological services.
Under no circumstance can unqualified students independently render mental health services in any
setting. Any unqualified student engaged in such activities prior to enrollment at TCS-Downtown LA
Campus cannot continue such practices after admission. A student engaged in the independent delivery
of any service reasonably construed as psychological or counseling in nature must notify APP about such
activities in writing and provide current evidence (and timely renewals) of the registration, certification,
or licensure that allows that specific practice. APP will review this petition to determine if the student is
qualified to engage in such activities. Failure to comply with the aforementioned policies (including
failure to notify APP or falsely representing qualifications) will be vigorously pursued and may result in
dismissal from the program. For additional information on the ethical delivery of professional
psychology services, see:

American Psychological Association. Ethical principles of psychologists and code of
conduct (adopted 2003 with amendments adopted 2010). (http://www.apa.org/ethics)
53 of 53

The Clinical Psychology Psy.D. Program Doctoral Practicum Manual 2014-2015

Transcription

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