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Frequently Asked Questions
Internship Program
Q: Are there any opportunities
to teach?
Q: What opportunities
are offered in the areas of outreach and consultation?
Q: Could you describe
the diversity of your staff?
Q: What populations do
you tend to serve at UCI?
Q: Will I be
able to work on my dissertation while on internship?
Q: What is the surrounding
city of Irvine like? Is there affordable housing?
Q: How are supervisors
assigned and selected?
Q: What is a typical
day for an intern?
Q: Does the Center
provide any support for professional development?
Q: What types of groups
does the Counseling Center offer?
Q: What is the stipend,
& other benefits offered by your internship site?
Q: Can I do a part-time
or half-time internship?
Q:
Are there any opportunities to teach?
A: The training program often
offers various opportunities to teach. In the past, interns have had the
opportunity to teach classes with Counseling Center staff. The Center's
staff is involved in teaching both academic and residence hall courses.
The latter are courses that are more psychoeducationally focused and often
involve working with first year students. Staff have taught academic courses
such as Chicano Psychology, African American Psychology, Asian American
Psychology, and other psychology related courses. If teaching is an important
training need for yourself, discuss this with the training director.
Q:
What opportunities are offered in the areas of outreach and consultation?
A: The UCI counseling center
offers many exciting opportunities to deliver and develop workshops. Our
Center receives close to 100 workshop requests throughout the year. We
deliver workshops to UCI students, faculty and staff. Common workshop
requests include stress management, diversity issues, learning styles,
relationships, etc. The Center's staff also work in various consultative
roles throughout the University. As part of their training, interns will
work with one of their colleagues on a consultation project during the
year.
Q:
Could you describe the diversity of your staff?
A: Our Counseling Center prides
itself with the diversity of the staff. Our staff is diverse with respect
to gender, ethnicity and sexual orientation. In addition, theoretical
orientations and areas of expertise vary among staff members.
Q: What
populations do you tend to serve at UCI?
A: The Counseling Center provides
direct services and outreach to an ethnically diverse group of students.
The UCI campus is fairly diverse and is represented by about 50% Asian
Americans, 25% Caucasians, 10% Chicano/Latinos, 2% African Americans.
We also work with gay, lesbian, and bisexual clients and students. The
Counseling Center offers services to both undergraduate and graduate students.
Q:
Will I be able to work on my dissertation while on internship?
A: The Counseling Center is
extremely supportive of interns who are working on their dissertations
or research projects. Some our staff have active research interests and
may be of assistance to interns. The training program provides interns
with about 3 to 4 hours per week of professional development time for
interns to dedicate to their research or other professional development
activities. Access to computers and E-mail are also available to interns.
Q:
What is the surrounding city of Irvine like? Is there affordable housing?
A: The city of Irvine is centrally
located in Orange County. Irvine is about 50 minutes south of Los Angeles
and about 90 minutes north of San Diego. Beach communities are about 10
minutes away and ski resorts are about 2 hours away. Most interns have
lived within 15-20 minutes away from Campus in the surrounding communities
such as Tustin, Costa Mesa and Newport Beach. Generally, affordable housing
may be found in these and other nearby communities. The Counseling Center
also has 1 housing slot available in the Verano Family Housing complex,
as a live in residence counselor/consultant. Additional information on
this position can be obtained from the training director, after selection
day.
Q:
How are supervisors assigned and selected?
A: During orientation, interns
have the opportunity to meet with the different supervising staff. This
gives interns the opportunity to get to know the different supervisors
and supervising styles. Subsequently, the interns rank the supervisors
and discuss their preferences with the training director. The training
director will make final assignments, taking into account the preferences
of interns.
Q:
What is a typical day for an intern?
A: Initially, interns may spend
the greater part of the day in training seminars and meetings. The training
director also spends time in orientating interns to the Counseling Center
and the University. Eventually, the interns are involved in providing
direct services and workshops. Although
there is some degree of overlap between the interns schedules, much of
the day depends on the interns individual interests and commitments (i.e.,
type of workshops, groups, teaching, etc.).
Q:
Does the Center provide any support for professional development?
A: The Counseling Center encourages
and supports the professional activities of interns. For example, the
interns usually attend the Organization of Counseling Center Directors
in Higher Education conference (O.C.C.D.H.E.) near San Luis Obispo, CA.
In the past, the Center has provided some financial support for conferences
and other professional activities. The interns also have the opportunity
to attend professional development activities that are presented to the
Center's professional staff.
Q:
What types of groups does the Counseling Center offer?
A: The Counseling Center offers
a variety of groups to UCI students. The center offers both therapy and
support groups. For example, our staff offers support groups such as Asian
American women's group, African American men's group, Coming Out group,
etc. In addition, the Center offers therapy groups such as the Graduate
women's group and general therapy groups.
Q:
What is the stipend, & other benefits offered by your internship site?
A: Currently the stipend is
$20,000 for our 12 month full-time internship. Major medical coverage
is also offered to our interns. In addition, interns will have vacation,
holiday and sick time as allowed by the University.
Q:
Can I do a part-time or half-time internship?
A: Currently, the internship
is set up as a full-time internship and we do not have the accommodations
for part-time or half-time interns.
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