Components of the Social Work Internship Program

To assist in the transition from the role of student to professional, UCC offers gradually increasing responsibility and participation in all aspects of the following services:

Time-Limited Psychotherapy

UCC specializes in the provision and training of psychotherapy, particularly time-limited psychotherapy. UCC’s unique approach to therapy combines the ability to be both deep and brief without sacrificing one for the other. There is a limit on the number of sessions, although the internship allows for several cases to be seen on a longer term basis. Training also emphasizes implementing empirically validated treatments, such as CBT, when appropriate. We believe that delivering high quality and in-depth treatment to various patient populations in a time-effective manner is an essential activity for the professional social worker. Quick and accurate assessments are built into treatment from the first meeting. The highly motivated and verbal population we serve affords interns a clearer view of an individual’s dynamics and the opportunity to see change within a brief period of time

Assessment and Diagnostic Skills

Interns develop their assessment and diagnostic skills through a variety of means. Quick and accurate assessments must be made during initial interviews. Interns will learn to assess clients’ suitability for short-term work or group therapy, develop a working focus for brief treatment, and manage individuals in acute distress or crisis. Interns learn to assess symptoms and functioning using clinical interviews, a symptom checklist (OQ-45), a personality inventory (PAI). Interns become skilled in diagnosis and conceptualizations that inform treatment planning within our brief model.

In addition, UCC provides opportunities for interns to become familiar and competent with psychopharmacologic issues. This includes evaluating a client’s need for psychopharmacological interventions, making a proper referral, and assessing the effectiveness of a regimen. Interns become familiar with the range of psychotropic medications available, what diagnoses and symptoms can be effectively treated with medications, specific side-effects, and treatment implications

Intensive Group Therapy Work

UCC is committed to the provision of high-quality group psychotherapy. A variety of interpersonal process groups are offered each year and may include (but are not limited to): Survivors of Sexual Abuse and Assault, Eating Disorders, Stress and Meditation, and GLBT. A Men’s Group, Women’s Group, and mixed gender groups are also usually conducted. Interns also conduct psychoeducational groups, including: DBT skills groups, Anxiety Management, and Depression Management. Interns work in co-therapy teams and attend a weekly group supervision of group seminar.

Case Management

As part of the larger university environment, UCC maintains a variety of connections with other university systems. Interns will learn case management skills, including referrals and collaboration with other clinicians or University professionals when appropriate for the client’s situation. Trainees may work on the development of outreach skills, community interventions, and participation on committees if opportunities present themselves, at the discretion of their supervisor.