PSY 399/499 - Internship in Psychology

(Any Concentration)

Prerequisites

Minimum GPA of 2.5
Sophomore status
Sponsorship by faculty member
Submission to and Approval of a TCNJ Psychology Internship Proposal Form by the Psychology Department ELOPsy (Experiential Learning Opportunities in Psychology) Committee.

Restrictions

Psychology Major: PSY 399 counts as a Specialized Course; PSY 499 counts as a Senior Experience course. Students may count one ELOPsy course at the Specialized level, one ELOPsy as a Psychology Option, and one ELOPsy course at the Senior Experience level.

Psychology Minor: PSY 399 or PSY 499 will count as a course taken at the 300-level or above. One PSY 399 or PSY 499 may count toward the minor.

Majors may enroll in PSY 399 and/or PSY 499 more than once.

Minors can only take one internship.

Frequently Asked Questions about Internships in Psychology

Course Description

Students enrolled in Internship in Psychology engage in an extensive real-world learning experience in a organizational context relevant to their major in Psychology. Placements include positions in such areas as human resources, marketing, and social services. Students increase their mastery level of specific areas of Psychology by testing theories and practices in these applied settings. The opportunity to work in a professional setting helps our students adapt appropriate professional work standards, explore different career options, and build mentor and other network relationships in the workplace.

Learning Objectives Associated with this Course

This course is designed to contribute to the following Program Learning Objectives:

Psychological Knowledge
Critical Thinking in Psychology
Effective Communication
Applying Psychology
Career Preparation

Course Specific Learning Objectives

Experience the importance and relevance of psychology concepts and issues in practice.
Gain exposure to professional settings.
Learn to work effectively as contributing member of a work group or team.
Enjoy mentoring and networking relationships with professionals in the field of Psychology.
Develop competency in working in diverse settings and with diverse populations.
Experience a sense of accomplishment in what they can contribute to the organization.
Share new perspectives with current and future classes.
Gain valuable experience for graduate school and future job placements.

Learning Activities/Pedagogy

In this upper level course, the student takes on a very different role of working side-by-side with professionals in an applied setting. While work duties may be enhanced by formal training programs and required readings, much of the learning is hands-on at the worksite. The learning goals will vary for each internship but should always include specific objective learning goals, relevant readings assigned by the worksite and/or the faculty sponsor, weekly communications with the faculty sponsor, on-site supervisor's evaluation/feedback regarding the attainment of the learning goals. Students enrolled in PSY 499 are expected to take greater responsibility in the applied setting will emphasize developing self-directed learning skills in an applied setting.

For 499 Internships: 1) Student will write a 20-25 page paper that will require multiple revisions. The paper should integrate psychological research and/or theory with some aspect of their placement and 2) an oral presentation.

For 399 Internships: The student will write a 12-15 page paper that integrates psychological research and/or theory with some aspect of their placement. It is recommended that the papers have a minimum of 12 scholarly references from the last 10 years.

Faculty Responsibilities

The faculty member will:

Work with student on completion of required Internship application forms.
Communicate with student weekly in the form of their journal entry, an in-person, a phone call or email.
The student will maintain a journal that chronicles their activities in their placement. The journal will have an entry for each time the student is at their placement. The journal will be handed in to the faculty advisor on a regular basis.
The student will meet with their faculty advisor on a regular basis, at a minimum monthly, to discuss their placement. It is recommended that the faculty and student have weekly meeting. If this is not possible (e.g., the student may have an internship a distance from The College, a summer, etc) that precludes in-person meetings; email and/or phone calls may be the optimal means of communication. However, faculty will communicate with the student weekly.
Discuss with both student and supervisor progress towards the learning objectives in the TCNJ Psychology Internship Application Form.
Provide written and oral feedback on student progress on and accomplishment of learning objectives.

Student Assessment:

Student learning will be assessed through the achievement of learning objectives as well as the timeliness with weekly communications, and professionalism on the job.

Psychological Knowledge - achievement of learning objectives measured via weekly journal, on-site supervisor's evaluation, and a paper that integrates psychological research and/or theory with some aspect of their placement.

Integration Across Domains and Disciplines - achievement of learning objectives measured via weekly journal, on-site supervisor's evaluation, and a paper that integrates psychological research and/or theory with some aspect of their placement.

Ethical Standards - Confidential treatment of client information and adherence to professional codes of conduct assessed through supervisor's evaluation.

Applying Psychology - achievement of learning objectives measured via weekly journal, on-site supervisor's evaluation, and a paper that integrates psychological research and/or theory with some aspect of their placement.

Career Preparation - Development of skills and expectations for a career in this area - on-site supervisor's evaluation, and a paper that integrates psychological research and/or theory with some aspect of their placement.

Syllabus

TCNJ Psychology Internship Proposal Form with Learning Objectives and Supervisor's On-Site Evaluation form is submitted in lieu of a syllabus.

TCNJ Psychology Internship Proposal Form is submitted toward the end of the semester prior to the semester in which the student will enroll in PSY 399 or PSY 499. The proposal is reviewed by the ELOPsy committee, comprised of three full-time Psychology faculty members, to certify that the proposed internship (including specified learning objectives) meets the course requirements.

The Student Intern Performance Appraisal Form is a tool used to assess the student's performance in the internship. The remaining portion of the students grade is associated with the specific learning objectives developed for the internship.