Internship: Application and Selection Process

• Applicants must be enrolled in a doctoral program in Counseling or Clinical Psychology and have completed a minimum of three years of graduate training.
• Applicants must have had a minimum of four semesters of practicum experience.
• Applicants must pass all doctoral comprehensive exams by the APPIC Match ranking deadline.
• Applicants must have their dissertation proposal approved by the APPIC Match ranking deadline.
• Applicants must complete all appropriate coursework prior to the beginning of internship.
• 150 hours of experience doing individual counseling with adult outpatients is required.

Intern selection is based on degree of fit. We seek interns whose interests and goals are compatible with our training philosophy and training program aim. The following qualities are some indicators of a good fit:

• Applicants who demonstrate an interest and commitment to multiculturalism and diversity.
• Applicants who are passionate about the work of psychotherapy and wish to develop a stronger integration of their personal and professional identities.
• Prior practicum experience in a counseling center. As our center is on a non-traditional campus, experience with individual and group counseling in other adult outpatient settings could provide sufficient preparation to work in our center.

The Counseling and Mental Health Center psychology internship program at the UHCL endorses the APPIC Match process as binding. The Counseling and Mental Health Center therefore does not enter into additional training contracts or written training agreements beyond what is required to participate in Match. If an applicant’s academic program requires such a contract, they are strongly encouraged to consult with the Director of Clinical Training (DCT) about this requirement now. If they indicate that require such contracts and are unwilling to waive this requirement then the application will not be considered.

Similarly, interns at UHCL Counseling and Mental Health Center receive ongoing formative and summative evaluative feedback from supervisors throughout the training year. These evaluations are based on our program's philosophy of training, training model, and the goals, objectives, and competencies that define the internship. At mid-year and again at the end of the year the internship Training Director sends the academic program DCT a letter summarizing the intern's performance to date and a copy of their evaluation.

Therefore, if an applicant is enrolled in an academic training program that requires additional departmental program evaluations, these will not be completed by the Counseling and Mental Health Center training staff at UHCL. The academic program may choose to use the data from our evaluations to complete their own forms. Again, applicants are strongly encouraged to consult with their DCT if there are any questions about such requirements to see if they are eligible to apply to our site.

The intern selection process is conducted in a manner consistent with UHCL policy:

It is the policy of the University of Houston-Clear Lake to hire the best-qualified people to perform the numerous and varied tasks associated with providing quality educational services. As an essential part of this policy, the University is dedicated to equal employment opportunity for all employees and does not discriminate because of race, color, sex (including pregnancy), religion, national origin, disability, age, veteran status, genetic information or sexual orientation. Additionally, the System prohibits discrimination in all aspects of employment on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.”

Applicants must access the APPIC website:

• For information about the AAPI Online service, go to AAPI OnLine. 
• To create and submit application materials, go to AAPI OnLine Applicant Portal

APPIC Program Code: 218811
Deadline: Thursday, November 9, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. EST

We require three letters of recommendation. It is our preference that recommenders use the APPIC form for letters of recommendation available on the AAPI website, but will accept traditional letters if that is not possible.

International Students, if offered an interview, will be asked to provide a letter from their academic institution indicating that they are eligible for CPT or OPT. In addition, the OPT/CPT process needs to be facilitated through the intern’s academic program or institution. As our university cannot provide sponsorship, we ask that applicants provide this letter to avoid matching with an applicant that our institution is unable to hire.

Applicants will be notified of their interview status by Friday, December 15, 2023. Interviews will take place by Zoom video during the first 3 weeks of January. While we understand that some applicants may prefer an in-person interview, in an effort to give all interviewees a fair and consistent interview experience and to help keep costs down for applicants, we do not offer any in-person interviews. If applicants would like to visit our center to aid them in determining whether we would be a good fit for them, they may request an informal visit to the center to meet with a current intern and a limited number of available staff members. Informal visits do not factor into selection decisions; consistent with this, we prefer that any informal visits be conducted after the formal interview via Zoom. In addition, contact information for current interns can be provided upon request.

This internship site agrees to abide by the APPIC policy that no person at this training facility will solicit, accept, or use any ranking-related information from any intern applicant.

 

The internship year is from August 8, 2024 to August 7, 2025. The stipend for the 2024-2025 internship year is $35,568. Interns receive their salary on the first working day of each month for the previous month.

Interns are full-time (40 hours per week) benefits-eligible university employees. Interns are provided with the same basic benefits as other University of Houston-Clear Lake staff, including sick leave (accrued at a rate of 8 hours per month), vacation leave (accrued at a rate of 8 hours per month), university holidays (approximately 13 annually), and basic health and life insurance. Interns are required to use all of their vacation days during the internship year, and the last five days must be taken during the last five working days of the internship. Human Resources can provide more information about the university staff benefits. Interns can also purchase a staff parking permit and membership at the campus Fitness Room at applicable staff rates.

Interns are also eligible for professional development time, which can be used for attending conferences or professional development workshops, dissertation research or defense, or job interviewing. Interns can use up to 36 hours of professional development time, scheduled with the prior approval of the training director.

It is the intention of the Counseling and Mental Health Center to provide the opportunity for new parents to utilize parental leave as spelled out in the UHCL Parental Leave Policy and Procedure; in the case that an intern has one or more years of State of Texas service they are eligible for benefits as outlined in the Family Medical Leave Act.

Given the uniqueness of the one-year appointment of the internship program, combined with requirements for a specific completed number of direct service and general working hours, every effort is made to assist interns wishing to take parental leave to still meet the requirements of the internship program without having to extend their time at  the Counseling and Mental Health Center; however, if this cannot be accommodated, an intern’s time at the Counseling and Mental Health Center may be extended to satisfy the hours requirements of the internship program. In the service of this, a specific schedule will be agreed upon between the intern, Counseling and Mental Health Center staff, and UHCL Human Resources on a case-by-case basis.

A criminal history background check and a background check for sexual exploitation of clients required by the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code will be performed for each intern matched to our program. Final internship offers for matched applicants are contingent upon successfully passing these background checks.

Background Check Details

The purpose of a Background Investigation is to maintain a safe and productive educational and clinical environment. Those who refuse to comply with the Background Investigation process will be denied employment in a clinical facility.

Any conviction, plea of guilty or no contest, or deferred prosecution of the following criminal offenses (Felony or Misdemeanor) that appears on any part of a Criminal Background Check at the time an application is submitted may disqualify an applicant admission to a clinical facility. Individuals who have successfully completed the terms of a deferred adjudication may not be disqualified. Students who have a disposition of “dismissed after successful completion,” regardless of the crime, may not be disqualified.

An applicant may be disqualified based on the following guidelines or as otherwise advised by UHCL Police Department, Human Resources, or legal counsel:

• Any violent felony convictions of homicide (no time limit).
  
  
• Any registered sex offender (no time limit).
  
  
• Crimes of violence (assault, sexual offenses, arson, kidnapping, any crime against an at-risk adult or juvenile, etc.) in the 10 years immediately preceding the submittal of application or time of hire.
  
  
• Any offense involving unlawful sexual behavior in the 10 years immediately preceding the submittal of application or time of hire.
  
  
• Any crime, the underlying basis of which has been found by the court on the record to include an act of domestic violence in the 7 years immediately preceding the submittal of application or time of hire.
  
  
• Any crime of child abuse (no time limit).
  
  
• Any crime related to the sale, possession, distribution or transfer of narcotics or controlled substances in the 7 years immediately preceding the submittal of application or time of hire.
  
  
• Any felony theft crimes in the 7 years immediately preceding the submittal of application and/or prior to starting class or time of hire.
  
  
• Any misdemeanor theft crimes in the 5 years immediately preceding the submittal of application and/or prior to starting class or time of hire.
  
  
• Any offense of sexual assault on a client by a psychotherapist (no time limit).
  
  
• Misdemeanor or felony crimes of moral turpitude, which include but are not limited to prostitution, sexual exploitation of a minor and criminal invasion of privacy (no time limit).
  
  
• Any offense in any state other than Texas, the elements of which are substantially similar to the elements of any of the above offenses.
  
  
• More than one (1) DUI in the 7 years immediately preceding the submittal of application or time of hire.

If the Background Investigation reveals information that could be relevant to the application, the designated individual or committee within University of Houston-Clear Lake may request additional information from the applicant. The potential Disqualifying Offense shall be reviewed on a case by case basis. The University of Houston-Clear Lake reserves the right to remove an individual from a clinical facility in the event a Disqualifying Offense appears on any of the above mentioned checks. Individuals may be subject to random or For Cause drug screens. Refusal to comply with such a request will result in immediate removal from the University of Houston-Clear Lake.

In accordance with Section 81.003 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, UHCL Counseling Counseling and Mental Health Center, when hiring a mental health services provider, makes inquiries of former employers concerning the possible occurrence of sexual exploitation of clients/patients by the mental health services provider in the previous five years. The Counseling and Mental Health Center may use information from these inquiries to make decisions in offering employment or training placement as well as continuing employment.

Records of intern performance, HR paperwork, intern grievances, performance and remediation plans, recommendation letters, completed forms for licensure, and other documentation relevant to establishing and confirming the trajectory of an intern’s performance while on internship will be securely and confidentially maintained in perpetuity.