undergraduate program
psy 4810 — field placement
Description
Psychology 4810 is a course designed to provide an introduction to working in the field of psychology, broadly defined. It is mostly focused on clinical work, but expands to other areas of psychology as well. Students volunteer weekly at a clinical placement/service agency of their choice throughout the semester. In addition to gaining "hands on" experience, students meet monthly in the classroom and complete written assignments. Prerequisite is Psychology 1010.Policies
Psychology 4810 allows variable credit with a maximum of 6 credit hours per semester. Students can sign up for a total of 12 credit hours of Psychology 4810; up to 6 credits can be applied to the Psychology major requirements and an additional 6 credits can be used to fulfill graduation requirements. Three hours per week spent at a placement site earns one semester hour. Students may sign up for Psychology 4810 for more than one semester. However, students may only volunteer at one placement site for a total of 6 credit hours or two consecutive semesters. Students must be supervised by at least a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) at their sites. Students are not allowed to work for pay at their placements.the impact of field placement
By Janean Ford and Vito RontinoIs it possible for an undergraduate psychology course to greatly influence a student's career goal? Rachel Miller believes so. After taking several courses for her dance major, Rachel was ready for a change of pace. She found the nature of the dance program at the University of Utah was not quite what she was looking for. It was then that she began to explore Psychology. She enrolled in Psych 3215: Development in Infancy and Early Childhood taught by Dr. DeKoeyer- Laros. She enjoyed and adored the class so much that when Dr. DeKoeyer-Laros asked at the end of the semester if anyone would like to take the Field Experience course offered next semester, Rachel jumped at the chance. With that one decision her future career course was set in motion.
Field Experience allows Psychology students to be placed in agencies in the Salt Lake City area that are looking for volunteers to assist in their programs. These agencies provide students with an opportunity to apply the skills they have learned in the classroom to a work situation. In this course, students volunteer for several hours a week and receive college credit based on those hours, one credit for every three volunteer hours a week. Students may earn up to six credits, eighteen hours a week, every semester for two semesters. Students are given many options of places they can volunteer (click here). Should they choose, they and the instructor may find a different institution than those provided: one that is appropriate and worthwhile.
Rachel chose to work at the Children's Center, a therapeutic preschool for children (ages two to six) with emotional and behavioral difficulties. Rachel chose the Center for three main reasons. First, it was close to the U. Second, her interest in assisting children had already been sparked by previous Psychology courses, and finally, she wanted to get "hands on" experience with the type of work she could do with a Psychology degree. At the Children's Center, she assisted Therapeutic Preschool Specialists in a classroom-type setting. It was her responsibility to help the four and five year old children develop positive social interaction skills while therapeutic psychologists assisted the children on a more personal and individual level outside of the classroom.
At first, there was a looming question: "What have I gotten myself into?" However, she came to adore the children and what she did while helping them. She formed a connection with them and began to feel confident in her ability to do the tasks required. In fact, she was such a success as a volunteer during the semester that she actually continued volunteering there after her field experience was completed.
Now, Rachel, a graduate of the U of U, works for Odyssey House as a Child Development Specialist. When she interviewed for the position, the interviewer hired her in large part because of her work at the Children's Center. At Odyssey House, she is responsible for the same age group she worked with at the Children's Center. These children have parents who are in the drug rehab program and while both parents and children live together at the facility, Rachel is in charge of the children during the day while the parents receive treatment.
Another Field Experience participant, Darrin Lee, also gives his wholehearted support to the program. Darrin spent six years preparing for a business career only to discover that wasn't his true passion; he then turned to Psychology with the career goal of becoming a sports therapist. While declaring his Psychology major, his counselor told him about Field Experience and he decided this course would be a perfect test run to discover whether or not psychology was really what he wanted. He would soon replace one dream with another thanks to his decision to enroll.
He began the Spring 2009 semester volunteering for three hours a week with Bach Harrison, LLC , an organization that creates surveys for institutions like Weber Human Services. Associates at Bach Harrison told Darrin that, if he chose sports psychology, he would most likely spend his time doing research. Unsure of that career track and on a suggestion from Dr. DeKoeyer-Laros, he also volunteered for another three hours at the Sandy Counseling Center. Working with a counselor who taught Spanish speaking participants an anger management course, Darrin found his niche. It was also a perfect fit for him because Darrin can speak fluent Spanish as a result of a mission he did in Argentina. Like Rachel Miller, he decided to continue with Sandy Counseling for the following Fall 2009 semester because of his delight in the volunteer work he was doing. The experience made it very clear to Darrin that counseling was the career he wished to pursue
Students in the Field Experience Program do meet in class four times throughout the semester. Several short writing assignments help them reflect on their experiences, and integrate them with academic information. This is accomplished through the use of thought questions, on the volunteer experience and by writing summaries of research papers that are related to their placement. Darrin enjoyed the Field Experience meetings with the other volunteers because it was an opportunity to learn about other fields in Psychology, to learn what others were doing and to bring the ideas discussed into his own field experience.
Now, Darrin is in his final undergraduate semester here at the University of Utah. He has already been accepted into the master's Marriage & Family Therapy Program at Argosy University in Draper and has been told by his Sandy Counseling Center mentor that there is a spot open for him to complete his master's internship at the Sandy Counseling Center.
Rachel and Darrin enthusiastically endorse the Field Experience Program and both agree that the program is similar to doing an internship. It allows early on in a psychology student's academic training, to get a glimpse of what it is actually like to work in a Psychology profession, while receiving great support from both Dr. DeKoeyer and the field mentors. Field Experience offers students a variety of experiences, so that students can work in arenas they are really interested in. For Psychology majors, the program is a great option to experience, first-hand, Psychology careers. For more information regarding this program, email the instructor at: ilse.dekoeyerlaros@utah.edu.