The internship offers several seminars, some yearlong and others for specified parts of the training year. Five seminars are required as part of the core internship program: (1) the Case-Centered Psychotherapy Seminar, (2) the Intern Assessment Seminar, (3) Professional Development Seminar, (4) Psychology and Individual Differences Seminar (5) The Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Grand Rounds (6) the Director's Meeting. Psychology interns attend other didactic experiences which are rotation specific.
Case-Centered Psychotherapy Seminar
This seminar meets twice a month for one hour and is attended by all psychology interns. The focus of this conference is on psychotherapy cases carried either by a faculty member or by an intern. This seminar is practice based and has two major areas of focus. The first area consists of presentations by faculty members of psychotherapy cases they are seeing or have seen or of particular approaches they use in the treatment of certain populations. During the sessions presented by faculty members, specific theoretical approaches are covered (cognitive-behavioral therapy, behavioral modification, dynamically oriented therapy, family therapy, etc.). The goal of the session is to illustrate how these very experienced psychotherapists conduct therapy.
The second area involves presentations by each of the interns. Each intern will present a case they are currently seeing. Other interns and the faculty present will then discuss the case. During the course of the year, the intern will present a total of two times. The goal of the session is to give the intern experience doing professional level case write-ups and presentations. Interns not presenting that week are given the opportunity to develop their skills as case discussants.
Intern Assessment Seminar
The Intern Assessment Seminar meets twice a month on Fridays for one hour, focusing on the general area of clinical assessment. A number of didactics focus on general topics in assessment and assessment in specific populations. The object of this seminar is to increase interns’ knowledge of the assessment process and application in a variety of clinical populations. The first several months of the seminar are devoted to the administration and interpretation of psychological and neuropsychological tests as applied to children, adolescents, and adults. The seminar also includes intern presentations of their assessment cases.
Professional Development Seminar
The Professional Development Seminar meets on the 1st and 4th Friday of each month for one hour. This didactic is held in conjunction with the Postdoctoral Residents and covers professional issues in Psychology as well as other topics that are critical in the delivery of healthcare services. In addition, topics related to ethics and legal aspects of Psychology, licensure, resume building, job applications, and many other topics important to the professional development as a psychologist are included.
Ethics/Law Seminar
The Ethics/Law Seminar meets on the 2nd Friday of each month for one hour. This didactic is held in conjunction with the Postdoctoral Residents and covers ethical and legal issues in Psychology that are critical in the delivery of healthcare services. The aim is to help Interns and Postdoctoral Residents develop awareness and knowledge of potential ethical and legal complexities in providing psychological service.
Psychology and Individual Difference Seminar
The Psychology and Individual Difference Seminar meets on the 3rd Friday of each month for one hour. This didactic is held in conjunction with the Postdoctoral Residents and covers diversity and cultural issues in Psychology that are critical in the delivery of healthcare services. The aim is to help Interns and Postdoctoral Residents develop awareness and sensitivity while embracing cultural differences throughout the healthcare system to help with communication and understanding while providing psychological service.
The Department of Psychiatry Behavioral Medicine Grand Rounds
The Behavioral Medicine Teaching conference is a series, which includes presentations of clinical case studies, research, and current issues in psychiatry and the behavioral sciences. Departmental faculty and staff, as well as faculty from other Health Sciences Center departments and visiting professors from throughout the country, present in this series. This conference meets one hour a month.