The Department of Psychology at BC Children’s Hospital offers four formal senior practicum positions, annually. The positions begin in September and are of 10- 12 months in duration (i.e. ending either in June, or extending through July/August, with a minimum commitment of 10 months). The end date is flexible due to the high interest of ongoing clinical experiences during the summer months. Applicants should have completed their masters’ degree from a CPA accredited program, have some prior, formal experience working with children and youth (supervised by a registered psychologist), and have completed a Child Assessment course. The positions require the commitment of a minimum of two days on site.
Two of these positions are more “general” in nature. Specifically, the positions may be individually tailored to the applicant’s training needs, and can cover a wide range of interests, inclusive of both: mental health and pediatrics (medical psychology), assessment and intervention, inpatient/outpatient. In addition to clinical variety, the students are exposed to all that an academic medical facility has to offer, with regard to teaching didactics, clinical rounds and seminars/work shops. Inclusive, practicum students are welcome to attend and participate in the majority of the training didactic opportunities that are offered to our clinical psychology residents and fellows. For example, our practicum students are invited to attend a two day workshop on play therapy, in addition to seminars on a variety of additional topics such as: 1) Ethics, 2) Assessment, 3) Supervision, 4) Psychopharmacology, 5) Psychosis, and 6) Diversity.
The third practicum position is specific to spending time in the Mood and Anxiety Disorders Clinic. A separate overview of this position is provided below. Applications for this position follow the same process that is outlined below.
Mood & Anxiety Disorders Practicum Opportunity
The fourth practicum position is within the neuropsychology department. The populations seen are quite varied and include children with epilepsy, those referred for pre- and post-surgical assessments, children seen through oncology/hematology, biochemical diseases, transplant, and acute acquired/traumatic brain injury cases, amongst others. Only advanced practicum students in neuropsychology are accepted.
This practicum placement adheres to the Lower Mainland notification day, and standard application deadline. Applications are due on Monday, February 22, 2021. The notification deadline is Monday, March 29, 2021. Applications should include: 1) A cover letter, 2) Two letters of recommendation, and 3) a CV. Those students applying for the neuropsychology practicum should also include a sample neuropsychology report. All applications can be submitted to:
