Master's Internship
The Ohio internship training
program provides students from state approved school psychology training
programs with applied learning experiences actualized in an approved educational
setting which take place on a full-time basis over at least a nine-month period.
The Ohio internship training program relies upon the cooperative partnership of
local school districts, universities, and the Ohio Department of Education.
Through collaboration and commitment to common goals, this partnership strives
to guarantee the preparation of school psychologists thoroughly qualified to
meet the diverse needs of Ohio's children. The purpose of the internship is to
provide a process for integrating, applying, and expanding competencies,
attitudes, and values under the direction of a supportive mentor which leads to
the provision of comprehensive school psychological services.
Funding for the internship is
provided by the Ohio Department of Education to ensure that the children
attending Ohio schools receive highly effective school psychological services.
Acceptance of a school psychology internship obligates the intern to repay
Ohio's investment in his/her training by agreeing to serve the children of Ohio.
Signing such an agreement testifies to the intern being fully advised of and in
agreement with this arrangement. When interns agree to accept the financial
support provided by the State of Ohio, they agree to repay Ohio's investment in
them by providing quality school psychological services to Ohio's children for a
minimum of one year following the internship.
A written contractual
agreement is agreed to by both the school district and the intern. The
contractual agreement specifies the time period for employment and the salary
provided. Contractual agreements do not obligate the district to continue
employing the intern beyond employment during the internship nor shall any
contractual agreement require the intern to remain in the employment of the
school district beyond employment during the internship. Hence, in the event
that personal reasons or unsatisfactory performance necessitate termination of
the internship, neither the intern nor the school district are obligated to
maintain the employment relationship and the contracted agreement can be ended.
Students will receive their
internship placements during the Spring quarter of their second year along with
the Application for Licensure. Placements will be determined by program faculty.
Only students who have satisfactory performance in practicum will be considered
for a site. Because placements are made during Spring quarter, a student who
does not maintain satisfactory performance in practicum through spring quarter
can be denied their internship placement. If a student does not have
satisfactory performance on practicum during Fall and/or Winter quarter, but is
able to exhibit competency in areas of school psychology service delivery during
Spring quarter they may be given a site at the end of Spring quarter at the
discretion of the faculty. Candidates for the internship are referred by the
university coordinator to an approved school district for an interview. Students
will be responsible for contacting the district and setting up an interview.
Students are also expected to take their completed portfolios with them
to the interview. The school district has the option of agreeing or disagreeing
to employ the individual(s) recommended by the university faculty for placement
in that school district. In the event that a district denies a placement, the
university internship coordinator will work with the student to obtain another
site. However, if there are no sites available, the student will have their
internship experience delayed one year. Students are responsible for securing
all necessary signatures on the materials in the Application for Licensure. The
Application for Licensure is to be submitted to the Internship Coordinator by
Friday of the last week of class spring quarter.
Generally, placement for the
internship shall not occur in a school district in which the intern currently
resides, has been a student, or has served in another capacity (e.g. teacher,
counselor, administrator). This is to prevent prior experiences and
relationships from limiting intern effectiveness and/or scope of experiences.
However, exceptions may be made for very large school districts that can provide
experiences that are not related to prior experiences.
Students are expected to
complete their internship in Central Ohio. If a student wishes to intern outside
of Central Ohio, they must submit a formal request to the program faculty by the
second week of Autumn quarter of their second year. The student will be notified
of the faculty's decision no later than the last week of classes Autumn quarter.
Please note, that this request will rarely be approved. There must be
extenuating circumstances that would warrant approval of an internship placement
outside of the Central Ohio area. Internship sites that are already
approved by the State Department of Education will be the only ones considered
for students who wish to intern outside of Central Ohio. If a student knows they
will be moving out of state, they will be encouraged to seek an internship
outside of the state. If a student seeks an out–of-state internship that is not
an APA approved internship, they will be responsible for securing their
internship placement. The Internship Coordinator will be responsible for
contacting the closest university in that area that has a school psychology
program for the purpose of coordinating supervision. In most cases, a school
psychology program in that area will agree to perform the supervision duties of
the intern. In the event that a university in the area does not provide
supervision, the OSU intern supervisor will be responsible for coordinating this
with the site. This could be done via phone calls or e-mail.
Students are compensated with
a stipend during their nine month internship. However, it should be noted that
monies are contingent upon the approval of a budgetary item in the Ohio
Department of Education budget by the legislature every two years. Currently the
stipend is $21,900 which is the state minimum for a teacher with a Master's
degree and no experience. Please note that not all internships outside of the
state of Ohio receive compensation.
Students are supervised by an
on-site supervisor and the supervisor is expected to communicate the intern's
progress to the university supervisor (s). Internship experiences are guided by
a competency checklist. Internship supervisors complete the competency checklist
as part of the written evaluation of the intern at the end of each quarter.
University supervisors meet with the site supervisor to review the progress of
the intern. If the intern is having any difficulty attaining the stated goals, a
behavior plan is developed in collaboration with the intern, site supervisor,
and university supervisor. All interns maintain an activity log and complete an
exit survey at the end of their internship year. There is a formal mechanism in
place that insures ongoing communication and collaboration between field
supervisors and program faculty that ensures the comprehensiveness of the
intern's training experience.
All
interns must take the Praxis exam, which is the national school psychology exam,
and is required for Ohio licensure. It is generally taken at the beginning of
their internship year. Students must submit their praxis scores to the director
of the program by the end of Winter quarter in order to receive a grade for that
quarter. Graduates in the past have performed well on the exam. The median score
for the 1998-1999 school year was 715.
The
Praxis exam is given approximately six times a year. You may pick up an
application from 110 Arps. Scores should be sent to OSU (code number RA1592),
NASP (code 10400), and the Board of Psychology if you are interested in
licensure for private practice. The Praxis exam is used for both state
certification and National Certification (NCSP). You must have a passing score
of 630 to be certified in the state of Ohio.
At the
end of the internship year, the internship coordinator will distribute the
application for five year licensure. Interns will return the application and
check or money order to the internship coordinator the first week of June. The
internship coordinator will complete the necessary steps leading to the College
of Education recommending the interns to the State Department of Education for
licensure.
If after the completion of the Master's program a student chooses
not to go on internship for more than two years, they will be expected to
complete additional coursework or repeat coursework as deemed appropriate by the
faculty. Additionally, internship will be based on availability of internship
slots. |
