This list includes institutions and individuals offering ACT-friendly internships.
ACBS Members: If you would like to list yourself, your program, or your institution here, click on the "add child page" link at the bottom of this page.
The Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Baylor College of Medicine, offers a fully American Psychological Association approved internship training program in clinical psychology. Interns in the Baylor program are accepted into one of seven tracks, differentiated on the basis of the population served and/or the location of the training experience. While each track has a somewhat different clinical emphasis, all interns have core seminars and training experiences in common and carry adult psychotherapy patients in the Baylor Adult Psychiatry Outpatient Clinic. The number of positions available in each track and the sequence of rotations may vary, depending upon funding and resource availability. Training content and clinical emphasis, however, remain constant. Currently, ten intern positions are available.
The Adult Anxiety Track is particularly ACT-friendly. This internship track consists of a year-long placement at the Menninger Compulsive Disorder Treatment Program. The treatment philosophy of the program is firmly rooted in evidence-based cognitive-behavioral therapy. The Menninger OCD Treatment Center, with the capacity of 15 patients, is a specialized in-patient program providing intensive cognitive-behavioral therapy, medication management and milieu treatment for adults and adolescents with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), OCD Spectrum disorders and other anxiety disorders. Previous interns in this track have been allowed to incorporate ACT into their work.
There are a few other psychologists at the internship site with varying knowledge on ACT. In addition, there are opportunities to learn more about and practice DBT in other areas of the internship. For more information about the internship you can visit their website http://www.bcm.edu/psychiatry/?PMID=2205
For the 2005-2006 academic year, the Counseling and Career Center (CCC) at Brigham Young University (BYU) offers four full-time, 12 month internships for doctoral-level graduate students in Clinical or Counseling Psychology. The internships for the school year begin August 22, 2005. Each position carries a stipend of $25,500 and includes all benefits accorded full-time University personnel (vacation and sick leave, holidays; medical, dental, and life insurance; library privileges; bookstore discount; and discounted tickets to University events). The CCC Psychology Internship, which began in 1989, is fully accredited by the American Psychological Association. The program provides supervised training experiences in a full range of psychological services. Interns function as colleagues of the professional faculty and staff and participate in all services and staff development activities of the Center.
One of the supervisors, Kirk Dougher, is very active in teaching people the process of using acceptance in their theory and practice. Full info on the internships can be found at www.byu.edu/ccc/apa/.
Kirk Dougher can also be contacted for information about the supervision and the primary applications in the rotations.
Kirk Dougher, BYU, 1500 WSC, Provo, Utah 84602
1-801-422-3035 phone
kirk_dougher@byu.edu
The internship at Brown Medical School has 4 tracks--neuropsychology, behavioral medicine, adult, and child (general and pediatrics). Both the adult and the behavioral medicine tracks are "ACT friendly." I know less about the child tracks--others might add their input about the child rotations.
In the adult track, there is a women's partial program that trains in DBT, and interns familiar with ACT have mentioned that they gained a better understanding of ACT principles through this rotation. There are also some people familiar with ACT in the alcohol center at Butler Hospital and at the RIH inpatient rotation (mood disorders rotation).
In the behavioral medicine track, there is one rotation (RIH behavioral medicine track--anxiety and sleep disorders) that is very ACT friendly. Both of the Miriam rotations (A and B) are also open to ACT and mindfulness concepts (chronic pain, weight management, smoking cessation).
Overall, the internship is hospital-based, and 4 hrs/week are reserved for research. You are required to submit at least one research project by the end of the year. Keep those details in mind when applying to make sure it's a good fit aside from the ACT friendly rotations.
The internship at Brown Medical School has 4 tracks--neuropsychology, behavioral medicine, adult, and child (general and pediatrics). Both the adult and the behavioral medicine tracks are "ACT friendly." I know less about the child tracks--others might add their input about the child rotations.
In the adult track, there is a women's partial program that trains in DBT, and interns familiar with ACT have mentioned that they gained a better understanding of ACT principles through this rotation. There are also some people familiar with ACT in the alcohol center at Butler Hospital and at the RIH inpatient rotation (mood disorders rotation).
In the behavioral medicine track, there is one rotation (RIH behavioral medicine track--anxiety and sleep disorders) that is very ACT friendly. Both of the Miriam rotations (A and B) are also open to ACT and mindfulness concepts (chronic pain, weight management, smoking cessation).
Overall, the internship is hospital-based, and 4 hrs/week are reserved for research. You are required to submit at least one research project by the end of the year. Keep those details in mind when applying to make sure it's a good fit aside from the ACT friendly rotations.
The Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System (CAVHS) is a two division, consolidated, medical center with medical, surgical, psychiatric, and rehabilitation units, plus nursing home facilities. This VA Medical Center includes every major VA program and was commended by the Joint Commission of Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) as being "Outstanding" at their last accreditation review. The CAVHS Psychology Internship has been fully accredited by the American Psychological Association since 1979. The Psychology Internship program provides three training tracks: General, Behavioral Health, and Neuropsychology.
The “Outpatient PTSD” rotation offers interested interns an opportunity to learn and practice Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Training opportunities include co-facilitating group psychotherapy sessions, conducting individual therapy sessions, performing functional analytic/case conceptualization interviews, participating in a weekly experiential group for staff practicing ACT, doing supervised readings on Relational Frame Theory (RFT), the basic science underlying ACT, and individual/group supervision.
Interested interns are encouraged to contact Vincent Roca, primary supervisor for the Outpatient PTSD rotation, for additional information. Full info on the internship can be found at http://www.vamclr.org/psychology/
J. Vincent Roca, Ph.D.
PTSD Clinical Team (PCT) Team Leader
501-257-3227
John.Roca@med.va.gov
The Family Counseling Center is a division of Trinity Services, Inc, a not-for-profit, non-sectarian organization providing a wide range of behavioral health programs, supports, and services for children and adults. The Family Counseling Center is a full-service community mental health network with several facilities in the metropolitan area of Chicago, Illinois.
Interns have the opportunity to help people exhibiting a wide variety of clinical concerns. Our didactic training experiences will consist of weekly group consultation sessions, a monthly journal club, guest lecturers, and specialized ‘clinic’ meetings focused on performing and researching empirically supported treatments for different disorders.
Supervision focuses on Functional Analytic Psychotherapy (FAP), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and contextual-behavioral models of psychotherapy intervention, and we currently run weekly didactic training in ACT and DBT. An optional rotation in one of Trinity’s psychosocial rehabilitation units using mindfulness-based treatment for individuals with psychotic disorders is also available.
For more information, please visit our website:
(http://www.trinity-services.org/home.htm)
For inquiries, please contact D.J. Moran:
djmoran@trinity-services.org
POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP IN CBT AT HARBOR-UCLA MEDICAL CENTER
Harbor-UCLA Medical Center's Division of Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry is accepting applications for it's APA-accredited one year postdoctoral fellowship in Cognitive Behavioral Therapies. This training program is based in empirically validated treatments, including: Cognitive Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP) with some exposure to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). The program is designed to prepare fellows to make the transition to professional psychologists with expertise in empirically validated treatments with difficult to treat populations. The fellowship provides training in therapy as well as supervision, administration, consultation, teaching and research with real world populations. Fellows are actively involved in the training of practicum students, and have the opportunity to teach clinicians from a variety of disciplines who are re-specializing in CBT or DBT. Fellows also participate in program evaluations that often result in research and presentations at national and international conferences.
Requirements and Application:
Only Candidates from APA-accredited programs in clinical or counseling psychology including an APA-accredited predoctoral internship will be considered.
For more information and application instructions, please visit www.psychology.labiomed.org. This is a new position, so please read the description for Adult Psychiatry. The inpatient portion will no longer be required. Our website will be updated shortly.
The Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) is an affiliated teaching facility that provides comprehensive inpatient primary, secondary and tertiary care, in medical, surgical, neurological, rehabilitative, and short-term psychiatric modalities, primary and specialized ambulatory care, and rehabilitative nursing home care. This medical center is one of eight in the VA system that house a Women Veterans Comprehensive Health Center, which provides clinical service, education, and research in primary care, preventive medicine, gynecology services, and sexual trauma intervention for female veterans. Psychologists in the department currently have more than $1,000,000 in merit-reviewed, multi-year research grants.
We offer a yearlong seminar in contemporary behavior therapies, with emphasis on DBT and ACT, including experiential workshops, weekly didactic seminar, and weekly small group supervision. We also have a weekly consultation group for DBT and ACT therapists. There are multiple ACT-fluent staff here.
Here is the link to our website:
http://www1.va.gov/minneapolis/education/psychology/psyc_home.html
For information regarding ACT training, contact:
John P. Billig, PhD, ABPP
email: john.billig@va.gov
phone: 612-725-2073
We have an ACT friendly internship program here at Palo Alto VA with an opportunity to be trained in ACT and co-lead ACT groups.
I also run an ACT Mini-Rotation.
Purpose of Mini Rotation:
Many individuals suffering from mental health issues often actively work to avoid their personal experiences of emotion, thought and sensation. However, these very actions often result in loss and increased suffering. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a behaviorally based intervention designed to address avoidance of internal events and the role that language plays in human suffering. The therapy specifically uses a number of verbal, experiential and homework interventions to help patients make experiential contact with previously avoided private events (thoughts, feelings, sensations), without excessive verbal involvement and control – and to make powerful life enhancing choices. ACT is a manual-based intervention that can be applied with a number of populations. The proposed mini-rotation will provide a combination of didactic and supervised clinical experience in the use of ACT with PTSD patients at the National Center for PTSD (NCPTSD).
Structure of the Mini-Rotation:
Time Commitment: Trainees interested in the mini-rotation would agree to participate as a co-facilitator/trainee in group psychotherapy sessions. The group time-slots depend on the unit where the therapy is being conducted. All ACT groups are currently being held at the Menlo Park Division. Trainees would also be expected to attend a weekly, one-hour, individual or group supervision and read relevant materials. The time commitment is approximately 4 hours per week. The trainee needs to negotiate with the supervisors of his/her major rotations for the necessary time or do this rotation as an add-on above the basic 40 hours.
Robyn D. Walser, Ph.D.
National Center for PTSD
Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center
VA Palo Alto Health Care System
Mail Code PTSD 334 MPD
795 Willow Road
Menlo Park, CA 94025
robyn.walser@med.va.gov
mirecc.stanford.edu
650-493-5000 ext. 22039
Updated July 14, 2008
The Clinical Psychology Training Program at the Togus, Maine VA currently offers ACT training in the PTSD and Primary Care rotations.
The Intensive Outpatient PTSD Program (IOP) is an intensive ACT training experience. ACT is presented to a cohort of veterans in a "workshop" format across 14 classes (groups) in five days. All aspects of ACT (Let Go, Show Up, and Get Moving) are experienced in the 14 sessions. Veterans who have graduated from a week-long cohort are offered unlimited follow-ups in the form of additional groups or individual "coaching" via the phone or in person. The program conducts 26 cohorts per year. The other 26 weeks are for assessment, individual sessions, research and program development. Interns and Residents become integral parts of the entire process.
Each morning the staff meet to talk about the current cohort, program development, Functional Contextualism, Relational Frame Theory and ACT. Plus we often are providing training to visiting clinicians.
The PTSD IOP strives to remain on the cutting edge of effective treatment for veterans struggling with trauma-related suffering.
We have recently started up a strong research program in conjunction with the University of Maine at Orono.
Interns and Residents will get a rich and moving educational experience in this dynamic and often entertaining process.
The IOP staff are Kevin Polk, Ph.D. and Jerold Hambright, Ph.D.
The Primary Cary Behavioral Health is and ACT rotation headed by John Agee, Ph.D. (a former postdoctoral Resident in the PTSD IOP). The rotation involves learning and implementing brief (as little as one session) psychological interventions based on ACT and other mindfulness-based therapies.
While the PTSD IOP is intense and dynamic, at the same time it is part of a laid back and friendly Togus Psychology Training program.
Contact Kevin Polk, Ph.D. at polkkev@gmail.com
The University of California, San Diego/San Diego VA Healthcare System offers an ACT friendly internship. Faculty include Dr. Niloofar Afari, an ACT researcher and former graduate student of Steve Hayes. The Psychology Service at the VASDHS represents one of the most academically oriented staffs in the Department of Veterans Affairs hospital system. Currently, fully accessible by the interns are 24 positions assigned to the Psychology Service. Many of the major sub-specialities of professional psychology are represented on the staff, including clinical psychology, neuropsychology, geropsychology, marital and family therapy, alcohol treatment, behavioral medicine, post-traumatic stress disorder, and related psychology research. Located approximately 12 miles from the hospital in Mission Valley, there are extensive medical facilities and mental health programs for outpatient care at the VA Outpatient Clinic, housed in a modern building which opened in November, 1998. Mental health programs located at the VA Outpatient Clinic include a Mental Health Clinic, the Family Mental Health Program, and the PTSD Clinical Team. The VA Psychology Service also sponsors a Behavioral Medicine Program located in Mission Valley. For more information about this internship site you can access their website here http://psychiatry.ucsd.edu/psychology/faculty.html.
We have a large, APA-accredited internship program at the University of Maryland School of Medicine / VA Maryland Health Care System Consortium. At our consortium, there are actually several psychologists who could provide ACT supervision in the areas of PTSD, substance abuse (and the two problems concurrently), and an intern could thus spend a good portion of his/her training year honing ACT skills. In addition, we have a weekly ACT consultation group meeting where professionals of many disciplines come together to sort through issues of applying ACT to their clinical populations.
Contact Sonja Batten for details (svbatten@earthlink.net).