Choosing an Internship Site

So this is it. The time has finally come to start thinking about an internship site for the second year of our program.

It's especially important to take care when you're choosing where you want to do your internship because it holds a lot more importance than your practicum. Although the hours worked at your internship don't count toward supervision hours for the LPC (license in professional counseling), the internship is viewed more highly by outside organizations and jobs.

The internship is also important because of how much time you'll be spending there. While the practicum is only 8 or 10 hours a week, you will be spending 20 hours a week at your internship. Much more so than your practicum, the internship will be like a part-time job. So make that time count by doing something you're passionate about! If you want to get into school counseling, make sure you get into a school setting. If you're interested in drug and alcohol, make sure you are placed in a drug and alcohol rehabilitation site. My overall goal is to work at a college setting, so I plan to do my best to get placed at a college or university. Remember that the job you want might require you to have some experience in the field, so it's for the best that you choose your internship site based on your future goals.

It might be in your best interest to do some research on your desired job before picking an internship site. The only way I found that college counseling centers require you to have experience working with college students was to search for job postings online and what requirements they had.

All in all, do everything you can to make sure that you get an internship site that you love! And remember that no matter where you're placed, you can always make the most of it. Any new experience is good experience.