Externship Guide

About Externships

For externships, we are seeking a variety of experiences that cross the expansive discipline of audiology. At Pacific University, we try to remain involved in the educational component of the student’s experience while not interfering with the clinical education process established by the site. In order to help the extern to maximize the benefit of our preceptors’ knowledge and the excellent experiences offered, the student sets their own SMART goals for the externship. Goals are discussed with the preceptor (supervisor) early in the rotation. These goals help to guide the student’s duties and schedule. The acceptable tasks for students vary from site to site and from preceptor to preceptor, and are not limited to diagnostic experience, but include ALL aspects of audiology, including report writing, billing, creating educational and marketing materials, as well as diagnostic and intervention services. In addition, at some sites, our students shadow the ENT from time to time, depending on the clinic schedule, to increase their understanding of the medical aspects of hearing healthcare.

Due to the fact that our program is unique, we have established various processes which allow the dates of externship to be somewhat flexible. Our students complete final core coursework in the beginning of the summer semester, then they complete one final 6 week internship prior to beginning the externship experience. In some cases, we have allowed students to complete the final 6 week internship at sites which will also be their externship experience. From the perspective of the preceptor, it is a seamless transition from internship to externship.

The students must have 35 hours of work each week for the externship site to be considered full-time. Duties which count during work hours include: paperwork, hands-on clinical work, meetings, trainings, marketing, etc.