Please also see the Community Counseling Clinic Website

Practicum is a critical component of PSU's Counselor Education Program. During their practicum tenure, students are able to receive direct, one-on-one supervision while working with clients in PSU's Community Counseling Clinic, which offers low cost counseling to the public. This provides students with an intensive, experiential training before they begin their internship work at an outside agency.

Practicum is a two term course sequence.  Students will either complete practicum during fall and winter terms (group A) or spring and summer terms (group B) of their second year in the program. Students will be assigned to either group A or B upon admission to the program. Practicum is immediately followed by two terms of peer supervision.

Students receive practicum applications either spring term of year one (group A), or winter term of year two (group B). During practicum, students will work once a week in our on-campus clinic. The PSU Community Counseling Clinic operates five days per week with daytime and evening hours available. Daytime practicum sections meet from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and evening practicum sections meets from 4:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Daytime practicum sections are Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, with evening practicum sections held Tuesday and Thursday. Assignment to a practicum section is made by Kim Douglas, Practicum & Internship Coordinator, though students are given an opportunity to note their preferences.

There will be a mandatory practicum orientation meeting prior to beginning practicum. Group A practicum students will have their orientation one to two weeks prior to the start of fall term, while group B students will have their orientation during finals week of winter term. Prior to beginning practicum, students must complete all required practicum pre-requisite courses (see below for a list), and complete 20 hours of personal counseling. Personal counseling hours must be completed no earlier than one year prior to the start of the program. There is no flexibility in these requirements.

All students are required to carry liability insurance while enrolled in practicum and internship.

In addition to peer supervision and group supervision, all practicum students will participate in weekly, triadic 60 minute supervision sessions with a qualified outside supervisor. There will be one licensed masters-level clinician assigned to each practicum section as an outside supervisor. Supervision will be held virtually at a mutually agreed upon time. Any missed supervision sessions must be made up at a later date.

Practicum prerequisites

Course Requirements

You must be able to document completion of the following courses before practicum enrollment is guaranteed. Remember all incomplete ("I"s) in practicum prerequisites must be removed prior to enrollment in the practicum. Concurrent enrollment in COUN 543 Interpersonal Relations II is mandatory with Counseling 509 Practicum. An "I" in this course will result in withdrawal from COUN 509 Practicum: Counseling.

COUN 509 Practicum: Group

COUN 541 Introduction to Counseling

COUN 543 Interpersonal Relations II

COUN 551 Theories and Interventions I

COUN 566 Appraisal Instruments

COUN 567 Using Tests in Counseling

COUN 569 Developmental Foundations of Counseling

COUN 585 Diagnosis and Treatment Planning I

Personal Counseling and ETC Requirements

Before the beginning of the practicum sequence, students must complete 10 hours of individual counseling, as well as 10 hours of the Experiential Training Clinic (ETC) experience (information about ETC will be available at the new student orientation). Documentation of this experience is required at the time of the first meeting of fall practicum.

Signed documentation of individual counseling sessions must be submitted by the first day of practicum, on providing counselor's letterhead.

• Group A students:

  • Practicum fall & winter terms (second year)

  • Peer Supervision spring & summer terms (second year)

• Group B students:

  • Practicum spring & summer terms (second year)

  • Peer Supervision fall & winter terms (third year)