Declared psychology majors enrolled in Supervised Field Placement (PSY 1900) earn credit for volunteer work in a supervised setting approved by the Department of Psychology. The purpose is to provide practical experience related to other coursework and to help students determine a career path. Sites on the list below are the only approved places where students may "intern" and receive PSY credit for their work. This opportunity is particularly beneficial when determining your interest in the day-to-day workings of a particular field.
Some of these sites, especially if you are working with children, will require you to get clearances. These can take 4-6 weeks to process, so apply for them as soon as you obtain a position.
Please be aware that because of the nature of psychological or clinical social service work, undergraduate psychology students are not permitted to provide any direct client/patient services. Due to state licensing and healthcare provider regulations, the provision of psychological or counseling services requires a graduate level degree. You should not expect to have unsupervised client/patient contact or to be trained to provide any type of counseling or therapy services as part of a field placement.
Please review the requirements for this opportunity here before applying to a site. Once you determine that an internship/field placement is appropriate for you, follow these steps:
- Discuss site specific choices aligned with your goals with your psychology advisor.
- Locate and apply for an internship position following the steps listed on each site's description page below.
- If positions are available, the Site Supervisor will offer you an interview. At that time, discuss with the supervisor the number of hours you are desiring for placement according to the number of credits you are seeking. If accepted for an internship, the Site Supervisor will work with you to create a schedule to complete the number of hours required.
- Once accepted, you will complete the PSY 1900 Learning Agreement with the Site Supervisor. You are responsible for providing the Learning Agreement form to the Site Supervisor. The Site Supervisor will complete page 2 of the agreement, sign it and return it to you. This completed form is required to register for PSY 1900.
- Email the completed learning agreement to psyadvis@pitt.edu along with your academic advisement report found via your Student Center. The permission code for self-enrollment in PSY 1900 will then be provided to you via email.
- Use the permission number to self-enroll in PSY 1900 Supervised Field Placement
- In order to earn credit, you are required to submit mid-term and end-of-term journal as well as mid-term and end-of-term evaluations as the academic component to complete your internship experience. All forms are available on Canvas once the term begins. See below for guidelines about the journals.
Supervised Field Placement Sites
- The categories listed below are used as a means of organization. Please do not overlook any sites because of the categories.
Journal Guidenlines
PSY 1900 Supervised Field Placement may be used to fulfill the general elective for the psychology degree, and because of this you are expected to produce a journal of upper-level quality to satisfy the academic component of the experience. This is a required part of earning the credits and is in addition to any requirements of the site. Supervised field placement is meant to give you experience in the field of psychology as well as contribute to your professional and personal goals and awareness. Journals give you the opportunity to pull together thoughts, feelings, insights, likes/dislikes, and ideas about future careers or education.
Do not include the actual names of clients/patients. Indicate in your journal that names have been changed.
Journal Cover Page
Please do not turn in your journal in a folder/binder. Include only a cover page with the following information:
- Name
- Email address
- Phone number
- Term registered and date
- Placement site and supervisor’s name
Journal Entry Format
Your journal should have one cover page and daily journal entries. Please use bold headings to indicate the sections outlined below. The length of your comments for each section will likely vary from day to day based upon your activities but should be no more than one page typed in 12 pt. font, double spaced with 1 inch margins and be as thorough as possible.
- Date
- Hours completed for this entry: e.g., 4 hours
- Description: how your time was spent: responsibilities, interactions with clients and/or staff
- Observations: client improvements, theories/techniques observed that were discussed in one of your classes, what you learned today, your view of how the organization functions, interesting dynamics between clients or between clients and staff, etc.
- Personal reflection: how you felt about the day’s experience and observations, what you are getting from this experience, how is this experience relating to your own life and potential career aspirations, any insights about professional goals, insights into personal strengths/weaknesses or skills/interests, do you like this type of work, any situation you would’ve handled differently, etc.
We recognize that at some sites, students may do many of the same things most days. Feel free to discuss how your comfort level has changed, any new responsibilities, any questions that come to light for you, etc.