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Postdoctoral Fellowship In University Mental Health
2008–2009
The Emory University Counseling Center is pleased to offer two full-time postdoctoral positions for the 2008-2009 academic year.
INTRODUCTION
The Emory University Counseling Center offers a twelve-month Postdoctoral Fellowship in University Mental Health for recent graduates from APA-Accredited doctoral programs in Clinical or Counseling Psychology. There are two positions available for the 2008-2009 training year. Each Fellow has the opportunity to enhance and deepen his or her skills in brief and longer-term psychotherapy (with individuals, couples and groups), crisis intervention, diagnostic interviewing and assessment, teaching, supervision, outreach and consultation. Postdoctoral fellows spend the majority of their time working in the counseling center setting, but also spend approximately one day each week working in the Faculty Staff Assistance Program (FSAP), which provides outreach, clinical services, organizational intervention and consultation to Emory’s 21,000+ employees and their families.
Fellows at the Emory Counseling Center receive intensive, supportive training, which is designed to prepare Fellows for the diversity of roles which psychologists assume in their career paths. While it is expected that Postdoctoral Fellows will work with a variety of clients, cultural backgrounds, presenting problems and treatment modalities, each Fellow has the opportunity to work with an identified Specialty Supervisor in order to focus his or her training on a particular area of clinical interest. The 2000 hour Postdoctoral Fellowship meets or exceeds all requirements for licensure in the State of Georgia, including a minimum of 500 face-to-face service hours and more than 2 hours per week of individual supervision with a licensed psychologist (licensed 3 or more years).
PHILOSOPHY OF TRAINING:
The senior staff of the Emory University Counseling Center seeks to provide training and service which reflect a commitment to ethical principles, sensitivity to cultural issues, and dedication to competence. The postdoctoral fellowship year is seen as a time for fellows to grow in their clinical skills, autonomy, and sense of identity as psychologists. The Center’s model of training for all levels emphasizes three components: trainee development over the course of the training year, mentoring relationships with senior professionals, and the importance of combining practice with science (practitioner/scholar model). It is expected that Postdoctoral Fellows will achieve an advanced level of competence during the fellowship year, and will be prepared for independent licensure and practice in psychology upon successful completion of the training program. While Postdoctoral Fellows have increased autonomy, reflecting their experience and expertise, senior staff are available to provide guidance, consultation and mentoring throughout the training experience.
It is the goal of the Emory Counseling Center training program to train psychologists, social workers, and psychiatrists who are competent and comfortable with varied settings, populations, and treatment modalities. Therefore, each postdoctoral fellow receives diverse training opportunities, within the Counseling Center, at the Faculty Staff Assistance Program, and in the larger University community. Individual and group supervision by senior staff members with different theoretical backgrounds and clinical styles is provided to assist postdoctoral fellows’ development of a personal clinical orientation that is theory-based, informed by the scientific literature, and responsive to client concerns and needs.
The Emory Counseling Center is committed to maintaining a diverse staff whose members fully appreciate diversity in others. Therefore, Center staffing, policies, and activities reflect sensitivity to, and respect for human differences in gender, race, religion, ethnicity, national origin, sexual/affectional orientation, gender identity and disability. Information on cultural and diversity issues is discussed in all training seminars, and is expected to be a focus of supervision and other training experiences.
Postdoctoral Fellowship Training Goals :
The Postdoctoral Fellowship in University Mental Health at Emory University provides supervised advanced training for recent graduates of clinical psychology and counseling psychology doctoral programs. The general goals for the program are:
-- to provide each Fellow with an opportunity to enhance and expand psychotherapy, assessment, clinical supervision, consultation, teaching and crisis management skills, in preparation for autonomous functioning as a licensed psychologist.
-- to promote each Fellows' awareness of the ethical and cultural factors impacting his/her work with clients and organizations.
-- to prepare each Fellow to assume the role and identity of a psychologist in a variety of professional settings, with particular emphasis on University student, faculty and staff populations.
In addition to these general goals, individual goals for the training year are developed by each trainee, in conjunction with the training director and the primary and specialty supervisors.
In order to complete the Fellowship successfully, it is expected that each Postdoctoral Fellow will achieve advanced clinical skills in psychotherapy (which may include individual, couples and group modalities), consultation and outreach, crisis intervention, assessment/diagnosis, and provision of clinical supervision.
Specific goals and competencies for the fellowship are listed below.
Goal # 1: Fellows will develop intermediate to advanced levels of competence in clinical and consultative work.
Assessment/Evaluation:
- can develop hypotheses concerning client behavior and dynamics
- verbal and written conceptualizations convey essential elements of client dynamics
- knows when to seek further information to conceptualize the client
- incorporates nonverbal/process components of behavior in formulating client assessments
- demonstrates competence using diagnostic criteria (DSM IV/other criteria)
- bases conceptualization and diagnosis on sound psychological theory.
Psychotherapy/Case Management:
- can employ basic interviewing skills, including initiating/terminating the interview
- can explore client feelings
- deals with client behavior in non‑judgmental manner
- selects interventions based on client needs
- develops effective relationships with clients
- develops goals appropriate for client issues
- treatment planning incorporates realistic goals for short‑ vs. longer-term therapy
- uses silence effectively
- can provide both positive and negative feedback
- can explore therapeutic process issues effectively with clients
- awareness of group process and dynamics
- able to intervene effectively in group therapy
Consultation and Outreach
- establishes and maintains positive consultative relationships
- provides effective outreach programming to diverse constituents
- demonstrates understanding of the consultative role
- assists consultees in managing crises or potential crises
Crisis Intervention:
- can appropriately assess crisis situations
- can appropriately intervene during crisis situations
- seeks consultation or supervision when encountering crisis situations as appropriate
- provides appropriate follow‑up
- effectively makes referrals to campus and community resources
Ethical/Legal Principles:
- understands abuse reporting mandates
- seeks consultation/supervision regarding legal mandates
- knowledge of ethical standards
- ability to apply ethical guidelines (demonstrates ethical behavior)
- provides up to date case notes and/or assessment forms
- demonstrates awareness of the agency's limitations and assets
Self Awareness:
- monitors and recognizes one's own limitations as a counselor/psychotherapist
- recognizes own personal strengths, weaknesses, biases, needs and beliefs
- is aware of own feelings toward the client
- understands client's impact on self
- understands supervisor's impact on self
- can manage personal stress
- aware of impact on others
- understands personal impact on client
Goal #2: Fellow will develop intermediate to advanced cultural competence, and demonstrate this competence in clinical and consultative work.
Cultural Diversity:
- demonstrates ability to incorporate ethnic, cultural, gender, socioeconomic, sexuality or other diversity when conceptualizing and diagnosing client dynamics
- is competent using differential therapy techniques with clients from varying ethnic, cultural and lifestyle backgrounds
- takes into account individual differences in treatment planning
- demonstrates awareness of how own identity might affect treatment
- comfortable and competent working with clients from diverse/dissimilar cultural group(s)
Goal #3: Fellow will demonstrate intermediate to advanced development of professional identity as a psychologist and the roles related to functioning as a psychologist.
Providing Supervision and Teaching
- uses theory appropriately to guide supervisee’s treatment planning, conceptualization and intervention
- understands process issues related to providing supervision
- maintains appropriate boundaries with supervisee
- able to provide positive and negative feedback to supervisee in a supportive manner
- aware of how own process and issues impact the supervisory relationship
- assists supervisee in meeting ethical guidelines and standards of care
- provides appropriate instruction to practicum students (through the practicum seminar) on clinical and professional development topics
Research
- maintains awareness of research which is relevant to clinical and consultative work
Use of Supervision/Staff Relations:
- open to evaluation and feedback
- willing to take risks and acknowledge troublesome areas and make mistakes
- exhibits effective use of supervisory time
- takes the initiative, actively participates in supervision
- communicates self to the supervisor when appropriate (transparency)
- displays a willingness to be assertive and does not inappropriately defer to supervisor
- has an understanding of feelings toward authority figures
- applies what is discussed in supervision to interactions with clients
- relates effectively with other trainees
- relates effectively with other professional staff
- relates effectively with support staff
- relates effectively with professionals from other disciplines
APPLICATION AND SELECTION CRITERIA
Applicants for the Postdoctoral Fellowship should have graduated from an APA-accredited Clinical Psychology or Counseling Psychology doctoral program before the start of the Fellowship, including successful completion of an APA/CPA-accredited internship. Applicants whose transcript does not indicate that the doctoral degree has been conferred by their university should provide documentation from their graduate faculty that all requirements for the doctorate, including coursework, the dissertation and the predoctoral internship, are expected to be completed before the August 1 start date.
A number of sources of information are used to assess candidates for the Postdoctoral Fellowship, including the letter of application (which should include a statement of professional goals), Curriculum Vita, and letters of recommendation. Face-to-face or telephone interviews are also a part of the application process, and are scheduled by invitation. Selections are made without discrimination based on race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, age, disability, gender identity, sexual/affectional orientation, or veteran's status. Prior to beginning employment for the Fellowship year, Postdoctoral Fellows who are hired by the Emory Counseling Center internship must successfully complete a pre-employment drug screening and criminal background check, in accordance with Emory University policy.
THE SETTING
Emory University
Emory University, a private university affiliated with the United Methodist Church, began as a liberal arts college over 150 years ago. Since then, it has grown into a national teaching, research and service center, with an enrollment of over 12,000 students. The university is comprised of two undergraduate colleges, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and the Schools of Law, Medicine, Nursing, Public Health, Theology, and Business. Emory has an APA-accredited clinical psychology doctoral program, as well a psychiatry training program, creating the opportunity for research and clinical collaboration.
The University Counseling Center
The University Counseling Center provides comprehensive psychological services for the student population at Emory. Undergraduates, as well as graduate and professional students, utilize the Center for individual psychotherapy, couples and family therapy, and problem-focused or interpersonal process groups. In addition to direct clinical services, the Counseling Center places a priority on providing consultation, outreach and preventative services for the university community. The Center has a multidisciplinary staff, comprised of licensed psychologists, licensed clinical social workers, and psychiatrists; in addition to psychology predoctoral interns, there are clinical social work interns, psychology postdoctoral fellows, and a psychiatry resident completing their training at the Counseling Center. All of the training staff at the Counseling Center are involved in the provision of direct clinical services. Along with psychotherapy, staff and trainees at the Center provide consultative services, a Stress Management Clinic, psychoeducational workshops, sexual assault response and education services, and crisis intervention. In addition, Center staff train and supervise student volunteers who serve as peer counselors and peer educators. While the Counseling Center is primarily a service-oriented facility, some opportunities to be involved in research are available.
The Center is housed in a recently renovated facility at the center of Emory's main campus. Audio-visual equipment is available to enhance supervision of work with clients. Each trainee has a private office equipped with a personal computer and furnishings. An interactive computing network with Internet access is available to trainees, along with access to the University's library and computer resources.
The Atlanta Area
As the capital of Georgia and one of the largest cities in the Southeast, Atlanta has the excitement and diversity of a major metropolitan area. Atlanta is a dynamic, progressive city, with a wealth of cultural and leisure opportunities, including the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the High Museum of Art, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, the Georgia Aquarium (the largest in the world) and a plethora of ethnic, community, and regional festivals. The city is also in easy driving distance of recreational areas in the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts.
POSTDOCTORAL TRAINING PROGRAM
Program Structure
The internship program begins on August 1st, and ends on July 31st. Postdoctoral Fellows are based within the Counseling Center, but also spend some of their training time in other settings on campus, including approximately one day each week at the Faculty Staff Assistance Program (FSAP). Services in the Counseling Center are provided primarily between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. However, staff members and trainees provide some psychoeducational outreach programs and crisis intervention services which take place during the evening hours. Fellows also participate in providing after-hours crisis consultation on a rotation basis. Work weeks usually will vary between 40 and 45 hours per week. Approximately half of the Fellow's time is spent in direct clinical or consultative services, with the other half divided between supervision, teaching, seminars, and administrative/case management duties.
Supervision
Mentors :
Each Postdoctoral Fellow is assigned a licensed psychologist in the community as a professional mentor for the fellowship year. Typically, the Mentor has experience and expertise in a career path similar to the Fellow’s career goals. The Mentor is available to serve as a resource, advocate, and advisor to the Fellow on an informal basis; each dyad arranges their own schedule for contact throughout the fellowship.
Primary Supervisors:
Each Postdoctoral Fellow typically has one primary supervisor for the training year. The assignment of primary supervisor reflects Fellow’s interests, needs and professional goals. The primary supervisor for each Postdoctoral Fellow is a senior staff psychologist, who has been licensed for 3 or more years and maintains clinical responsibility for the Fellow’s caseload. Each Fellow receives 1 hour per week of individual supervision from the primary supervisor at the Counseling Center, which focuses on brief and longer-term psychotherapy cases, intakes, crisis intervention, group therapy, and case management. An additional hour of individual supervision is provided by a licensed psychologist for the Faculty Staff Assistance Program (FSAP) rotation.
Supervision of Supervision:
A licensed psychologist, either from the Counseling Center senior staff or from the Atlanta community, provides group supervision for Postdoctoral Fellows’ practicum student supervision experiences.
Specialty Supervision:
In addition to the primary supervisor, each Postdoctoral Fellow is assigned to a specialty supervisor. Specialty supervision, which is scheduled for one hour each week, focuses on a particular client population, treatment modality, theoretical orientation, type of case, or diagnostic category. The specialty supervisor is a licensed member of the senior staff, and is typically assigned for the training year. A Postdoctoral Fellow may choose or be assigned an additional supervisor based either on his/her clinical interests, caseload, or progress through the Fellowship year.
Emory University Counseling Center Trainee Self-Disclosure Policy:
Training staff at the Emory University Counseling Center value the power and complexity of the therapeutic relationship. Because of this value, in our intervention, supervision, and training activities there is a focus on the “person-of-the-therapist” and how this may impact the quality and effectiveness of work with clients and consultees. Trainees may be asked to reflect upon and share the ways that their own personal qualities, reactions and experiences influence and are impacted by their clinical work in supervision and other training settings. Such exploration and disclosure is not intended to serve as psychotherapy for the trainee, and is focused on enhancing self-awareness and professional development as related to the trainee’s clinical practice during the training program. Supervisors and other training staff are expected to explore relevant information in a respectful, non-coercive manner, within the context of a safe and supportive professional relationship.
Seminars
Postdoctoral Fellows participate in a number of didactic training experiences while at the Counseling Center. The training seminars are designed to enhance and supplement the learning that occurs through supervision and clinical experiences.
Case Conferences:
Postdoctoral Fellows participate in two hour-long, weekly case conference meetings (one at the Counseling Center and one at the FSAP). Fellows will present their clinical work as scheduled; treatment issues and client dynamics are discussed with other trainees and senior staff.
Group Seminar
A weekly, 1 hour Group Therapy seminar focuses on processes and procedures for conducting therapy and support groups. Stages of group development, theories of group process, and ethical issues in group leadership are explored. In addition, some supervision of Fellow’s group therapy work is provided in the context of the seminar.
Multicultural Film Festival
Each week during the summer, senior staff and trainees participate in a lunch-time viewing of films which focus on race, class, gender, sexual orientation, religion or other cultural factors. Following the viewing, there is a discussion of the issues raised and the ways that they may impact our perspectives and our work with clients.
DIRECT SERVICE:
Each trainee is involved in a number of types of direct service during his or her training year: intake assessments, brief psychotherapy with individuals and couples, group therapy, longer-term therapy, crisis intervention, on-call emergency coverage, outreach and consultation, supervision of practicum-level students, and case management.
Psychotherapy
The Counseling Center provides psychotherapy services to an undergraduate and graduate student population which reflects society's diversity in terms of race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age, gender, and religion. Clients at the Center present with a wide range of needs and concerns, ranging from developmental or transitional difficulties to serious, chronic psychopathology. Fellows gain experience in using a variety of theoretical orientations and interventions to assist clients' growth and remediation. Each Fellow typically has a caseload of about 12 - 15 clients in individual or couples psychotherapy. In addition to brief therapy clients (typically seen for up to one semester), trainees may carry one long-term client for the duration of the training year. It is also expected that each Postdoctoral Fellow will have the opportunity to co-lead a therapy group during the internship year.
Practicum Training and Supervision of Supervision
During the postdoctoral year, Fellows play an integral role in the Center’s practicum training program. With assistance from the Practicum Coordinator, Postdoctoral Fellows design and teach the training seminar and case conferences for the practicum students. Fellows also have the opportunity to gain supervisory experience by supervising a graduate-level practicum student from a local social work, professional counseling, counseling or clinical psychology training program. Group supervision, provided by a licensed psychologist, focuses on defining and enhancing the Fellows' supervisory style, using audiotapes of supervision sessions and didactic discussions on theoretical models of supervision.
Psychological Assessment
Fellows gain significant diagnostic and assessment experience by conducting weekly intake interviews, which focus on eliciting the information needed to formulate initial treatment plans for new clients. The Counseling Center does not typically conduct much formal psychological testing. However, Fellows with previous assessment experience may have the opportunity to gain additional testing experience as an elective or specialty training experience.
Crisis Intervention
Fellows participate in the Center’s on-call rotation along with senior staff, to assist students who come into the center in crisis during office hours. Crisis intervention activities may include case management with agencies on- or off-campus, consulting with parents, faculty members or peers who are concerned about a student on campus (within the limits of confidentiality), or providing debriefing after campus emergencies. In addition, Fellows participate in providing after-hours emergency coverage on a rotating basis. A senior staff member is always available for consultation during daytime and evening on-call hours.
Additional Training Activities
In addition to the training experiences outlined above, Postdoctoral Fellows have the opportunity to participate in other ongoing training activities within the University. These include the Clinical Research Conference within the Department of Psychology and Psychiatry Grand Rounds at the Medical School. Fellows are also allowed educational leave time for conference or workshop attendance, and receive a travel fund ($200) for conference expenses.
Elective Training Experiences
Fellows may elect to gain experience in several other settings within the University. Electives are typically matched to an individual trainee's areas of interest; for Postdoctoral Fellows, the elective tends to be an opportunity for additional administrative or consultative experience within an area of clinical interest or expertise.
Emory University Center for Women
The Emory University Center for Women serves as a resource for the university's female faculty, staff, and students. Working in conjunction with a senior staff member, a Fellow may elect to provide outreach programming and/or consultation to the staff of the Center. Consultation services may include meeting with women through a weekly "drop-in" consultation and referral service which the Center for Women provides.
Faculty Consultation
The consultation program is currently being expanded to provide consultative support to faculty and academic departments. The objective of the Faculty Consultation program is to assist faculty members when they encounter students with personal concerns that impact both the individual student and the academic environment. Fellows have the opportunity to assist senior staff in providing outreach programs and on-call assistance to faculty and staff who are concerned about meeting student needs.
Emory HELPLINE
The Emory HELPLINE is a volunteer telephone crisis counseling service, which is administered by the Counseling Center. Fellows may choose to assist the senior staff member who directs this program. The Fellow has the opportunity to develop skills in training and supervising paraprofessionals within a community-based intervention program. Activities may include providing lectures for a peer counseling course, helping with administration of the Helpline, and assisting with clinical supervision of Helpline phone counselors.
International Student Programs Consultation
Fellows with an interest in multicultural issues may choose to provide consultation for Emory's Office of International Student and Scholars Programs (ISSP). Possible services to students from other countries include crisis intervention, psychoeducational programs, assisting ISSP program staff with cross-cultural communication skills, and research regarding the needs and concerns of the international population. Supervision is provided by a Counseling Center senior staff member.
Consultation with the Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Life
The Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Life (LGBT) provides programs and services which support the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered students, faculty and staff at Emory. Working with a senior staff member, a Fellow may choose to serve as a liaison/consultant with LGBT office staff. Consultation may include addressing organizational or staffing issues, providing outreach workshops, or assisting with the support groups offered by the LGBT office.
Family Therapy Team
Fellows may choose to participate in specialized training and supervision in family and couples therapy. This training takes place at Grady Hospital, an Emory-affiliated public hospital in downtown Atlanta. Participants in the Family Therapy Team participate in live supervision of couples and family therapy, and may have the opportunity to provide direct services.
Multicultural Programs and Services Consultation
The Office of Multicultural Programs and Services implements programs which support diversity within the University and address the needs of students of color on the Emory campus. A Fellow may elect to serve as a consultant to this office for the academic year. Possible consultation services include organizing and facilitating discussion groups, providing outreach training, and assisting with program development and evaluation.
Consultation with Adolescent Program
An Emory youth educational program provides another possible training site for Fellows. The Hughes Science Initiative program brings gifted African-American high school students to Emory's campus for an intensive summer math and science program. Fellows may choose to serve as psychological consultants for this program, providing psychoeducational programs, consultation with program staff, and crisis intervention assistance. Consulting services with the adolescent programs are supervised by a Counseling Center senior staff member.
Sexual Assault Response and Education Services (SARES)
This elective is an opportunity to learn about the issue of sexual assault on the college campus. The Fellow will work with the SARES coordinator in providing educational outreach to the Emory community to raise awareness of the issue. The educational efforts incorporate premises of risk-reduction, social responsibility, and the inclusion of men in prevention efforts. Fellows will gain experience in presenting seminars to students in the dormitories and to Resident Advisors through in-service training, as well as teaching course modules and facilitating classroom discussions on sexual assault. The Fellow will also have the option of participating in the leadership of the Sexual Assault Student Advisory Board; this group is responsible for planning and participating in Sexual Assault Awareness week at Emory.
Postdoctoral Fellowship Typical Weekly Schedule:
Clinical Hours :
8 – 12 Therapy Clients (EUCC)
1 Group (1.5 hours)
2 Intakes
1 Crisis Hour
1 Hour Practicum Student Supervision
4 Faculty Staff Assistance Program Clients (FSAP)
Total Direct Clinical Hours: 17.5 – 21.5
Supervision Hours :
1 Hour Primary Supervision (EUCC)
1 Hour Specialty Supervision
1 Hour Supervision of Supervision
1 Hour Clinical Supervision (FSAP)
Total Supervision Hours: 4
Other Scheduled Meetings:
1 Hour Group Seminar/Supervision
1 Hour Case Conference (EUCC)
1.5 Hours Case Conference (FSAP)
1 Hour Teaching Practicum Seminar
0.5 Hour EUCC Staff Meeting
Total Meeting Hours: 5
COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS:
The stipend for the Postdoctoral Fellowship year is $27,500.00. Fellows receive the same health and dental insurance benefits as regular, full-time staff, and have access to University library and computer facilities. There is a fitness center on campus which Fellows may use for a low annual fee. Fellows receive twelve days of paid vacation, eleven University holidays, 12 sick days, a $200 professional development fund (to assist with conference/workshop attendance costs), and one week of professional or educational leave.
APPLICATION MATERIALS
1. Letter of Application (Including statement of professional goals for the Postdoctoral Fellowship)
2. Curriculum Vitae
3. Official Graduate Transcript(s)
4. Three Letters of Reference
APPLICATION DEADLINE
Application materials should be received by February 15, 2008.
You may choose to send all materials in one packet.
Mail application materials to:
Pamela J. Epps, Ph.D.
Associate Director for Training
Emory University Counseling Center
569 Asbury Circle
Cox Hall, Suite 217
Atlanta, Georgia 30322
(404) 727-1920 (training phone line)
(404) 727-7450 (main office)
TRAINING STAFF
Follow this link for a list of current training staff.
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