Each CACTC site has opportunities for interns to work in outpatient counseling centers to provide individual, family, group and/or couples therapy to people from a diverse range of age groups (children, adolescents and adults), ethnic groups, and socioeconomic levels. Rotations are available in urban and suburban communities in order to provide interns with a diverse range of therapeutic modalities, contexts, and client presenting problems.

Opportunities are also available for developing and refining group therapy treatment skills (consistently available at CCCOC and OCCC). Interns serve as therapists for school and outpatient groups, including both traditional and specialized groups. CCCOC interns may participate in running school groups in numerous schools throughout the Chicago area to promote improved social-emotional functioning. At OCCC, interns have the opportunity to co-lead a trauma recovery skills-based group for women or a psychoeducational group based on Second Step curriculum for adolescents, using best practices from the psychological literature. LCHC interns have the opportunity to co-lead weekly psychoeducational groups either for children or adults. At CDPCC, interns are invited to develop a therapy group/skills group according to their interests. Other specialized groups focus on treatment of ADHD, and development of social skills/life skills with children/adolescents, women’s growth groups in a variety of contexts.

CCCOC provides school based social/emotional groups in schools throughout the Chicagoland area.

OCCC partners with a local school district to provide on-site therapy services to students as needed.

Neuropsychology interns at Hesed Psychological Services provide testing and therapy services to the older adult population.

Interns at LCHC will have the opportunity to develop their skills in working in primary health care settings as a behavioral health consultant to the physicians within the health center. Behavioral Health Consultation (BHC) is an innovative approach to adapting clinical psychology skills to a primary care setting (pediatric to geriatric). Interns will learn how to diagnose and screen for psychological disorders accurately and efficiently, increase knowledge of pharmacological treatments available, design problem and strength-based behavior change plans, and how to consult with medical providers.

OCCC interns have many opportunities throughout the internship year to provide consultation to missions organizations on mental health issues (i.e.-the intersection of mental health and spiritual health, how emotional health impacts ministry). In addition, OCCC interns provide consultation to the Outreach after school programs as needed on a variety of learning, attention and emotional issues related to their students. CDPCC offers opportunities to lead groups and provide psychological education in the local churches. CCCOC and Hesed interns also provide consultation to local churches, programs and schools in the area to promote the well-being and functioning of their members.

Growth in assessment and psychodiagnostic skills is provided through administration, interpretation, and written synthesis of psychological test data. A variety of intellectual, achievement, personality, and competency-based instruments are available. Interns learn to write reports and make recommendations that convey meaningful information to clients and/or referral sources. While each site varies on the number and type of referrals, most interns will complete 4-10 batteries throughout the course of the year. OCCC, CDPCC and Hesed interns, in particular, have the opportunity to learn cutting edge approaches in evaluating ADHD, learning disabilities, autism, clinical and personality disorders, and other emotional disorders for children, adolescents and adults. OCCC interns also learn state of the art approaches in testing missionaries (pre-field assessments). CDPCC uses Pearson’s Q-Interactive service which allows the examiner and client to use I-pads in the assessment process. This approach greatly reduces examiner error and provides comprehensive assessments as soon as the testing process is completed. LCHC interns also complete abbreviated batteries for the purpose of facilitating their clients’ primary care treatment.

Neuropsychological testing is the primary focus at Hesed; however, the neuropsychology intern will also have outpatient opportunities, as well as opportunities to run a therapy group. Neuropsychology interns will gain hands-on experience with ADHD, traumatic brain injury, dementia (Alzheimer’s disease, FTD, Lewy body dementia, vascular dementia), neurological disorders (including stroke, epilepsy, tumor), learning disorders (such as math, reading, writing disorders), dyslexia, intellectual disability, autism, executive functioning, impact of substance use (including prenatal exposure), social difficulties, psychological and personality concerns, and behavioral concerns. Weekly didactics specific to neurocognitive disorders are provided in addition to CACTC’s didactics, as well as training on the business side of running a neuropsychology practice. Primary interns complete approximately 50 batteries during the training year. OCCC incorporates neuropsychological tools and utilizes the School Neuropsychology model for complex learning, ADHD, and autism-related referrals. CDPCC also includes neuropsychological tests within their psychological assessments.

With the rapid changes occurring both within society and the discipline of psychology, it is essential for psychologists-in-training to develop programs to meet the needs of the clients and communities in which they serve. Given this, interns are given opportunities to learn skills in creating, implementing and/or evaluating programs in urban and suburban contexts through the CACTC sites. Some of these program development activities include developing and/or honing groups to serve those in the community (i.e.-school groups, trauma group and/or parenting groups). Also, OCCC interns have the opportunity to work with the CACTC director to receive hands-on training in program evaluation by evaluating aspects of the CACTC training program. Recent OCCC interns have helped develop programming to meet needs identified by after school and transitional housing program directors across Outreach. CCCOC interns may have opportunities to receive hands-on training in evaluating the efficacy of the school groups they run in schools throughout the Chicago area. LCHC interns have the opportunity to work on program development and/or evaluation to improve patient care over the course of the year. Most recently, LCHC interns have developed and revised patient education handouts, updated and enhanced evidence-based interventions embedded into the clinic’s electronic medical records system, and developed patient psychoeducation groups.

Developing skills in supervising other professionals or students in training is also a skill essential for psychology interns. All CACTC interns participate in a monthly supervision group led by Dr. Brian Post that facilitates a deeper understanding of the theory of supervision models and provides opportunities to develop supervisory skills. Opportunities for informal and formal supervision of master’s or doctoral students is also available through most CACTC sites. Supervising psychologists at each site provide supervision of the intern’s formal and informal supervision and periodically supplement this training with relevant articles and/or other reading material to read and discuss in order to enhance this training experience. The length of this training experience is negotiable, depending on intern interest and opportunities available. CCCOC interns typically supervise a BA intern and may have the opportunity to co-lead school groups while mentoring MA practicum students. At CDPCC the intern has the opportunity to be a secondary supervisor for both therapy and assessment doctoral level students. Hesed and OCCC interns typically supervise doctoral practicum students in cooperation with the on-site psychologist. LCHC has also provided opportunities for interns to supervise trainees (BA, MA level, or doctoral level practicum students) regarding their research, program development, and/or clinical activities when opportunities have become available.