Psychology & Mental Health Field Placement

Leading Faculty: Professor Jennifer Lyke

Field Placement in Psychology (PSYC 3900) is a course in which students volunteer at a placement site in the community for approximately 120 hours throughout the semester. In exchange, they gain valuable experience participating in the activities of the agency or institution and learning from professionals working in the field. Field placement students work with patients or clients of the organization and learn about how those agencies and institutions function and fit into the larger community.

Field placements are available in the Spring, Summer and Fall semesters and may be completed along with a hybrid class component or as independent studies. Students may earn up to eight credits toward the Psychology major for field placements. For Psychology majors with a Concentration in Mental Health, a field placement counts for two electives toward the concentration.

During the Fall and Spring semesters, this class meets in person once/month. Please see the course registration page for class meeting time. 

During psychology field placements, students will:

• Work directly with clients/patients/students in a community organization or institution
• Collaborate with professionals in the field
• Clarify career goals and assess professional options
• Integrate knowledge from other psychology classes with real world employment experience

Placement environments include: Community Mental Health Agencies, Partial Hospitalization Programs, Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities, Non-Profit Social Services, Nursing Homes, Hospitals, Schools, Preschools, Homeless Shelters, Domestic Violence Shelters, Forensic Settings, and Human Resources Departments

Applications: Most sites accept between 1-4 interns so the application process must be a priority the semester before you intern. Some sites require Stockton to make initial contact and others require specific qualifications. Our internship coordinator has a contact person for each of our affiliated sites and will share information with you on applying when you meet. Please schedule your meeting as soon as you have familiarized yourself with all 6 steps on the internship main page and no later than 2 weeks after you complete the application: https://stockton.edu/social-behavioral-sciences/internships-centers-initiatives.html.

 

Student Testimonials

I feel grateful for having the opportunity to enroll in this class. I am happy to have this experience under my belt as I continue my college education. This has been the most important class of my college career.

Overall, this was an exciting and eye-opening experience. I would recommend every Stockton student to do a field placement class in their junior or senior year of college.

I am so very thankful for this opportunity, as I’m sure I will never forget the lessons learned and abilities gained through this field placement.

I definitely think this experience has also made me more confident in terms of how to communicate with people in the workplace,  and it also made me aware of skills I need to work on in the future.