Training Programs

All application materials must be uploaded to the AAPI portal by no later than 11:59 p.m. EST (10:59 p.m. CST), November 10, 2023.

Interview notifications will be sent by December 15, 2023. Interviews will be January 3-12, 2024.

I am honored and excited by your interest in the University of Arkansas’ Doctoral Internship Program with Counseling & Psychological Services (CAPS), at the Pat Walker Health Center. We are looking for interns who embody diverse identities, experiences, and ideologies that enrich the journey of scientific inquiry and emotional healing. We are passionate about training and enjoy working with interns who are curious, committed, flexible and committed to equity and justice. We strive to create a collegial environment in which interns feel supported and challenged to broaden their awareness, knowledge, and skills.

Our training model is based on a practitioner-apprenticeship, which is informed by science. We know your training program will have worked hard to prepare you for internship, and it is our hope to extend that training by attending to your unique developmental needs in the formation of your professional identity. We are strongly committed to addressing the needs of diverse students and to providing the therapeutic environment necessary for them to work on a variety of presenting concerns. This environment is not always in the counseling center, as we value outreach and often take our services to our clients. Our client population represents the diversity of human experience in terms of gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, sexual orientation, gender identity, socio-economic class, physical ability, and religious affiliations. Our multi-disciplinary staff represents diversity along many of these same identities. The staff is committed to providing excellent training by addressing the individual professional interests of interns through foundational training and customizable rotations that emphasize your own interests and needs.

The CAPS training program is Accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA) and the department is accredited by IACS (International Association of Counseling Services) and it is a member of ACCTA (Association of Counseling Center Training Agencies) and APPIC (Association of Psychology Post Doctoral and Internship Centers).

We will be participating in the APPIC Match. Candidates’ application materials will be reviewed for compatibility between background, training goals, and available training opportunities. Applicants assessed to be most closely compatible with the opportunities available in our program will be invited to participate in a video interview designed to provide both parties with a clear idea of what the other will bring to the internship year.

Once again, thank you for your interest in CAPS Doctoral Internship Training Program. Congratulations on reaching this exciting phase of your graduate training. Please do not hesitate to contact me either by telephone at (479) 575-5276 or e-mail at ac143@uark.edu if you have questions about our site. I wish you the best during your internship year.

Warmly,

Ashley Coleman, Ph.D.,

Director of Training, CAPS, Pat Walker Health Center

*Questions related to the program’s accreditation status should be directed to the Commission on Accreditation:

Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation American Psychological Association

750 1st Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002

Phone: (202) 336-5979

E-mail: apaaccred@apa.org

Web: www.apa.org/ed/accreditation

The CAPS Doctoral Internship in Health Service Psychology at the University of Arkansas is a full-time, 12-month, funded (benefits included), supervised experiential training program. CAPS currently has funding for internships per academic year.

Interns will have the opportunity to gain hands-on training and experience at a co-located university health center that provides extensive mental health services including: individual and group therapy, outreach, consultation, assessment, provision of supervision and crisis services.

Interns have the opportunity to craft their own rotations (areas of emphasis) and collaborate with senior staff and students from various disciplines.

The CAPS Doctoral Internship makes individual and cultural diversity a priority throughout training, and focuses on building knowledge, skills, self-reflection and personal exploration.

To successfully complete the CAPS Doctoral Internship, interns are required to complete a minimum of 2,000 hours (500 must be direct service).

View Doctoral Internship Brochure  

**NOTE: Students previously engaged in CAPS on-going clinical services are not eligible for training positions.**

The CAPS Doctoral Internship Program is a member of the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC #2481).

The CAPS Doctoral Internship Program is also accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA) through 2025, when the commission will come for its next accreditation visit.

*For questions about our APA accreditation status, contact:

APA Commission on Accreditation - Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation

750 First Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002-4242

P: 202-336-5979 • TDD/TTY: 202-336-6123 • F: 202-336-5978

E: apaaccred@apa.org

CAPS offers a part-time training program for University of Arkansas graduate students specializing in a mental health field.

This challenging and supportive program provides high-quality clinical and professional experience for a variety of presenting concerns including behavioral adjustment, serious mental illness and substance abuse.

The program also emphasizes outreach and community programming on campus, as well as learning from each other through close, thoughtful multidisciplinary supervision.

View Part-Time Training Brochure

**NOTE: Students previously engaged in CAPS on-going clinical services are not eligible for training positions.**

The following is a typical breakdown of a part-time trainee's week at CAPS:

• Clinical Activities | 10 hours/week

• Administrative Activities | 4 hours/week

• Training Activities | 6 hours/week

Participating graduate programs will be notified during the Spring semester of available positions for Counseling Interns. 

Interested students should email the following materials to Ashley Coleman, Ph.D, Assistant Director/Training Director:

• Resume or Curriculum vitae

• Cover Letter (include description of clinical experience)

• Letter of clinical readiness from graduate program chair.

 Applicants may express interest in a specific CAPS clinical team in their cover letter, however CAPS may not be able to accommodate preferences.  

Applications are due by the deadline announced to the graduate program.

Note: Available positions may vary from year-to-year.

CAPS collaborates with University Housing to provide supervision and clinical experience opportunities for Counselors-In-Residence (CIRs). CIRs are Ph.D.-level graduate students in Counseling, and possibly other related mental health programs, that are also paid graduate assistants with Housing/CAPS.CIRs are expected to participate in the following services:

• Consultations

• Referral services

• Psychoeducation

• Staff training

• Crisis intervention (residential students and staff)

• Clinical services

• Attend staff meetings/didactic trainings

• One to three hours of clinical supervision 

View CIR Program Brochure

**NOTE: Students previously engaged in CAPS on-going clinical services are not eligible for training positions.** 

The following is a typical breakdown of a CIRs week:

• Clinical Activities | 11 hours/week

• Administrative Activities | 3.5 hours/week

• Training Activities | 5.5 hours/week

Interested applicants should email the following to Maddie DeBucce with University Housing:

• Current curriculum vitae (CV)

• Cover letter

• Two (2) letters professional references completed by individuals familiar with clinical experience.

Applications are typically due in February. For more information, contact CAPS at 479-575-5276.

• Education: PhD Candidate Counselor Education & Supervision, University of Arkansas;  MS, Clinical Mental Health Counseling, University of Arkansas; BS, Psychology, University of Central Arkansas 
• Professional Interest: Treatment of anxiety and depression, healing trauma, prevention/outreach and education, holistic approach, attachment, and the use of expressive arts in counseling.  

• Education: PhD candidate Counselor Education and Supervision, University of Arkansas; MS, Clinical Mental Health Counseling, University of South Alabama; BS, Psychology, University of South Alabama
• Professional Interest: Cognitive behavioral Therapy, Holistic treatment, Prevention and outreach, Mindfulness, Play Therapy, Adventure Therapy, LGBTQ+, Social Justice.

• Elmer Evangelista, Counselor Education
• Grace Young, Social Work