Child, Adolescent and Young Adult Internship in Clinical Psychology

The Child and Adolescent Mood Program (CAMP), within the Child, Adolescent and Young Adult Division of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, offers a two-year, part time internship that is exclusively affiliated with the Clinical Psychology PhD Program at Emory University. Psychology interns have several clinical responsibilities, including providing individual therapy, group therapy, parent training, and assessment for a variety of patients. The CAMP internship seeks to build on the skills developed during the doctoral education and training in order to graduate competent entry-level clinical psychologists who can function in a variety of settings and continue to develop professionally throughout their careers. The philosophy of the internship program is consistent with the doctoral program model, the clinical science model. As part of our approach as a clinical science program, interns are trained to be both scientists and practitioners in a reciprocal fashion such that their clinical experiences help them formulate research questions and research informs clinical practice. Over the two-year period, psychology interns will be trained in evidenced based assessments and treatments.

The Child, Adolescent and Young Adult Internship Program of Emory University School of Medicine values the unique perspectives and life experiences that members of our community bring. We recognize and celebrate differences in backgrounds, beliefs, identities, language and physical abilities. As a program, we emphasize the importance of understanding the many dimensions of a person’s identity and strive to create a welcoming and inclusive environment conducive to collaboration and learning. We are proud to support faculty, staff and trainees who reflect a broad range of lived experiences, identities and viewpoints.

We aim to foster cultural awareness, understanding and sensitivity in both our clinical practice and professional interactions. Our program provides training experiences that help interns develop the knowledge and skills necessary to deliver informed and responsive care. These include didactic seminars, case consultations, clinical supervision and hands-on service opportunities. Our urban setting affords our trainees and faculty the chance to work with people from various underserved communities, thus enhancing experiential learning and professional growth.

We are committed to treating all trainees, staff, faculty and clients with fairness and respect. We continuously assess our practices, seek feedback and pursue meaningful improvements to ensure a safe and supportive training environment. We believe humility and a commitment to lifelong learning are essential components of ethical and effective clinical work.

CAMP's internship program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation, the American Psychological Association.

Questions related to the program's accredited status should be directed to: 

COMMISSION ON ACCREDITATION
American Psychological Association
Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation
750 First Street, NE
Washington, DC 20002-4242
(T) 202- 336-5979 (F) 202-336-5978
Email 

Questions about the program should be directed to:

NORIEL E. LIM, PHD
Internship Training Director
Psychology Internship
12 Executive Park, Suite 200
Atlanta, GA 30329
(T) 404-727-8208 (F) 404-727-3421
Email

The Child and Adolescent Mood Program was founded by W. Edward Craighead, Ph.D., ABPP, in 2007. CAMP is an interdisciplinary clinical research program that aims to provide and improve best practices for children, adolescents, and young adults with mental health difficulties. The CAMP team includes psychologists, psychiatrists, psychology interns, practicum students, and psychiatry residents who work collaboratively to provide exceptional treatment for its patients. CAMP provides outpatient clinical services including diagnostic assessment, intelligence and achievement testing, individual therapy, group therapy, family therapy, parent skills training, and psychopharmacological evaluations and medication management. CAMP provides services to families in the Metro Atlanta area and beyond. Blacks and non-Hispanic Whites make up 82% of Metro Atlanta with the rest of the population made up of quickly growing Hispanic and Asian American communities.

CAMP maintains a strong focus on translational and clinical research studies in addition to its regular clinical work. We are strongly committed to the model that science should inform practice, and clinical practice should inform science. Faculty and all trainees are strongly encouraged to participate in ongoing research projects at CAMP.

In summary, CAMP’s mission is:

• To offer the most effective evidence-based assessments and interventions for children, adolescents, and young adults with mood, anxiety, ADHD, school difficulties, and eating disorders. Divisional services also include an autism center, a program for children of substance abusing moms, a family therapy program, and a center for neurodevelopmental disorders as well as a working relationship with a prodromal schizophrenia clinic.
• To provide the most effective evidence-based psychosocial assessment and interventions for children, adolescents, and young adults with mood, anxiety, ADHD, school difficulties, and eating disorders.
• To conduct basic, translational, and clinical research that provides increased understanding of the nature of mood, anxiety and related disorders.
• To translate the preceding research into clinical practice.
• To educate others in both our research findings and clinical experiences.

The CAMP Internship Program is housed within the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Emory’s Brain Health Center. Located in the North Druid Hills area of Atlanta, Georgia, the families we serve reflect the diverse and multicultural population of Metro Atlanta. CAMP specializes in the treatment of children, adolescents, and young adults with a primary diagnosis of a mood, anxiety, ADHD, or eating disorder; individual therapy for these patients consists primarily of Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and Behavioral Activation (BA). Many of our young patients also struggle with behavioral difficulties related to concurrent diagnoses of externalizing disorders. To address these issues, we also offer Parent Child Interactive Therapy (PCIT) for younger children and their caregivers and parent skills training sessions for parents of older children and adolescents. Parent training assists parents in developing effective contingency management strategies and improving effective communication skills with their child/adolescent. For a full list and descriptions of various internship activities and specialty areas, please refer to the Internship Training Manual.

The philosophy of the internship program is consistent with the doctoral program model, the clinical science model. As part of our approach as a clinical science program, interns are trained to be both scientists and practitioners in a reciprocal fashion such that their clinical experiences help them formulate research questions and research informs clinical practice. Over the two-year period, psychology interns will be trained in evidenced based assessments and treatments.

Didactics begin with an introduction to diagnostic assessment and clinical interviewing. The didactics then focuses on the assessment and treatment of various psychological disorders relevant to the treatment population at CAMP. In addition to psychotherapeutic approaches to treating these disorders, didactics also include coverage of pharmacological treatments; the goal is not only to educate interns about psychiatric medications commonly used with children, adolescents and young adults but also to enhance communication and consultation with psychiatrists on staff and in the community. As the year progresses, didactic training covers more specialized clinical and professional topics. Likewise, interns begin their work by being assigned patients with less severe and complex clinical presentations; as their clinical competencies, experiences, and confidence increase, they are assigned more challenging cases. As part of their assessment training, interns will begin by conducting semi-structured interviews (e.g., K-SADS, A-LIFE, CDRS) that help improve their diagnostic and case conceptualization skills. Towards the end of the first year, interns will be expected to conduct more complex assessments, and during the second year, they will transition to conducting more involved psycho-educational evaluations.

Consistent with our Clinical Science philosophy, the primary aim of the internship program is to train entry-level clinical psychologists who employ evidence-based approaches in all areas of clinical practice.

We are committed to producing entry-level clinical psychologists who demonstrate competencies in the following core areas of health service psychology: (i) research, (ii) ethical and legal standards, (iii) individual and cultural diversity, (iv) professional values, attitudes and behaviors, (v) communications and interpersonal skills, (vi) assessment, (vii) intervention, (viii) supervision, and (ix) consultation and interprofessional/ interdisciplinary skills. For a description of each competency domain along with required activities and threshold criteria, please see the Internship Training Manual.

Please refer to the sidebar for links to corresponding PDF documents.