Practica Descriptions & Enrollment Process

Practica Descriptions Departmental Practica
Practica Enrollment Process Existing Off-Campus Practica
Forms Designing Your Own Practicum

Practica Descriptions

All Western Michigan University Psychology majors are required to complete a 3-credit practicum which provides an opportunity for students to use their knowledge in an applied setting.  Students can choose an existing departmental practicum or they can design their own if they propose a suitable site.  Students who opt to design their own practicum should refer to the guidelines specified here.

Attention: Students who will be in direct contact with children under 18 in research or practicum activities (NOTE: Croyden Practicum does not need to do this)

According to state law if your selected practicum or research experience will put you into direct contact with any children, you must have a Central Registry Check completed to screen your background for prior history of child abuse or neglect.

You must complete the Background Check Form and mail it to the Family Independence Agency at the address listed in the return address portion of the letter. In approximately 2-3 weeks you will receive the results of your background check. You must turn in a copy of those results attached to your permission to elect form or your faculty instructor will not grant permission to take the credits. You will need to have a photocopy of your results for each separate course enrollment that brings you in contact with children. You don’t have to have a new screening done each time but you do need to have a photocopy of your old one. Background Check Form link.

Practica Enrollment Process

Some practica require different steps be taken in order to enroll for the course.  To ensure that you are properly enrolled in a practicum, complete the following steps.   If you have any questions, please contact a Psychology Undergraduate Advisor.

Psy 3570: Autism Practicum: The course call number is listed in the course catalog and can be added to your schedule like any other class.

Psy 5470:  I/O Psychology Practicum: You must contact Dr. Austin to obtain permission to take the class.

Any of the Psy 3970s (Departmental Practica with off-campus Supervisors: You must complete a Permission to Elect and Background Check form (if applicable). Forms can be downloaded from the website or picked up at the Undergraduate Advising Office, 2124 Wood Hall, or the Psychology Main Office, 3700 Wood Hall.   These forms should be completed by:

-September/October if you plan on doing your practicum in the Spring semester

-January/February if you plan on doing your practicum in the Fall semester or Summer semesters.

  •  You must contact the Faculty member sponsor or graduate student coordinator and the off-campus sponsor to find out if there are positions available for the semester you plan on enrolling for the practicum. 
  • You must complete the Permission to Elect form and get the necessary signatures (i.e., faculty, supervisor, undergraduate advisor). If applicable, you must have a background check completed and show a copy of the background check to your faculty sponsor before s/he will sign your Permission to Elect form.

YOUR PERMISSION TO ELECT FORM MUST BE COMPLETED AND RETURNED TO THE UNDERGRADUATE ADVISORS BEFORE YOU BEGIN THE PRACTICUM IN ORDER FOR THIS EXPERIENCE TO COUNT AS PRACTICUM CREDIT.

A student designed practicum: 

If you plan on designing your own practicum, you must pick up a copy of the Student Designed Practicum handout, Permission to Elect form, and Background Check form (if applicable) at the Undergraduate Advising Office.  The Student Designed Practicum handout covers the procedures you will need to follow to set up your own practicum.

YOUR PERMISSION TO ELECT FORM MUST BE COMPLETED AND RETURNED TO THE UNDERGRADUATE ADVISORS BEFORE YOU BEGIN THE PRACTICUM IN ORDER FOR THIS EXPERIENCE TO COUNT AS PRACTICUM CREDIT.

Note:  Student designed practica require more work to establish, and, therefore, planning should occur well in advance of the semester in which you would like to enroll for the practica.

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Departmental Practica

Scroll down to view the departmental practica offered at WMU. 

PSY 3570:  Practicum with Special Populations (Croyden)
Site:      Croyden Avenue School-approximately 2.5 miles from campus off of West Main
Description:   This practicum involves working with a young child diagnosed with autism. These children often display minimal functional behavior. Students will be assigned to a child and will work on increasing functional behaviors. The class meets five days per week at Croyden Avenue Schools for two hours. The seminar meets for two hours once a week. Outstanding students have the opportunity to participate in an advanced autism practicum in the next semester after completion of PSY 357.  Students can also opt to take this practicum as an elective and complete another for practicum credit.
Prerequisites:    PSY 1600 and PSY 2500.
Registration:     The course is listed as PSY 3570 in the course catalog and can be added to your schedule just like any other class.
Contact:           The BATS Lab at 387-4491 

PSY 547:  Industrial/Organizational Psychology Practicum
Site:    Varies
Description:   By the first day of class, students locate a business in the Kalamazoo area and identify a pinpoint to measure. In the following weeks, they develop a measurement system, collect data regularly, analyze the problem, develop and implement an intervention to solve the problem, evaluate the effects, and report the results in an APA-format paper. Class meets for two hours each week. Students complete a PM portfolio as a final project, along with the paper. This 3-credit hour course is designed as a capstone course for students wishing to specialize in organizational behavior analysis.
Prerequisites:       Ideally, students will have taken PSY 4600 and PSY 4440. Other relevant courses are PSY 4600 with the PSY 5970 Project Option (PSY 4600 Honors Project, also called the "Super-Project" option) and PSY 5970 Behavior Based Safety. PSY 5990 is offered every fall term so that students will have a tangible project to help them gain entrance into graduate school and/or the job market. 
Contact:     Dr. John Austin at john.austin-at-wmich.edu.

Off Campus Practica

The department has already developed several practica with off-campus supervisors.  These practica are not always available and may require the student to contact both a faculty member sponsor and the off-campus sponsor.  Space is very limited with these practica sites and many of the locations require lengthy and exhaustive application procedures, intensive training and large time commitments.  Please refer to the individual listings below for information.

Scroll down for a complete description of all off-campus practica.  

PSY 3970:  Crisis Intervention Hotline Practicum
Site:    Gryphon Place
Description:         Students receive intensive training in answering Crisis Intervention Hotline calls. After completing practicum requirements, students may go on to be Crisis Intervention Hotline volunteers. Students must complete 135 hours of training to complete practicum requirements, but Gryphon Place may require 200 hours to become a volunteer. Training is intensive and not all students will be accepted if they do not demonstrate the necessary skills. However, no previous experience is required.
Prerequisites:       Applying and passing the screening and training process.
Contact:                Dr. Lester Wright at 387-4472 or lester.wright @wmich.edu.

PSY 3970:  Youth Shelter Practicum
Site:   The ARK
Description:    Students assist crisis workers at a shelter for runaway youth in creating a therapeutic environment that will motivate youth to resolve problems and effect positive changes in attitudes, values, and behavior. A minimum of 135 hours is required for 3 credit hours. Hours are flexible, and there is an informal training period.  In order to complete all necessary paperwork, you must contact ARK at least 2 months before the beginning of the semester in which you plan to do your practicum.
Prerequisites:       One previous course taught by Dr. Wright.
Contact:    Dr. Lester Wright at 387-4472 or lester.wright @wmich.edu.

PSY 3970: ADULT RESIDENTIAL CARE PRACTICUM           

Site:  HomeLife, Inc.
Description: This program provides services to adults with traumatic brain injuries, mental illness, and other neurological impairments. HomeLife’s mission includes providing a structured, homelike environment with the least restrictive environment possible. This organization focuses on teaching residents more socially appropriate, normalized behaviors. Students will gain valuable experience working with this population and will assist with conducting functional assessments and implementing behavioral interventions. In addition, students can gain experience running groups that focus on daily living skills. The HomeLife program runs daily and students can set up practicum hours between 7am-11pm. Minimum requirements for the position include being over the age of 18, having a clean criminal history and possessing a valid driver’s license. You can visit HomeLife’s website at www.talkhome.net for more information.
Prerequisites: PSY 1000, 1600, 2500.
Contact:  Dr. Lester Wright at 387-4472 or lester.wright @wmich.edu. You may also contact Joel Parish, M.A., a Behavior Analyst at HomeLife, at hlbehanalyst @aol.com for more information. Please note that you must contact Dr. Wright to arrange the practicum as he serves as the faculty advisor for this practicum experience.

PSY 3970: Domestic and Sexual Assault Practicum           

Site: Kalamazoo YWCA
Description: Students can complete their practicum at the YWCA sexual assault and domestic assault program. The duties will vary depending upon how long the student works there and the student’s hours of availability. Typical duties revolve around assisting in domestic and sexual assault crisis services, which might involve: answering crisis calls, addressing shelter resident inquires, helping with personal care needs, observing trained Victim Advocate staff in the delivery of service, being on call to provide supportive listening and assistance to survivors of sexual assault at hospitals in Kalamazoo or the YWCA nurse examiner site, attending court proceedings to support survivors, learning how to complete a Personal Protection Order, conducting intakes and assessments for the survivors, assisting with development of marketing materials for crisis services, and providing clerical support for YWCA programming.
Prerequisites: PSY 1000, 1600, 2500.
Contact:     Dr. Lester Wright at 387-4472 or lester.wright @wmich.edu.

PSY 3970:  Sexual Health Peer Education Practicum
Site:  Sindecuse Health Center
Description:  Students provide information regarding prevention of sexually transmitted diseases, contraception and responsible sexual behavior to other students using many different methods of outreach and education.
Prerequisites:  Students are selected by interview and/or audition. Applications are due in early March. Applicants must have a GPA of 3.0 or higher.
Contact:   For information about becoming a Peer Educator, use this link www.wmich.edu/shc/hpae/peered.htm Dr. Lester Wright serves as the departmental supervisor for this practicum opportunity.

PSY 3970: THE ALLIANCE FOR COMMUNITY SUPPORTS PRACTICUM
Site: Residential Opportunities Incorporated, the WMU/Center for Disability Services, and MRC Industries
Description: This practicum involves working with adults with developmental disabilities. Tasks involve implementation of behavior plans, development and implementation of behavior plans, data collection, and assisting with assessment. Mandatory training in recipient rights and blood borne pathogens is required within the first 30 days. Students must have the necessary time available to accommodate the training as well as the ability to coordinate their schedules with the specific agency’s hours of operation.
Prerequisites: Students must have successfully completed PSY 1000, 1600, 2500, and 3600. PSY 5700 (Mental Retardation) would be helpful but is not required.
Practicum Duration: Practicum runs in the Spring, Winter, Summer 1 and Summer 2
Seeking: Psychology Major / Junior and Senior
Contact: Contact Sophie Rubin, the graduate student coordinator for The Alliance for Community Supports by e-mail at sophierubin1 @cs.com or by calling 383-2846.

PSY 3970: Hospital I/O Practicum           

Industrial/Organizational Psychology Practicum

The Bronson Methodist Hospital practicum is a practicum in industrial/organizational (I/O) psychology. Bronson Methodist Hospital is approximately 2 miles from WMU, and students need to have their own transportation. Students will gain experience in behavioral observation, data collection, and data analysis. Projects focus on the safety and health of hospital staff. Students also develop and present suggestions for improvement to a Bronson Methodist Hospital safety committee at the end of the semester. It is a great opportunity to gain I/O psychology experience in an applied setting, while networking with a national leader in health care quality.

You must be a junior or senior student majoring in psychology, have 15 hours available per week, and have completed PSY 3300 & 3600. Preference will be given to those who have completed 4600 and 4440.

Four to five students are selected each semester based on their academic record and social/professional skills. The course is PSY 3970 and the faculty advisor is Dr. Dickinson. Interested students should contact Dr. Dickinson at alyce.dickinson@wmich.edu.

PSY 397: Student Designed Practica

Overview, Requirements and Procedure

Overview: The Psychology Department recognizes that many of our students are involved in volunteer and work activities which are valuable learning experiences. In order to offer students a broad range of options to complete their practica requirement, the department has established a student designed practica listed as PSY 397.

Student designed practica require more work to establish, and, therefore, planning should occur well in advance of the semester in which you would like to enroll for the practicum. Part of the requirements are to establish adequate supervision for the experience. Two supervisors are required: the first a direct, on-site supervisor and the second a faculty sponsor within the department. Each faculty member has their own expectations for their practica students and the listings below are the minimums that are adopted. At the end of the semester, the faculty sponsor will evaluate your performance using feedback elicited from the on-site supervisor. The grade you earn will be determined by this feedback.

Requirements: These requirements were developed to ensure a level of consistency between student designed practica and established sites. All practica must meet these minimum requirements in order to be approved.

  • The work should be “psychological” in nature.
  • The supervisor should have a graduate degree in psychology or a relevant field.
  • A written job description should be provided to the faculty sponsor before the semester begins.
  • The on-site supervisor should meet with the student on at least a weekly basis.
  • The on-site supervisor must provide a written evaluation to the faculty sponsor.
  • The student must complete a minimum of 135 hours during the semester. This breaks down as follows:

* Fall Semester/Spring Semester: approximately 10 hours/week

* Summer I/Summer II Sessions: approximately 20 hours/week 

Procedure: Planning should begin early as it can take some time to obtain the necessary signatures in order to enroll. In order for the process to be as efficient as possible, please follow the steps below in order:

  • Ensure that the potential practicum would meet the requirements listed above.
  • Arrange for a person at the potential practicum site to serve as your on-site supervisor.
  • Present your idea to a Psychology Department faculty member and ask them to serve as your faculty sponsor.
  • Collaborate with that faculty member to determine the requirements for your individual practicum.
  • Obtain a Permission To Elect form from the Undergraduate Advisor. The office is located in 2124 Wood Hall.
  • Obtain the signatures necessary on the form and ensure that the entire form is accurately and completely filled out.
  • Return the Permission to Elect form to the Undergraduate Advisor who will then register you for the course.

If you have any questions about any features of a student-designed practica, do not hesitate to contact the Undergraduate Advisor at 387-4475, via email at psy-advising@wmich.edu or stop by room 2124 Wood Hall.
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