FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT
Student Opportunities
DOES YOUR CLINIC OFFER PRACTICUM PLACEMENTS TO GRADUATE STUDENTS?
Yes! New Roots Therapy has offered 8-12 month clinical practicum placements to Master’s students in counselling-related programs since 2015. So far, we have hosted practicum students from both Yorkville and Adler Universities.
Additionally, we have offered 4-month practicum placements to undergraduate students from UOIT who wish to gain administrative/clerical experience in a clinical setting.
WHEN DO YOU OFFER PRACTICUM PLACEMENTS?
Clinical practicum placements for Master’s level students are currently offered year-round. We have cohorts beginning in January, May, and September.
Non-clinical practicum placements and volunteer positions are offered on an as-available basis. This information will be posted on our Student Opportunities page.
HOW AND WHEN CAN I APPLY FOR A PRACTICUM PLACEMENT?
We regularly update our application timelines here. If you do not see your starting term listed, please check back and apply once we have opened applications for your cohort.
Once applications have opened for your cohort, you can submit a cover letter and resume directly through the form on our Student Opportunities page, linked above.
HOW IS SUPERVISION STRUCTURED FOR CLINICAL PRACTICUM STUDENTS?
New Roots Therapy connects Master’s level practicum students with qualified clinical supervisors during the course of their placement. Currently, practicum students at our site receive 1-hour of individual supervision each week and 2-hours of group supervision bi-weekly. Supervision meetings contain a mix of case consultation, self-of-the-therapist discussion, review of recorded counselling sessions, as well as experiential and didactic learning opportunities. Supervision meetings are held over Zoom.
DO PRACTICUM STUDENTS HAVE TO PAY FOR SUPERVISION DURING THEIR PLACEMENT?
NO! New Roots Therapy pays practicum supervisors using the revenue generated from paying clients who meet with students at a reduced rate. We not only believe in making therapy services more accessible to clients by providing reduced rate services with our clinical practicum students, we also believe in making practicum placements more accessible by not charging students any additional fees.
HOW DOES DIRECT OBSERVATION WORK DURING THE PLACEMENT?
Students are asked to present full and partial session recordings to their supervisors throughout the placement in order to fulfill the requirements for direct observation.
WHO ARE THE CLINICAL PRACTICUM SUPERVISORS AT NEW ROOTS THERAPY?
New Roots Therapy connects practicum students with supervisors who are associates of our clinic, as well as external supervisors who we consider to be allied professionals. All of our supervisors use a team approach, working closely with one another in an effort to provide students with exceptional support.
You can “meet” our current supervision team below by clicking and hovering on the images.
WHAT APPROACHES ARE USED BY YOUR CLINICAL SUPERVISORS?
Each supervisor we work with is unique in their style and approach to therapy and supervision. Some of the approaches that our supervisors most commonly draw on include:
Emotion-Focused Therapy (individual and couple)
Narrative Therapy
Trauma-informed Therapy, including Somatic-Experiencing/embodiment approaches and EMDR
Mindfulness Approaches
Internal Family Systems
WHAT CLIENT POPULATIONS DO YOUR PRACTICUM STUDENTS WORK WITH?
Our clinical practicum students work primarily with individual clients, ages 13+, experiencing concerns such as: anxiety, depression, stress, life transitions, relationship challenges, grief and loss, self-esteem, emotional regulation, and trauma. In the latter stages of a placement, students may also get experience in couple and/or family work if it is an area of interest.
WHAT DOES A TYPICAL WEEK LOOK LIKE FOR A CLINICAL PRACTICUM STUDENT AT NEW ROOTS THERAPY?
Students are scheduled for approximately 20 practicum hours per week. This time is generally divided into three “direct client care” shifts of varying lengths (4, 6, or 8 hours), as well as weekly supervision. During this time, students will also work on indirect client care, such as research and session preparation and writing clinical notes.
Additionally, we have created a 30-week curriculum to support students in their development over the course of the practicum placement. The curriculum consists of articles, training videos, experiential exercises, and discussion questions to supplement your hands-on learning. Engaging with these learning materials is voluntary, for the most part. We trust that students will manage their time and energy by prioritizing the learning materials as they see fit at different points in the practicum.
ARE STUDENTS EXPECTED TO FIND THEIR OWN CLIENTS?
NO! Clinical practicum students are assigned to meet with clients who contact the clinic through New Roots Therapy’s website and other referral channels. We do recommend that students create a personalized Psychology Today profile to assist them in building their caseload, paid for by the clinic during the practicum placement.
WHO CAN I CONTACT IF I HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT PRACTICUM OPPORTUNITIES NOT ANSWERED HERE?
You can contact Melissa Kroonenberg via email at joinourteam@newrootstherapy.com. We kindly ask that you do not call the clinic regarding practicum opportunities.