Practicum Planning and Procedures

  1. Ensuring Breadth and Depth of Training
  2. Sequencing of Practica Courses
  3. Prerequisites for Practicum courses
  4. Amount of Clinical Practicum Training
  5. Structure and Composition of Clinical Practicum Training
  6. Practicum Class
  7. Practicum Planning
  8. Practicum Paperwork
  9. Supervision Requirements
  10. Amount and Type of Supervision

 

I. Ensuring Breadth and Depth of Training

Student should choose practica for breadth and depth across their graduate training. That is, assessment and intervention with diverse populations, in various settings, with different theoretical orientations and treatment modalities, including group and individual. (For your information, this table shows the range of clinical training experiences for the 19 students who applied for residencies between 2018 and 2022):

 Range-of-Clinical-Training-for-Residency-Applicants.png

(Above: Range of clinical training experiences for residency applicants)

Towards this end, each student in MScII and beyond will correspond and/or meet with the Clinical Practicum Coordinator at least once per year, typically in May or June, to generate a tentative practicum/PSH training plan for the upcoming year (September 1st to August 31st). See Section VII (Practicum Planning) for more information.

The Clinical Practicum Coordinator must approve each practicum placement before it begins.
 

II. Sequencing of Practicum Courses

Psychological Assessment Practicum (Full course; Placement begins in the Winter term): 9901

Full Clinical Practicum (1/2 (Y) courses; ~65+ direct clinical contact hours): 9805Y-9819Y

Half Clinical Practicum (1/4 (U) courses; ~32+ direct clinical contact hours): 9820U-9839U.

Full Applied Research Practicum (1/2 (Y) courses; ~ 180 hours): 9850Y-9854Y

Half Applied Research Practicum (1/4 (U) courses; ~ 90): 9855-9859U

Full Clinical Supervision Practicum (1/2 (Y) courses; 30+ hours of providing supervision): 9860Y-9869Y

Half Clinical Supervision Practicum (1/4 (U) courses: 8-30 hours of providing supervision): 9870U-9879U

Note:

  1. Complete practica in numerical order. For example, enroll in 9805Y before using 9806Y for the next full clinical practicum, complete 9806Y before using 9807Y for the next full clinical practicum, etc.
  2. Practica that involve only assessments will have roughly half that number of direct contact hours. Those with a blend of assessment and intervention will have numbers somewhere in-between.


III. Prerequisites for Practicum Courses:

Psychological Assessment Practicum (9901)

  • Psychology 9300A: Professional Foundations of Clinical Psychology
  • Psychology 9301B: Pre-Practicum in Clinical Psychology Skills (Can be taken concurrently)

Clinical Practica

  • Psychology 9900 (Psychological Assessment) and 9901 (Psychological Assessment Practicum)
  • Psychology 9902A and 9903B: Lifespan Psychopathology I and II

Applied Research Practica

  • Must be enrolled at the Ph.D. level of the Clinical Program.
  • Successful completion of one of the Evaluation and Research Methodology courses. These are specified in the Clinical Program Requirements Form

IV. Amount of Clinical Practical Training

As per CPA accreditation criteria, before obtaining the Ph.D. degree, students must complete at least 600 (direct plus indirect) practicum hours pre-residency. At least 125 of these hours should be formally scheduled supervision.

To meet the program requirements, students also must complete a full-year (2000-hour), full-time CPA or APA accredited residency.

To be competitive for a residency, data from our recent residency applicants suggests that students should have more than the 600 hour (300 direct) CPA minimum by November 1st of the year preceding their anticipated residencies. Some residencies may require considerably more of applicants. Students should keep these variations in mind when planning practica sequences and selecting programs to which to apply.

Table 1: Clinical training hours accrued in the program (as per students' APPI forms*) between 2009 and 2022. 

Note: These are the APPI hours approved by the Clinical Director in the November before the start of residencies, which typically begin in September of the year in question. 

*From 2014 onwards, "program sanctioned clinical hours" were included in the tallies. These hours were NOT accrued during a practicum, but were approved as APPI-eligible. 

Hours reported in APPI applications by UWO clinical psychology students

Year residency begins

#
Students

# Intervention Hours
Mean (SD)
Range

# Assessment Hours
Mean (SD)
Range

# Supervision Hours
Mean (SD)
Range


2009

5 499 (±139)
384-681
108 (+66)
34-212
294 (+82)
221-424

2010

2 413 (+74)
361-465
117 (+39)
90-145
218 (+83)
159-27

2011

3 400 (+79)
352-492
127 (+26)
110-157
235 (+39)
201-277

2012

3

488 (+19)
476-510

143 (+41)
116-190

359 (+56)
289-408

2013

6

436 (±118)
334-618

210 (±98)
84-367

285 (±93)
153-423

2014

10

529 (±191)
324-899 

210 (±61)
101-296

299 (±53)
228-381

2015

2

503 (±13)
490-517

259 (±61)
152-336

348 (±95)
282-472

2016

3

611 (±129)
488-745

216 (±11)
205-227

377 (±88)
250-419

2017

0

NA

NA

NA

2018

4

503 (±135)
342-636

237 (±115)
97-379

366 (±92)
245-468

2019

2

620 (±6)
616-624

246 (±11)
238-254

262 (±39)
234-289

2020

3

566 (±111)
493-693

224 (±35)
200-264

322 (±58)
257-367

2021

2

828 (±232)
664-992

224 (±6)
219-228

408 (±19)
394-421

2022

8

570 (+300)
343-1258

195 (+141)
102-523

279 (+83)
164-396

Total

53

536

194

312

Bear in mind that "more is better" definitely does not apply to clinical training hours. We advise students not to strive for a "magical maximum" (i.e., the number of hours to ‘guarantee’ a match). Rather, they should aim for a "magical minimum" (i.e., the most efficient number of quality hours) that complements other desirable aspects of an applicant’s file (publications, presentations, near-completion of the doctoral dissertation).

This advice is consistent with the Canadian Psychological Association’s Accreditation Standards (page 42), which states that:

"The Accreditation Panel acknowledges that in the competitive marketplace, students may complete far more than the required number of practicum hours prior to applying for internship. However, the Panel strongly encourages students to focus on quality (e.g., variety of issues and populations) over quantity (e.g., amassing a large number of hours) when completing their practica."

(Approved at the June 2007 Annual General meeting of the Canadian Council for Professional Psychology Programs (CCPPP).
 

V. Structure and Content of Clinical Practicum Training

Psychological Assessment Practicum

The first term involves classroom instruction. Also, students practice test administration, integration and interpretation of findings. Field placements begin in the second term.

Each student does one (sometimes two) placements and does at least one assessment per placement.

Each assessment involve 4-10 hours of direct client contact. The Direct Clinical Contact to Supervision ratio usually does not exceed 3:1.

Clinical Practica Courses

These practica usually take place over an 8-month period (e.g., September-April). But some might take more time and others less time (e.g., practica over the summer) to complete.

Students typically are not required to be on site more than two days per week. For practica spread over shorter or longer periods of time, the weekly hours will be adjusted accordingly.

Full practica (1/2 courses) will typically involve a minimum of 65 direct clinical contact hours if all those hours are intervention/consultation, or 33 hours hours if all those hours are assessment. That is, one direct clinical hour doing assessment is 'worth' two hours of intervention. The minimum number of direct hours for practica that involve a blend of assessment and intervention should be somewhere between 33-65. To ensure breadth of training, as a general rule, direct clinical contact hours in a given practicum should not exceed 130.

Half-practica (1/4 courses) will generally entail at least 33 if entirely intervention, 17 if entirely assessment, or somewhere in between if a combination of assessment and intervention. 

If in doubt about whether your proposed placement will provide enough direct contact hours to qualify for a full practicum, it's best to enroll in a half-practicum. You can always accrue (and count) more than the minimum number of hours for APPI.

For both full and half practica, there should be a minimum of one hour of regularly scheduled one-on-one supervision per week. Direct to Supervision ration should not exceed 4:1; the average ratio (see Table 1) is less than 3:1. 
 

VI. Practicum Class

During the Fall and Winter terms students are to keep Thursday afternoons (12:00-4:30) free. This time is for Clinical Brownbags (12:00-1:00) and the Clinical Practicum Class, which meets 2:30-4:30, roughly 8-10 times from September- April. Students taking practica and those accruing program-sanctioned hours during that time period are required to attend. The class focuses on professional development, with a rotating set of annual themes and required readings. There are two student presentations per class. They need not be case presentations. But students must give at least two case presentations in practicum class during their Ph.D training. At least one in Ph.D. 1 or 2 and at least one in Ph.D. 3 or 4.

Ideally, students will not schedule activities (practicum or otherwise) on Fridays 3-4 pm. This is when the department's colloquium series is held and students are strongly encouraged to attend.
 

VII. Practicum Planning: Timeline and Procedures

Early to mid-May: Adjunct faculty inform the program about their availability to supervise our students in the upcoming year. Adjunct faculty listings on the Clinical Program web page are updated as this information comes in. 

Mid-May: Clinical students in MScII and higher confer with their research supervisors about how many hours or days per week they can allocate to clinical training between the upcoming September and subsequent August, given the other demands on their time commitments (e.g., thesis, coursework, TA/RAships). The amount of time might vary depending on time of year (e.g., Summer vs Fall or Winter term). They then send an email to the Practicum Coordinator (with a CC to their research supervisor) with this information. 

Late May to mid-June: The Clinical Practicum Coordinator confers with students in MScII or higher (more senior students first) about placements for the upcoming year (i.e., September 1st to August 31st). As a general rule, placements will not begin before September 1st, nor end after August 31st. 

Late May - mid-August: Students contact prospective supervisors (again, more senior students first), with a CC to the Clinical Practicum Coordinator. The more senior students contact prospective supervisors before their juniors because they have less time to complete the hours/training they need before applying to residency.

Before contacting prospective supervisors:

  • Students are encouraged to confer with those in their cohort about who will contact whom. It's perfectly okay for more than one person to contact a prospective supervisor. The supervisor would make the decision about whom to work with. 
  • If a student wants to meet the Clinical Practicum Coordinator either before or after they confer with their peers, let the Practicum Coordinator know. 
  • Once a student decides who they want to contact, inform the Clinical Practicum Coordinator. 

When contacting a prospective supervisor:

  • When contacting a prospective supervisor, students should include:
    • Their CV
    • A statement about what they would bring and hope to get out of the placement
    • A list of relevant graduate coursework and workshops/brownbags
    • A summary of practicum and program sanctioned hours, if any have been accrued to date (the summary provided by Time2Track would work)
    • Contact information for recent or current supervisors (if relevant)
    • Anything else that might be helpful (e.g., relevant volunteer or employment experience, contact information for people who can speak to the student's clinical/interpersonal demeanor)
  • If a student is inclined to contact more than one person for the same time period (this is not recommended), please do this in sequence, or if not, indicate in the email that you are also contacting someone else; it is poor form to respond with a "thanks but no thanks" to a supervisor who gets back to you if that person was not forewarned of this possibility.

Students may arrange more than one practicum in a given year, as long as they are consecutive. They also may arrange a concurrent placement (assuming the research supervisor has agreed to this), but only after all PhD students have secured their placements. 

Once a tentative agreement has been reached with a supervisor (even if the exact start and end dates have not been determined), please inform the Clinical Practicum Coordinator. 

Once the placement is confirmed, submit an Intended Clinical Training Milestone (ICM) form (signed and dated by the student, their primary clinical supervisor and their research supervisor) to the Clinical Practicum Coordinator for signature. 

If/when any details about the placement (e.g., supervisor, start date, end date, number of hours per week) change, submit a revised (and signed/dated) Intent to Register form to the Clinical Practicum Coordinator.
 

VIII. Practicum Paperwork

Prior to their first practicum, all students must complete a WEPA (Workplace Educational Placement Agreement) form.

This typically is done in MScI. 

Required Practicum Documentation Before beginning a practicum

Student completes the Intended Clinical Training Milestone (ICM) form form and submits it as soon as the key details (start and end date, supervisor, setting) have been confirmed, and no later than one month before the planned start of the placement. If the student and their supervisor discuss an approximate start date but have yet to settle on the exact date, students submit an ITR form with the approximate date. If and when details (including but not limited to start dates) subsequently change (either before or after the practicum starts), the student is to submit a revised Intent-to-Register form (with the revised element bolded or otherwise highlighted) to the Clinical Practicum Coordinator.

Pre-Placement Screening Procedures

Students are responsible to ensure that they have met the pre-placement requirements for the settings in which they will be doing practica. This in information is accessible either through the Setting/Clinical Adjunct web page
or will be communicated to you by your clinical supervisor.

Note that:

  • Almost all settings will require an up-to-date Police Check 
  • Many of the hospital-based settings will require a health screen and proof of immunization form and a Seasonal Flu vaccination form
  • LHSC-affiliated placements require that students undergo N95 (facemask) Fit Testing to protect themselves and patients in the event of an infectious disease outbreak.

At the beginning of a practicum

The student and supervisor meet and complete the Practicum Supervision Contract at (or before) the onset of the placement. This process is important, as the contract is intended to provide signposts for a dialogue between the supervisor and student. A copy of the contract is to be submitted to the Clinical Practicum Coordinator and the Clinical Program Assistant within one month after the start.

The practicum supervisor and student each retain a copy of the signed contract and the student provides an additional copy to the Clinical Practicum Coordinator for the Clinical Program Files.

The contract should be reviewed with an 'expectation check' after 4-6 weeks, at which point any revisions are noted and the contract is signed off by both parties. Send the revised contract to the Clinical Practicum Coordinator.

Midway through the practicum

When the student has accrued roughly half of the projected clinical contact hours for the practicum (i.e., about 35 for full practica and 20 for 1⁄2 practica), the supervisor completes the "Mid-Term Evaluation" column of the "Supervisor Evaluation of Student".

The student retains a copy of this completed form and provides one copy of the form to the practicum coordinator.

Note: The mid-term evaluation does not apply to 9800 (Assessment Practicum)

At the end of the practicum

Having fulfilled the practicum criteria, the student should complete the following paperwork promptly (and no later than one month after the end of the placement*) and submit it as a single packet of material to the Clinical Program Administrative Assistant. The Practicum coordinator, who also serves as Course Instructor for the Practicum courses (except for the Psychological Assessment Course) will not submit the student’s grade (Pass/Fail) for a given practicum course until all the paperwork is handed in. Students should retain a copy of this material for their files.

*N.B. Placements end when students have had their final client contact or submitted the final version of their final reports to their supervisor, and not when the student and supervisor discuss and co-sign the Supervisor Evaluation of Student form.

Five items to be submitted as a packet at the end of a practicum

1. Practicum/PSH Log Sheets

Students may create their own log sheets, informed by Documenting Professional Psychology Training Experiences (CCPPP, Aug. 2021) or Time2Track. (Even those using Time2Track should refer to the CCPPP's documentation guidelines.)  

The log sheets are to be signed and dated by students. They should include a clear indication of the following practicum-related activities:

  • All face-to-face contact (intervention, assessment, feedback, intake/diagnostic interview) with clients and/or their guardians, ideally noting whether the supervisor is present/observing.
  • Time spent in individual or group supervision.
  • Indirect support activities: - Time spent outside of your therapy hours while still focused on the client (background reading, chart review, preparing and presenting case presentation).

Note: These categories are mutually exclusive. That is, a practicum hour may not be counted more than once across any of these domains.

2. Practicum/PSH Summary Sheet (fillable pdf)

To be dated and co-signed by the student and clinical supervisor. It requires a tally of the total # of hours engaged in the following activities:

  • DI: Direct Intervention-without supervisor present
  • DA:Direct Assessment-without supervisor present
  • DI-s:Direct Intervention- with supervisor present
  • DA-s: Direct Assessment-with supervisor present
  • S: Supervision – without client present
  • I: Indirect – non-classroom
  • I-c: Indirect- Intervention practicum class–case related

For more extensive information, refer to CCPPP’s Guidelines for Documenting Professional Psychology Training Experiences (CCPPP, Aug. 2021) hours 

3. Student Evaluation of Supervisor and Setting

Print out at least one hard copy (you’ll be prompted to do so at the end the survey) to include with the rest of the end-of-practicum paperwork.

4. Supervisor’s Evaluation of Student (fillable pdf)

The final column and associated comments section are to completed by the clinical supervisor. The form is to be dated and co-signed by student and clinical supervisor.

5. Completed Honorarium Request Form (fillable pdf)

The Social Insurance and amount of Honorarium should be left blank.
 

IX. Supervision Requirements

The primary clinical supervisor for a practicum:

Must be a doctoral-level psychologist, registered with a provincial or US state regulatory body who has primary clinical responsibility for the supervised case(s). 

If a student is being supervised by an advanced level clinical psychology student, intern/resident, or non-registered psychologist, that supervision, in turn, is to be supervised by a doctoral-level psychologist, registered with a provincial or US state regulatory body who has primary clinical responsibility for the supervised case(s).

Typically and preferably, clinical supervisors are UWO Department of Psychology Adjunct Clinical Faculty members. If the clinical supervisor is supervising the student in a practicum, the setting must have a formal arrangement with the UWO Clinical Psychology Program (via a Memorandum of Agreement with UWO). This requirement does not apply for those providing supervision for program-sanctioned hours. 

Our Adjunct appointment requirements are available at:

https://www.psychology.uwo.ca/research/clinical/adjfacinfosheet.html
 

X. Amount and type of supervision

There should be, at minimum, one hour of scheduled individual supervision per week (assuming a standard 8 month practicum) at a regular and consistent time. The ratio client contact to supervision hours should not exceed 4:1

At least some part of the supervision will involve the supervisor’s observation (direct, or via audio and/or videotapes) of the trainee’s clinical work.

To guard the safety of students and clients:

Under most circumstances, clinical supervisors will always be on-site when their students are providing services. If not, supervisors should be readily accessible (via telecommunication) and, ideally, designate a registered on-site psychologist as a back-up.

Under no circumstances are students to be alone with clients in settings. That is, as a safety precaution, at least one staff member should be immediately physically accessible whenever students are seeing clients.