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What
is practicum?
What do I need to do before
I start my practicum?
When do I look for a practicum?
How do I obtain a practicum?
What happens after I have
obtained my practicum/fieldwork? How do
I document the hours I'm gaining?
How do I obtain the necessary
forms for MFT licensure from the Board of
Behavioral Sciences (BBS)?
What if I need help with my forms?
A final recommendation
from the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office
What is practicum?
Practicum is considered your first level
of formal counseling training and is overseen
by your degree program and the Placement
Office. Practicum is both the fieldwork
experience and the academic course that
accompanies the fieldwork training. For
your hours of experience to be accepted,
your fieldwork site needs to be pre-approved
by the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office.
What do I need
to do before I start my practicum?
Every counseling program has prerequisites
that must be fulfilled before students are
considered "practicum ready." Please consult
with your program handbook and your academic
advisor for information on coursework and
other requirements that need to be met prior
to starting fieldwork/practicum.
Additionally, familiarize yourself with
the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office services and resources.
We maintain listings of fieldwork sites
for all counseling programs and can provide
you with assistance in selecting and applying
to sites. For your MFT hours to count,
you must work in a practicum that has been
pre-approved by the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office.
All approved sites are organized geographically
by Bay Area location in the "blue binders"
found in the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office.
When do I look
for a practicum?
It is best to be in contact with the Placement
Office well in advance of your anticipated
practicum start date (up to one year ahead
of time). Feel free to stop by for a brief
orientation to our resources. Familiarize
yourself with the pre-approved practica
listings in the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office, as well
as other materials related to your professional
development. Learn what steps are necessary
for obtaining MFT hours, and your program's
requirements around fieldwork.
Please note: practicum sites vary in their
deadlines and training start dates, so make
sure you are aware of the particular application
procedures (including deadlines) of each
site that is of interest to you.
How do I obtain
a practicum?
Secure your practicum by doing the following:
1: Begin thinking about this process
up to one year prior to your anticipated
practicum start date. Remember that your
practicum fieldwork coincides with your
practicum course sequence, and that all
program prerequisites must be met before
you begin. It is therefore advised that
you meet with your academic advisor to ensure
that you are on target. The more familiar
you are with the procedures, the more confident
you will be during the process, and the
less likely you are to feel overwhelmed
or anxious by practicum applications.
2: Visit the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office for
an orientation to our resources and to begin
planning your fieldwork training sequence
and future career development. Also, it
is a good idea to network with students
in your program, especially to learn from
those who have successfully navigated through
the practicum hurdle already.
3: Review the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office "blue
binders" summaries of all the approved fieldwork
sites. After selecting a number of sites
that are of interest, obtain detailed information
from the corresponding agency (site) files,
also located in the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office.
4: After narrowing down your possibilities,
telephone the contact person of each site
to verify their application deadline and
procedures. Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office Staff can help
you review choices.
5: Update your resume and prepare
a personalized cover letter for each site
that interests you. We have developed a
Resume Guide that can aid you with this
process. If it will be helpful, arrange
for a resume consultation with Placement
Office staff. Consider which faculty and/or
past supervisors might write letters of
recommendation on your behalf.
6: Applications can create anxietyÉuse
your support systems (peers, family, therapy)
to help address any concerns. One of the
best ways to manage your anxiety is both
to familiarize yourself with the practicum
application process, and thoroughly review
the information provided by the fieldwork
sites that interest you.
7: Prepare for interviews. Remember,
the more knowledgeable you are about your
own strengths/interests and about the sites
you are applying to, the more comfortable
and confidant you will be in the interview
process. The Interview Guide handout is
available to assist in your preparations.
Consider arranging a mock interview with
Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office Staff to polish your interview
presentation skills.
8: Accept an offer from your most
preferred site or repeat steps 3-7 until
you find a suitable placement.
What happens after
I have obtained my practicum/fieldwork?
How do I document the hours I'm gaining?
After securing a practicum, obtain the Supervised
Fieldwork Agreement form from the Placement
Office and return the completed form to
the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office 60 days prior to your
fieldwork start date. We will review the
contract, and if approved, will return a
copy to you and begin a file for your fieldwork
documentation. Reminder: you need to
be registered for the appropriate practicum
course before starting your practicum/fieldwork
experience.
Next, familiarize yourself with the Board
of Behavioral Sciences (BBS) Laws and
Regulations, Most Frequently Asked Questions,
and all the BBS forms needed to be completed
during your practicum and process of collecting
your 3000 hours of experience. You are responsible
for obtaining, completing and safely filing
BBS forms until you are ready to submit
them to the BBS for licensure. Please visit
the BBS website at www.bbs.ca.gov
or stop by the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office for more
information.
During your practicum year, be sure to
advise the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office of any changes
in your placement, responsibilities, hours,
supervision, etc. Most importantly, contact
the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office if any problems arise
so that they can be promptly addressed.
The Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office will mail practicum
evaluations to your primary site supervisor
twice per year. Discuss your evaluation
with your site supervisor before signing
and returning the evaluation to the Placement
Office, where we will include it in your
file.
Upon ending your fieldwork, complete the
Site Evaluation form available from the
Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office. Your feedback is very
valuable to us and to other students who
are interested in the training site (you
can submit the form anonymously if you prefer).
If you choose to extend your practicum
or wish to work in another practicum setting
beyond your program's requirements, you
MUST complete a new Supervised Fieldwork
Agreement form indicating your Post-Practicum
status. Also, you MUST register for the
Post-Practicum course during the duration
of your new contract or until you officially
graduate.
Prior to graduation, begin the process
of planning for postgraduate training and
experience. See Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office staff for
more details.
How do I obtain
the necessary forms for MFT licensure from
the Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS)?
You may obtain forms directly from the BBS
by requesting them in writing, by phone,
or through the Internet. The Internet is
by far the easiest and fastest way to obtain
the most current licensure information and
forms. Visit the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office for further
details on BBS forms.
Board of Behavioral Sciences
400 R Street, Suite 3150
Sacramento, CA 95814-6240
(916) 445-4933 TDD: (916) 322-1700
BBSWebMaster@bbs.ca.gov
http://www.bbs.ca.gov
What if I need
help with my forms?
After reviewing the BBS's website, specifically their FAQS page, you may contact Becki McGovern in the Career Development and Field Placement Office at 415.575.6117 or bmcgovern@ciis.edu for assistance.
Final recommendation
from the Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office
Familiarize yourself with other useful websites
concerning your profession:
The California Association of Marriage
and Family Therapists (CAMFT)
Consider joining CAMFT as a pre-licensed
member and receive its journal, The California
Therapist. Each issue offers current
information about updated laws and regulations,
the latest BBS actions, professional issues,
insurance information, workshops, trainings,
job listings and more. CAMFT members are
also eligible for receiving free legal and
ethical advice of CAMFT's Legal Counsel.
Also, consider joining one of CAMFT's Local
Chapters, which is an excellent way to stay
connected to your community and profession.
It is also a great way to network. To browse
through the latest CAMFT journal, or get
an application to join CAMFT, drop by the
Field Career Development and Career Development and Field Placement Office or contact CAMFT
directly at:
California Association of Marriage and
Family Therapists
7901 Raytheon Road
San Diego, CA 92111-1606
(858) 29-CAMFT (292-2638)
FAX: (858) 292-2666
www.camft.org
The American Association For Marriage
and Family Therapy (AAMFT)
AAMFT is a professional association for
the field of marriage and family therapy,
and they represent the professional interests
of more than 23,000 marriage and family
therapists throughout the United States,
Canada and abroad. AAMFT hosts an annual
national training conference each fall,
a weeklong series of continuing education
institutes in the summer, and produces several
informational publications.
For more information, please contact AAMFT
directly at:
1100 17th Street, NW - 10th Floor
Washington, D.C. 20036-4601
(202) 452-0109 or (800) 66AAMFT
www.aamft.org
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