Counseling Services

• Anxiety, fears, worries, and nervousness 
• Academics, schoolwork, performance
• Depression 
• Self-esteem and self-confidence 
• Finances 
• Concentration 
• Uncertain about future, life after college 
• Procrastination and getting motivated 
• Stress management 
• Decisions about career or area of study 

Currently enrolled degree-seeking SAIC students may receive up to 16 sessions of free, confidential, short-term counseling and psychotherapy per degree program. Referrals to off-campus providers are available for open-ended psychotherapy, psychiatric evaluation and medication management, group therapy, intensive treatment programs, and emergency psychiatry services.

Information about the SAIC-sponsored student health insurance plan designed for SAIC students and their dependents can be found at saic.myahpcare.com. Questions may be directed to Academic Health Plans at 855-844-3023 or saic_studentinsurance@saic.edu.

Counseling and psychotherapy are confidential. Information communicated to SAIC counselors will not be disclosed to anyone outside Counseling Services without written consent from the client. There are rare exceptions to this policy. These are when, in the judgment of the counselor, disclosure is necessary to protect the patient or someone else from serious harm or when the law requires disclosure.

Care management support is provided to students who have been hospitalized due to mental illness and strives to ensure that support needed from family, treatment providers and SAIC is in place. Care management is not counseling or treatment and is not confidential, rather, the students’ medical and personal information is protected by the care manager and considered private.

Mental health promotion activities offered by Counseling Services emerge out of joint interests of the SAIC community and the Counseling Services staff. Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training is offered to students, faculty and staff on a regular basis.  Students who complete MHFA are invited to become part of the Wellness Center Student Support Network, a group of student leaders who regularly meet with the goals of enhancing natural peer support and implementing initiatives that support student mental health and wellness at SAIC. Additional programming is available on request.

Most distressed or troubled students who come to Counseling Services do so on their own. Faculty and staff who have frequent contact with students can also identify troubled students and assist them in obtaining appropriate help. Read more about how you can help.

SAIC offers Advanced Practicum Externship opportunities for doctoral psychology students. Our focus is providing brief, integrative psychotherapy to a diverse population of undergraduate and graduate, international and domestic art students. We are committed to providing our clients with ethical and supportive treatment and providing our trainees the tools for success in their work with our student population. 

Our value in training is to increase the skillset and confidence of our trainees through a focus in the following areas: brief therapy, intake assessment and triage, consultation, clinical documentation, and crisis intervention. Additionally, we focus on general competencies such as ethical practice, multicultural competence and professional development.

Expectations
Externs are expected to be on-site for 20 hours a week (two full days and one half day) throughout the academic year (late August until the end of May). They will receive two hours of individual supervision (one hour with the Training Director, and one hour with a secondary supervisor) as well as one hour of practicum seminar each week. Typically, Tuesday mornings from 9:00–10:00 a.m. are required for seminar, subject to change. Externs are expected to carry a caseload ranging from 8–12 individual psychotherapy clients. In addition to providing psychotherapy, each extern is expected to conduct intake assessments and provide crisis intervention, clinical consultation, and referrals/recommendations. Externs are also expected to participate in relevant on-site training to enhance their experience.

Eligibility 
This is considered an Advanced-level Practicum. Interested applicants should be enrolled and be in good standing in a doctoral program in clinical or counseling psychology. Applicants should have already completed at least two years of doctoral level practicum experience (basic/intermediate and diagnostic) and have experience providing psychotherapy. Candidates should also have some prior exposure to or interest in psychodynamic and/or existential-humanistic theories.

Apply 
The SAIC Counseling Services externship program is not an ACEPT member, but we welcome applications from students whose schools have membership to this organization. We offer interviews on a rolling admission basis until all interview openings are filled. We adhere to ACEPT's timeline regarding Pre-notification and Notification day. When the application process begins at the beginning of February, interested applicants should submit the following materials in one PDF document:

• Cover letter describing your experience and interest in our site
• Resume or curriculum vitae
• Transcript from your program (an unofficial transcript is acceptable)
• Two letters of recommendation from mental health professionals who are familiar with your clinical work

Writers can choose to email the letter directly to Dr. Hodge (chodge4@artic.edu) or via the applicant.