Description of Professional Practice
PSY 398 Professional Practice: Psychology provides students with an opportunity to earn academic credit for work experience related to psychology. Professional Practice allow students to apply what they have learned from their psychology courses to practical experiences in a work environment. Therefore, professional practice placements, commonly referred to as internships, enable students to integrate classroom material with training in a psychology-related work setting. Interns are supervised by professionals in the workplace. Internships are usually unpaid positions, although there are occasional exceptions.

Eligibility and Registration
In order to be eligible for PSY 398, students must have completed at least 15 hours of psychology coursework, have junior or senior standing as a psychology major, and have a grade point average of 2.2 or higher for all psychology-related coursework. Before students can register for PSY 398, they must meet with Dr. Karen Mark, the coordinator of psychology internships. Dr. Mark will verify students' eligibility to enroll in PSY 398 and that students have taken appropriate psychology courses related to the internship in which they are interested. She will also discuss with students their goals for the internship and potential placements. If students are deemed eligible for internships, Dr. Mark will provide an internship contract for the student.

Once a particular internship has been decided upon, students are responsible for contacting the agency or business and setting up a meeting with the potential supervisor to discuss requirements and other details about the internship. After a student is accepted for an internship, the supervisor completes the internship contract, which is signed by the supervisor and the student. The internship contract verifies the student's placement and supervision, as well as provide specific information about the internship.

The completed and signed contract should be returned to Dr. Mark. It is only after the contract is received that the student will be given an override for PSY 398 in order to register for course credit. The internship may not begin until registration is completed and the semester has begun.

Academic Credit
Students earn one credit hour for every 40 hours worked at the internship, up to a maximum of three hours per placement per semester. Therefore, if students registers for PSY 398 for three hours, students need to work on the internship at least 120 hours during the semester. The maximum number of credit hours that can be earned through PSY 398 is nine hours, with no more than three hours earned for a single placement per semester.

Evaluation
Students are required to submit a term paper on the last day of class for the semester. This paper (five pages minimum, word-processed, double-spaced) should integrate the student's internship experience with relevant psychology coursework, focusing on how the material from these courses applied to the internship activities. In addition, supervisors evaluate each intern's performance. The grade for PSY 398 is determined by both the quality of the term paper and the supervisor's evaluation.

For further information about Professional Practice internships, contact Dr. Karen Mark at 438-8130 or by e-mail at kimark@ilstu.edu.