Undergraduate Internships
Thanks to our wonderful relationship with the surrounding community, there are already established a number of internship sites. If you do not see anything interesting or you know a possible internship site but it is on the list, no problem! Just let us know and we will be happy to help set something up for you.
Here are some things to think about:
- Students interested in earning course credit for their internship should enroll in PY 366, Volunteer & Field Experience in Psychology. IMPORTANT: You need to obtain permission to enroll in PY 336 before enrolling in the course. Contact the appropriate faculty member as early as possible.
- Students can complete an internship to fulfill the capstone requirement or simply for the sake of gaining valuable, precious experience.
- Students must complete 50 hours at the internship site for each course credit they are enrolled (1 credit = 50 hrs, 2 credits = 100 hrs, 3 credits = 150 hrs).
- Students who wish to complete an internship at a site where they are currently working must show (in writing) how the internship will involve experiences, learning objectives, and activities that extend beyond your current position.
- Internships start the beginning of the semester so you will need to have your site established well before the semester starts. That is why you need to talk to the PY 336 professor as early as possible. The earlier, the better.
Here is a partial list of sites that are typically available for internship:
- Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Topeka
- Breakthrough House
- CASA of Shawnee County
- Collective Brands (Payless Shoe Source)
- Easter Seals Capper Foundation
- Every Woman's Resource Center
- Family Service & Guidance Center
- Ft Riley TBI Clinic
- Girl Scouts of America
- Helping Hands Humane Society
- Human Resources: State of Kansas
- Kanza Mental Health
- McCrite Plaza
- Meers Advertising
- Providence Living Center
- Shawnee Heights Guidance Counselor's Office
- The Guidance Center
- Topeka Rescue Mission
- Topeka Zoo
- Valeo Behavioral Health Care, Inc.
- Washburn University Psychological Services Center
- WU Psychological Services Center: Sports Psychology
- YWCA Battered Women's Task Force
- YWCA Kids Quest
An internship is an opportunity to provide service to the community and to gain valuable experience outside of the classroom by learning alongside today’s professionals. There are many benefits a student can experience by taking part in an internship during their undergraduate career. The following benefits have been examined extensively in the literature regarding volunteerism and service-learning:
- Student’s overall motivation increases when the student is allowed to pick from multiple service locations (Darby, et. al., 2013). We have over 2 dozen sites to select from. If you would like to do an internship at a site not listed, no problem. Just contact the professor for PY 336.
- Enjoyment while volunteering is correlated with increased satisfaction with their choice to volunteer (Beehr et al., 2010). Chose the internship site that best reflects your interests!
- Taking part in volunteering activities while in college, such as service-learning, has been related to an increase in well-being as an adult (Bowman et al., 2010).
- Sustained volunteerism may have a positive impact on depression. The more a person is involved within the community through volunteerism. the less likely that person will experience depressive symptoms (Musick & Wilson, 2003).
- Students are more likely to recommend community involvement to their peers after participating in internship-like activities themselves (Giles & Eyler, 1994). Countless students have had an amazing, life changing experience as a result of their internship and that is one of the many reasons students complete an internship.
GET IN TOUCH WITH Department of Psychology
Department of Psychology
Henderson Learning Resource Center, Room 211
Washburn University
1700 SW College Ave.
Topeka, KS 66621
Phone & Email
Phone: 785.670.1564
psychology@washburn.edu
