Counselling training programs

The Advanced Practicum in Counselling Placement at the University of Manitoba is an 8-month practicum of two days per week at the Student Counselling Centre (SCC). The SCC offers a wide range of developmental and clinical services to help the diverse UM student population reach their personal, academic and career goals. SCC services include personal, couple, and group counselling, along with assessment, consultation, outreach and crisis intervention.

Training at the SCC is approached from a developmental perspective in which students first observe and then engage in counselling activities including individual counselling, as well as groups, workshops or outreach. As a part of training, students receive ongoing weekly supervision by staff trained from a psychological perspective, including registered psychologists, through either live or video review of clinical work. Students also attend selected clinical and SCC meetings and selected biweekly professional development seminars, as well as attend a weekly practicum seminar focused on theory, skill development and the development of professional identity and theory informed practice. Supervisors work to meet students at their level of training, assess and identify strengths and growth edges, and tailor the training experience to utilize strengths while working to provide a challenging and diverse experience that addresses areas for development in a supportive atmosphere.

Students will also be provided with midterm and end of term evaluations of their work. Each year there are two spaces available, and while all post-secondary students in counselling related disciplines are eligible to apply, preference will be given to University of Manitoba students, including those in Extended Education. This placement requires being present on Wednesdays, as well as another full day equivalent based on supervisor’s availability as a part of the two-day commitment. Student’s days on site must also remain consistent each week throughout their placement. It may also be possible for students to be on site more than two days a week if they desire to do so. This should be indicated in student’s cover letters and can be discussed further in the interview for shortlisted applicants. This placement is intended to aid students’ preparation and professional skill development for careers related to the field of counselling.

About the Placement

General Requirements

• Completion of 1 day Orientation to the Student Counselling Centre (SCC).
• Completion of minimum 2 days per week of practicum experience during the academic fall and winter terms (unable to guarantee that all activities will fall within same 2 days). Being present a full day on Wednesdays is required. The additional 1-2 days on site must also remain consistent throughout the placement.
• The entire practicum requires a minimum of 180 hours on site, of which approximately 75 hours (minimum) will be devoted to direct service (individual and group [if available]; workshops and outreach experience may also be possible).

Important

While practicum hours may be applied toward fulfilling the hours required by CCPA for certification, meeting CCPA requirements is not the primary goal of the practicum. Should fulfilling the training requirement for CCC certification through CCPA be a goal for a student, doing so at the SCC MAY be possible dependent upon a number of factors including, but not limited to, SCC agreement, supervisor availability, student performance, student availability, space availability, etc. Any arrangements to this effect must also be done in consultation and with the support of the student’s SCC supervisor and the Coordinator of the SCC practicum. Ways in which extra hours may be accrued, after taking into account the above listed factors, include seeing clients until centre close in December, seeing clients over reading weeks, adding time to be at the SCC either in days per week or past the end of practicum.

Personal Counselling

• Completion of an average of 4 individual counselling sessions per week (dependent upon the student’s level of development and based on a 2 day/week practicum, may increase if student is on site more than 2 days/week).
• Completion to termination or transfer of at least two counselling cases of 8 to 12 sessions.

Group Counselling

The SCC offers a variety of psycho-educational, developmental and treatment groups depending on staff expertise and the needs of clients. Students will (when available/possible):

• Observe and/or co-facilitate with supervision one group in the fall term.
• Co-facilitate and/or facilitate with supervision one group in the winter term.

Supervision and Training

The SCC is committed to its training role and strives to provide practicum students with appropriate supervision throughout the placement and opportunities to enrich knowledge. Our requirements of students include:

For ALL Students

• A minimum of 1 hour per week of individual supervision with a Student Counselling Centre staff member assigned as a primary supervisor for personal counselling cases.
• Digital video taping of all counselling sessions with the client’s permission. Live supervision may also be arranged.
• Maintenance of legible, complete, and ethically appropriate case notes.
• Attendance and participation at the SCC practicum training seminar (typically 2 hrs/week) and selected professional development (PD) seminars (1½ to 2 hours biweekly or as announced during the academic term)
  • The practicum training seminar is conducted by the coordinator, Dr. Lori Mac, and will include both practicum students. The focus will be on the development of counselling skills and theory, and the application of the material to client work at SCC.
  • The PD seminars are a part of the SCC internship and are related to the services provided by the SCC and to the field of psychology.
• Attendance at selected Consultation and Professional Practice Meetings and selected General Business Meetings (as scheduled, generally Wednesday mornings).
• Completion and presentation of a formal Case Conceptualization in winter semester.

In Addition, For Group Counselling (when available/possible) 

• A minimum of 1 hour per week of group-related supervision, together with live or taped supervision, of the co-facilitation and/or facilitation of a developmental/treatment group. This will be provided concurrent with these experiences.

Evaluation

Evaluation is clearly an important part of the process of training, and is done in as supportive and constructive a way as possible. Informal evaluation is continuous and ongoing, and there is an active exchange of communication between practicum and program coordinators and supervisors. Should difficulties arise, program personnel in consultation with the practicum coordinator and/or supervisor will work with the student to develop a suitable remediation plan. In most cases Primary Supervisor responsibility shifts from a staff member to a psychology intern, as a part of their supervision training requirement, December through April. These supervision sessions are recorded as a part of Intern’s supervision training. There are two formal, written evaluations:

• The first evaluation will be completed in December by the primary supervisor, as well as adjunct supervisors for all areas in which the student has been involved.
• The final evaluation will be completed in April by the secondary supervisor, again in collaboration with the primary and adjunct supervisors.

At each of these evaluations periods, student will also be asked to write their own self-evaluation, and will have an opportunity and requirement to evaluate their supervisor as well.

Overall

• Expected to start between 8:30-8:45 a.m. and finish between 4:30-4:45 p.m. including taking approximately an hour for lunch, leaving about 7 working hours in a day

Wednesdays (required and typically involve):

• 8:30-9:15 a.m. – 30-45 minutes to prep for practicum seminar
• 9:15-10:30 a.m.- Case Consultation and Professional Practice Meeting
  • Attending selected meetings, otherwise may use this as discretionary time for seminar or client session preparation
• 10:30-11 a.m. – break and time to work on anything you would like to
• 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. - Professional development Seminar every other week (twice a month); On opposite weeks either General Business meetings (once a month) or time to see a client (once a month)
  • Attending selected professional development seminars and general business meetings, otherwise may use this as discretionary time for seminar or client session preparation
• 12-1 p.m. or 12:30-1:30 p.m. - lunch
• 1-3 p.m. (on weeks when no professional development seminar) & 1:30-3:15 p.m. (on weeks when there is a professional development seminar) – Practicum Seminar
• 3:30-4:30 p.m. Supervision with primary supervisor

Students then work up to completing 4 direct client contact hours in their remaining time on site each week. This can be individual counselling, or some combination of individual and group counselling and workshops.

• Each individual counselling session is 45-50 minutes long

If students are on site 2 days a week, this means the second day usually involves:

• 2 individual counselling appointments (approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes) AND 1.5-2 hours spent doing a group and/or workshop
• Notes for each – Notes take about 15 minutes to write for each appointment – approximately 30-45 minutes total for all (workshops do not have any notes to write)
• Reviewing video for individual counselling appointments – approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes
• There is no video to review for groups and workshops. This involves live supervision and prep and debriefing for a half hour before and after – approximately 1 hour
  • This totals about a 7 hour day, leaving another hour for lunch

If students are on site for 2.5 days a week, this means students have 3.5 hours of discretionary time built into their schedule to accomplish the above tasks.

If students are on site 3 days a week, this means students have 7 hours of discretionary time built into their schedule to accomplish the above tasks.

Meet & Greet

The SCC typically hosts a Meet & Greet each year. Students interested in our practicum placement are strongly encouraged to attend. The Meet and Greet provides an opportunity to meet the Practicum Coordinator, potential supervisors, and staff, as well as current and/or previous practicum student(s), and learn about the placement and the opportunities it has to contribute to your professional development and training. Attendees will also have an opportunity to sit down with the Coordinator to review the requirements of the placement, how to apply, and have any questions answered. A tour of our centre may also be provided.

Students interested in applying for a practicum placement at the SCC should submit a cover letter, resume/CV, and a list of relevant courses taken (including brief course descriptions and what you took away from each) via email to:

Dr. Lori Mac, Advanced Practicum in Counselling Coordinator
Student Counselling Centre
474 University Centre
University of Manitoba
Winnipeg, Manitoba
R3T 2N2

Email: lori.mac@umanitoba.ca
Phone: (204) 474-8592 (Reception)
Fax: (204) 474-7558

Your cover letter should address:

• Why you are interested in a placement at the Student Counselling Centre
• Why you think this placement would be a good fit for you
• How this placement would contribute to your professional development and goals.

Selected applicants will be contacted for interview times.

Please note that:

• Should successful applicants expect to be employed between September 8, 2021 and April 30, 2022, they will need to also provide documentation from their workplace by an agreed upon date confirming that they have been granted Wednesdays, as well as an additional 1-2 days per week off each week to be at the practicum site, and these must be the same days each week.
• While all post-secondary students in counselling related disciplines are eligible to apply, preference will be given to University of Manitoba students, including those in Extended Education.
• Successful applicants from programs external to the University of Manitoba will also need to confirm with their home program that the SCC practicum meets the requirements of their program prior to accepting an offer.

Please also note that we are generally unable to consider applications to any of our training programs from students who have a pre-existing relationship with our service (i.e. pre-existing individual or group therapy relationship), as we are unable to reconcile this within our training program in a manner that would avoid foreseeable dual relationships and conflicts of interest. This typically does not include workshops, which are often didactic and psycho educational in nature.

Please note that timelines for the Meet & Greet, applications, interview, and selection may be adjusted yearly due to scheduling and accommodation of program deadlines. Please contact the SCC or Practicum Coordinator for exact dates.

The Student Counselling Centre (SCC) at the University of Manitoba invites applications to our CPA accredited Pre-Doctoral Residency Program in Professional Psychology. The SCC residency has been accredited since 1991 and is one of only four post-secondary counselling services in Canada to be accredited. Our residency invites applications from qualified candidates in APA or CPA accredited Counselling Psychology and Clinical Psychology programs.

Why train with us? 

We offer a unique, student-centered training experience within a dynamic and challenging clinical environment. As the primary mental health service for a campus of 32,000+ students, the SCC will provide you with the opportunity to work with a very diverse clientele, including Indigenous students and international students from more than 100 countries. You will also be exposed to a full range of presenting issues, including acute and chronic mental conditions, cooccurring disorders and developmental concerns.

We employ a developmental training model with ongoing concurrent experiences that we believe best prepares you for your future work as a Psychologist. We work with each resident to identify their interests, strengths and training needs to develop a residency year that will facilitate them reaching their professional goals. The cumulative training experience we provide continually builds residents' knowledge and skills and helps them develop professional management skills key for future success.

To prioritize your development, the SCC devotes significant resources to supervision and training. Residents receive an average of five hours of supervision weekly with opportunities for professional consultation on a daily basis. In addition, we also provide a training seminar focusing on topics such as diversity, advocacy, case conceptualization, crisis counselling and more.

What our past residents (interns) had to say

“The most valuable part of the internship for both my academic job and private practice was the excellent supervision I received and of course, the opportunity to work with a wide range of clients. I wish I could have had another year of training at the SCC.”

“This internship had a huge impact on my professional development and was incredibly rewarding." 

Unique training experiences

• Training in couples counselling informed by the empirically validated Gottman approach;
• Didactic and experiential training in supervision, including supervised practice as the primary supervisor of a master’s level practicum student;
• Offering culturally-relevant mental health services in our Indigenous Student Centre (Migizii Agamik);
• Receiving training and experience in individual crisis counselling and large-scale trauma debriefings;
• Career counselling and outreach training;
• Assessment training in our Learning Disability Services Clinic;
• Opportunity to develop and facilitate your own groups and workshops.

Our past residents

Our residents have gone on to successful careers in a variety of settings in Canada and the United States including:

• Post-secondary counselling centres (as staff and Directors);
• Academic and clinical faculty positions;
• Community agencies;
• Hospital and medical settings;
• Private practice.
• For additional information about our past residents please click here:
  • Public Disclosure Information – About Our Residents (PDF)

More about our residency

We highly value life balance and selfcare and will work with you to facilitate a memorable and enjoyable experience that will prepare you for future success. To help with this, your work week and year will include:

• Work hours from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm weekdays with no on-call times;
• Four weeks paid vacation, all statutory holidays, and 10 additional paid days during the December holiday closure;
• A comprehensive staff benefit package including extended medical and dental coverage;
• Your own private fully equipped office.

The University of Manitoba is our region’s largest and only research intensive university offering 100 academic programs, including professional disciplines such as medicine, law and engineering. The University of Manitoba is located on the original lands of Anishinaabeg, Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota and Dene peoples and on the homeland of the Métis Nation. UM is home to a thriving community of Indigenous researchers, staff and more than 2,000 First Nations, Métis and Inuit students. 

With an ethnically diverse population of over 749,000, Winnipeg is the sixth largest city in Canada and has been described as the “cultural cradle of Canada” and offers an array of talented artists, significant architecture, award-winning musicians and athletes, and legendary festivals and cultural events.

More detailed information:

• Residency Program
• Mission Statement
• Program Structure
• Benefits
• Physical facilities and equipment
• Counselling and supervisory staff