Standard 3, Exhibit 5
Description of Clinical Practice in School Counseling
From the School Counseling Handbook
The following is a description of the Clinical Practice, known as the practicum, in the School Counseling
Graduate program. The practicum is a 100-hour experience in a public school setting and must be successfully
completed before moving on to the clinical experience, known as the Internship in the School Counseling
Graduate program.
The following Practicum description has been taken from page 40 in the student handbook.
EDC 599 Internship in School Counseling
Course Description and Overview
EDC 599 Internship in School Counseling is a directed experience in the professional functions of a school counselor,
under the supervision of a certified/licensed school counselor, within a cooperating school system. It is structured to meet
the standards of CACREP and consists of a total 600 clock hours, 240 clock hours of direct face-to-face services and 360
clock hours of indirect service. The CACREP definition of direct service is “interaction with clients that includes the
application of counseling, consultation, or human development skills.” For the purpose of meeting the requirements for
Internship, clients include students, parents, faculty, administration, staff, and invested community members and agencies.
Candidates fulfill the requirements by completing three two-semester hour sections of EDC 599. Each section requires
200 hours (minimum of 80 clock hours of direct service and 120 clock hours of indirect service) of participation in
activities related to the roles and functions of a school counselor. The three sections are usually taken in three consecutive
semesters. However, as agreed upon by the Department of Counselor Education and Human Services and the school site,
other schedules may be accepted.
The Internship is intended to be taken toward the completion of the School Counselor Candidate’s course of study leading
to the masters degree. All requirements for Practicum in School Counseling must be met prior to beginning Internship in
School Counseling.
The Internship requires a School Counseling Candidate to complete 600 clock hours of supervised field experience, which
must:
1. Include a minimum of 240 clock hours of direct service acting in the role of school counselor working with
students, teachers, administrators, staff, parents, and invested community members and agencies who should
represent the ethnic, lifestyle, and demographic diversity of the school community
2. Include 360 clock hours of indirect school counseling related activity
3. Be under the supervision of an approved site supervisor; who is a licensed or certified school counselor
4. Include weekly meetings with an approved site supervisor
5. Include weekly group supervision provided by a program faculty member supervisor
6. Allow supervised experience in the use of a variety of professional resources such as appraisal instruments,
computers, technology, print and non-print media, professional literature, and research
7. Include formal evaluations of the candidate’s performance and a site visit by a program faculty supervisor in
conjunction with a site supervisor.
8. Include work with students who are diverse from the intern’s heritage, background and experiences.
School Counselor Candidates are required to have liability insurance covering the activities in the Internship. It may be
obtained through the American School Counselor Association. For more information see www.schoolcounselor.org and
click on Membership, then Membership Benefits.
Internship Objectives
1. Candidates will be able to employ individual and small-group counseling approaches that promote school success,
through academic, career, and person/social development for all students.
2. Candidates will be able to employ individual, group and classroom guidance approaches systematically designed
to assist all students with academic, career and personal/social development.
3. Candidates will demonstrate the knowledge and skills to engage in constructive partnerships with parents,
guardians, families, and communities in order to promote each student’s academic, career, and personal/social
success.
4. Candidates will demonstrate the knowledge and skills to engage in collaboration, coordination, referral, and teambuilding efforts with teachers, parents, support personnel, and community resources to promote program
objectives and facilitate successful student development and achievement.
5. Candidates will demonstrate skills necessary for evaluating the context of the school and community in order to
begin strategizing about ways to effectively develop, implement and evaluate a comprehensive developmental
school counseling program to meet the needs of all students.
6. Candidates will demonstrate skills in working with students who are diverse from the intern’s heritage,
background and experiences.
7. Candidates will begin to conceptualize a vision for how a school counselor might effectively contribute to the
school climate of their sites, in order to serve the developmental needs and to enhance the learning of all students.
8. Candidates will come to value the importance and richness of diversity among students, faculty, staff, and
administrators and begin to conceptualize ways in which to utilize such diversity for the purpose of enhancing the
learning of all students.
In addition to the above objectives, candidates are expected to demonstrate competencies related to the practice domains
of Counseling and Coordination, Collaborating and Consulting, Leading and Advocating, and Assessing and Using Data.
The following includes descriptions of the practice domains and suggestions for activities involving direct and indirect
service for school counseling candidates. These are just suggestions and examples of learning activities. Other related
activities also may be appropriate. These domain descriptions and suggested activities should be used as a guide in
planning for the learning activities to be included in the Internship experience. Again, the planning process is intended to
take place between the candidate and the site supervisor, with assistance from program faculty.
Four Domains & Suggested Activities for School Counseling Candidates
1. Counseling and Coordination
School counselors have knowledge of counseling theories and techniques, human development processes, social and
cultural diversity, and assessment methods and provide or coordinate with community agencies, prevention and
intervention programs that promote optimal development and mental health for individual students, groups, and families.
School Counseling Intern Activities
Direct Service
 Facilitating large group guidance units within a classroom
 Participation in guidance related programs such as peer mediation or violence prevention
 Conducting parent groups to improve student achievement
 Individual counseling or group counseling with students
 Consulting with agency or community resource professionals regarding student referrals and/or coordination of
treatment planning
Indirect Service
 Completing and/or maintaining appropriate documentation related to guidance and counseling services
 Coordination of guidance related programs such as peer mediation or violence prevention
 Research and review of pre-existing curricula used for guidance related programs
 Compiling resources to assist with counseling and coordination in a comprehensive developmental guidance
program
2. Collaborating and Consulting
School counselors have knowledge of consultation models and methods along with knowledge of family systems, social
and cultural diversity, and methods to involve families in education and service delivery. School counselors work
effectively with families, educators, mental health professionals, and others in the community to promote and provide
comprehensive services to children and families.
School Counseling Intern Activities
Direct Service
 Consulting with parents and other helping professionals, e.g. school psychologists, mental health counselors,
community agency personnel
 Participation in IAT or special education meetings
 Participate in team-building efforts with teachers, parents, support personnel, and community resources
 Consulting with teachers regarding student achievement and behavior
 Professional development presentations with teachers, administrators, and other support service personnel
Indirect Service
 Examining the professional literature for ideas about how to establish collaborative working models with parents
and communities
3. Leading and Advocating
School counselors work to promote plans and implement prevention and other programs designed to maximize the
success of all students, particularly those traditionally underserved in schools.
School Counseling Intern Activities
Direct Service
 Participation in planning for programs related to serving at-risk students
 Professional development training with teachers, administrators, and support staff regarding effective strategies
for working with at-risk students
Indirect Service
 Review and development of policies and procedures for planning, organizing, and implementing special programs
and groups to address students’ needs.
 Conducting needs assessments
4. Assessing and Using Data
School counselors assess and interpret student needs with sensitivity toward cultural differences, establish and assess
measurable goals for student outcomes from counseling activities and interventions, assess school conditions that affect
learning, inclusion, and/or students' academic success, and interpret student data for use in school-wide planning for
change.
School Counseling Intern Activities
Direct Service
 Providing instructions to teachers and administrators on data collection procedures and rationale
 Consulting with teachers, parents, administrators, and the community regarding student outcome data and ways to
utilize such data for future planning
Indirect Service
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Participating in activities related to collecting and processing data used to evaluate student and/or organizational
outcomes.
Assisting with standardized testing administration.
Learning about and utilizing a school's technological mechanisms for organizing information, and for monitoring
and evaluating student outcomes.
Working with Diverse Students in Internship
Interns will need to have at least one field experience or clinical experience in each section of internship with
 students from ethnic groups different than the intern’s
 English language learners or ESL students
 students with exceptionalities or disabilities
 students from socioeconomic levels different from the intern’s
Internship Site
Internship students will remain in the same site where they completed their practicum.
The Internship provides an opportunity to perform under supervisions some of the activities that a school counselor would
be expected to perform. Internships are conducted in approved school sites under supervision provided by licensed or
certified school counselors. To be approved, a school site must have available an array of counseling activities that would
permit the Counselor Candidate to gain experience in individual and group counseling and guidance activities, student
assessments and the opportunities to experience a counseling program in which counselors advocate, lead, collaborate,
consult and coordinate. In addition, approved sites have an administrative structure that supports its school counseling
program as an essential part of the school culture, is accepting of Counselor Candidates, and nurtures the relationship
between candidate, site supervisor, school and university.
The “School Site Agreement” form must be completed and returned to the internship faculty supervisor/course instructor.
If it has been more than a year since the last background check and finger printing, then interns will need to undergo
another criminal background check and finger printing.
At the beginning of Internship, the School Counselor Candidate should meet with the site supervisor to determine
mutually agreeable goals and expectations that are in line with the Internship requirements regarding the internship
assignments, four practice domains and the 240 hours of direct service and 360 hours of indirect service.
Site Supervisor
Site supervisors are certified or licensed school counselors. They are persons supported by their administration and
dedicated to working with Counselor Candidates in a supervisory relationship. Site supervisors are provided written
documentation stating their responsibilities and rights and given instructions as to the documentation required by the
university including written evaluation of the Internship. The site supervisor receives support, collaboration and
consultation from the faculty supervisor and is primarily responsible for the Counselor Candidate's actions within the site
setting.
Policies and Procedures for Internship
1. The clinical experience, in practicum and internship, should be treated like a job. Personal conduct and dress
should conform to professional standards expected of individuals employed by the school.
2. Prior to working with students, each school counseling intern should read and understand the policies and
procedures of the school site and the ethical standards of the American Counseling Association (ACA) and the
American School Counseling Association (ASCA) contained in this manual.
3. In their first section of internship, inters will receive a comprehensive syllabus that details al assignments for the
internship experience.
4. Keep weekly records of all counseling and counseling related activities. Weekly time and activity logs should be
submitted each week in the practicum supervision class. Site supervisors must sign all documentation including
the School Site Agreement, all Activity Logs and evaluations. All hourly logs should be kept in exact minutes.
5. Counselor Candidates are to keep accurate case records according to the requirements of a particular school site.
Every Counselor Candidate will need to address the appropriate handling of student records with his or her site
supervisor.
6. CONFIDENTIALITY IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY! Breaches Will Not Be Tolerated. However, there are
exceptions to the Rule of Confidentiality. Every Counselor Candidate will need to address issues of
confidentiality with the site supervisor and learn the specific protocols of his or her particular school site. Be sure
to inform your students that confidentiality must be breached under the following conditions:
a. When a client threatens to harm self or others.
b. If a client threatens to harm another, action must be taken to warn the potential victim.
c. In cases where child abuse or neglect (including sexual abuse) are suspected.
7. If an emergency arises or a situation that is “out of the ordinary for a given site,” your site supervisor must be
notified immediately. The faculty supervisor should also be notified via email the same day. The Counselor
Candidate should not, nor is he or she expected to act independently in any circumstance during Practicum.
8. If an intern earns a grade of “P”, the candidate must continue to attend and participate in the 599 class sessions
until all requirements have been completed. The candidate has one additional semester to successfully complete
the requirements for the course. Any candidate who has not successfully completed the course requirements in
that time frame will receive a grade of “F” and he/she must repeat that section of internship.
9. If a student does not earn a minimum grade of a B in a section of internship, then he/she will have a Review and
Retention meeting with the internship instructor, their advisor, and possibly other school counseling faculty. This
meeting will determine whether the student can remain in the program. If it is determined that the student can
continue in the program, then he/she will have to retake that section of internship, earn 200 hours, and earn a
grade of an A. If it is determined that the student cannot continue in the program, then his/her matriculation in the
school counseling program will be terminated. If the student does not successfully complete that section of
internship the 2nd time, then his/her matriculation in the school counseling program will be terminated. Students
must be aware that the University of Dayton cannot place a graduate student in any school for the clinical
experience if that graduate student has demonstrated irresponsible or unethical behavior. If the University of
Dayton cannot place a graduate student due to that graduate student’s behavior, then that student’s matriculation
in the school counseling program will be terminated.