Clinical Rotations

The training year will be divided into two 6-month blocks and most rotations will occur in a single block. Interns will have two rotations per block. In addition they will have a primary outpatient rotation that will be 12-months long.  Each week, 8 hours will be spent in each of the three rotations.  There are a number of rotations available allowing for flexibility to customize the training experience to meet the goals of each individual.  All interns will have rotations that include outpatient therapy, assessment and long-term therapy. Prior to the start of the training year the incoming interns will be asked to rank order their choices for rotations. Whenever possible interns will be provided with their top choices although this may not always be possible, for example in the situation where several interns all rank the same rotations highly.  The list of potential rotations will include:

12-month Rotations

At the Center for Cognitive Therapy we offer training in both the psychotherapy process and the diagnostic interview process using the Cognitive Model and Evidence Based Practice.  We treat a wide range of both emotional disorders and personality disorders.  Supervision is offered by therapists who are both certified cognitive therapists and licensed psychologists or social workers. Primary supervisor: Mary Anne Layden, PhD, Director of Education.

Cohen Military Family clinic. Psychotherapy is offered in a time-limited model, utilizing evidence based practices to promote growth and recovery for Veterans and their family members. Presenting concerns may include but are not limited to Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Major Depression, Anxiety Disorders, Adjustment Disorders, Insomnia, and Marital/Family Distress. Interns’ direct clinical experiences will include completing biopsychosocial assessments and evidence based therapies. Clinical training opportunities include learning to apply Prolonged Exposure, Cognitive Processing Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (for depression and anxiety disorders), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia, and Integrated Behavioral Couples Therapy during the training year, contingent upon the needs of the client. Primary supervisor: Ashleigh M. Adams, PhD, Assistant Director and Director of Training.

The Outpatient Psychiatry Clinic (OPC) provides individual and group psychotherapy to the Penn community and to the larger West Philadelphia community. The OPC is a multidisciplinary team clinic including social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists, and nurse practitioners. Psychotherapy orientations include psychodynamic, cognitive behavioral, and eclectic. Providers use time-efficient treatments ranging from short-term psychodynamic to trauma-informed to rational emotive behavior to dialectical behavior therapeutic approaches, as well as many in between. . Primary supervisor: Jessica N. Shore, PsyD, Director of Psychotherapy Services. 

Interns in the Center for Women’s Behavioral Wellness will receive supervision in the provision of evidence-based psychotherapies to women presenting with mental health conditions related to reproductive health complaints.  Didactic sessions, journal clubs, and group and individual supervision will focus on providing interns with an understanding of the psychological effects of common reproductive life experiences such as pregnancy, the postpartum period, premenstrual dysphoric disorder (or other menstrual cycle related mood changes), infertility, pregnancy loss, midlife changes/menopause, and chronic health conditions that interact with reproductive health. The PCWBW is a collaboration between the departments of Psychiatry and Obstetrics and Gynecology.  We provide clinical care to women throughout the lifespan and in both an outpatient psychology clinic and in an embedded women’s health clinic at HUP (The Helen O. Dickens Center).  Primary supervisor: Sara L. Kornfied, PhD; Director, Maternal Wellness Initiative.

6-month Rotations

Assessment & Consultation Rotation will have two primary components.  First, each intern will be expected to complete 6 full batteries on complex adult patients from the community on a variety of differential diagnostic questions, including evaluations for Learning Disabilities, ADHD, Intellectual Disability, TBI, dementia, psychoticism, executive functioning, and general diagnostic clarification.  Interns will be expected to have facility with structured diagnostic interviewing, as well as the WAIS, WMS and WIAT, the CVLT, the MMPI-2 and MMPI-2-RF, the DKEFs, and use of computerized CPTs.  Any intern not having previous experience with these specific instruments should do the rotation in the first part of the year, and should participate in summer didactic instruction specific to those measures.  The second component of the rotation will be the opportunity to provide supervised supervision to clinical psychology graduate student trainees at the University of Pennsylvania completing their introductory practicum in Assessment and Consultation.  Interns will provide some live supervision of the trainee’s cases, will collaborate with the trainee on choosing tests and measures and refining their diagnostic case conceptualization, will edit and comment on the trainee’s draft assessment reports, and will join the trainee and the senior supervisor for the final feedback session with the patient.  This rotation is an opportunity to refine differential diagnosis and case conceptualization skills, to maintain and expand facility with various tests and measures, and to provide an invaluable service to the diverse community in the greater Philadelphia area, most of whom would never be able to access comprehensive assessment outside of our clinic.  Primary supervisor: Melissa Hunt, Ph.D.

The Cancer Counseling Service of the Abramson Cancer Center (ACC) provides individual and family supportive counseling to patients and family members of patients at the ACC.  Our LCSW therapist provides short-term treatment (6-8 sessions) focused primarily on adjustment to illness (of self or family member) and coping skills.  The Cancer Counseling Service also includes psychiatry within in the same location.  Interns would initially shadow the therapist in sessions as agreed to by patients/families with the goal of transitioning to providing independent sessions.  Interns would be expected to participate in departmental activities such as groups, meetings, project work as well as develop a working knowledge of cancer and the psychosocial aspects of the cancer experience.  Primary supervisors: Matthew Stevenson, MSW, LCSW, Therapist, Patients and Family Services, Abramson Cancer Center & Heather Sheaffer, DSW, LCSW, Director, Patient and Family Services, Abramson Cancer Center.

Center for Mental Health. Primary supervisor: Keiran Rump, Ph.D. 

Center for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety. On this rotation, trainees will receive intensive training in exposure and response prevention (ExRP) for obsessive compulsive disorder. Participants will also receive training in prolonged exposure therapy (PE) for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) depending on availability of training cases. Additionally, participants will receive training in a variety of evidence-based treatment manuals for other anxiety-related disorders depending on the chief complaints of patients on their caseload. Trainees will conduct individual therapy and group therapy.  Primary supervisors: Lily A. Brown, Ph.D., Director & Elizabeth Turk-Karan, Ph.D., Assistant Professor.

The Center for Weight and Eating Disorders provides evidence-based individual psychotherapy services and psychological evaluations for bariatric patients preparing for surgery.  Interns will be trained and supervised in the administration of bariatric evaluations and letter-writing, while interacting with a multi-disciplinary team.  They will also have a small caseload of patients seeking psychotherapy for presenting problems such as binge eating disorder, weight management (often by referral of medical specialists), night eating syndrome, bariatric-related issues, and body image issues. Primary supervisor: Courtney McCuen-Wurst, PsyD, LCSW

Consultation/Liaison Service in the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. Primary supervisor: Eleanor Anderson, M.D.

Inpatient psychiatry unit. 

The Outpatient Addiction Treatment rotation is an opportunity to increase confidence in evaluating and treating substance use disorders and co-occuring psychiatric disorders. The multidisciplinary treatment setting incorporates leading edge, evidence-based interventions to assist individuals enter into and maintain recovery.  Primary supervisors: Edwin Kim, MD, Michele Gonen, PhD

Pain Medicine. Over 80 million adults in the United States suffer from chronic pain. Often patients with patient present with multiple medical and psychiatric co-morbidities which requires a multimodal approach. The PENN Pain Medicine Center provides diagnostic assessments, a variety of interventions including neuromodulation, injections, medication management and behavioral health care. The behavioral medicine clinic sees 10-12 patients per day and provides preoperative psychological evaluations, CBT/ACT and co-management of patients with chronic pain and concomitant substance use disorders. Interns will be involved in direct patient care under supervision, exposure to interventional pain care and provided opportunity for scholarly activity (case reports, review articles).  Primary Supervisor: Martin D. Cheatle, PhD, Associate Professor

Penn Memory Center. The Penn Memory Center (PMC) is made up of a multidisciplinary team with expertise in neurology, gerontology, psychiatry, neuropsychology and social work. The PMC serves as a unified Penn Medicine source for those age 65 and older seeking evaluation, diagnosis, treatment, information, and research opportunities related to symptoms of progressive memory loss, and accompanying changes in thinking, communication and personality. This one day/week position is designed for a trainee who is interested in learning about neurodegenerative disease, working with older adults, and obtaining experience with cognitive screening for individual's with Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias. This position is typically filled by a student who is not in a neuropsychology track. Primary Supervisor: Dawn Mechanic-Hamilton, Ph.D., ABPP-CN

Optional Second Year

Note that in the past this internship offered an optional second year of post doctoral training. This option is no longer available starting with the 2021-2022 training year.