Psychology Training

Southwest Consortium Doctoral Psychology Internship

The Southwest Consortium Doctoral Psychology Internship is a member of APPIC and is accredited by the American Psychological Association. The next APA site visit will occur in 2027. The Southwest Consortium is a consortium of New Mexico VA Health Care System, Indian Health Service-Albuquerque Service Unit, and University of New Mexico Hospital. 

Our training program follows a scientist-practitioner model and we ascribe to a generalist training philosophy.  We aim to provide interns with experiences to increase knowledge of areas of specialty interest while also ensuring training in areas that might represent gaps in their graduate training. We consider our training in cultural and individual diversity to be a particular strength of the program. Culture is conceptualized broadly and we emphasize an understanding of both self and others to effectively integrate issues related to culture and individual differences into professional activities.  

Doctoral students in APA-accredited clinical or counseling psychology programs who have completed at least 250 hours of practicum experience, have had a formal dissertation proposal accepted, and have the approval of their departmental Director of Clinical Training are eligible to apply. Seven of our eight internship slots are federally funded and must be US Citizens. Male intern candidates must be registered for the Selective Service or provide documentation indicating an exemption from registering. Strong preference is given to those candidates who have completed, or nearly completed their doctoral dissertation and who have demonstrated research productivity. We have found that students from Clinical Science or Scientist-Practitioner doctoral programs have been the best matches with our training philosophy and values. We also highly value experience with and/or demonstrated interest in cultural factors in psychology. We believe our internship is ideal for those who envision a career that combines clinical, teaching, and research activities within a culturally-informed framework. We of course abide by our parent institution's non-discrimination policy.

Application deadline: Friday, November 3, 2023

Download the brochure listed at the bottom of this page:
 

APPIC internship match numbers

General internship: 143711

Clinical Neuropsychology: 143716

Post-Doctoral Residencies in Clinical Neuropsychology, Clinical Psychology, and Clinical Health Psychology

The NMVAHCS has three separately APA-accredited postdoctoral fellowship programs:

1. Clinical psychology postdoctoral fellowship program (4 emphasis areas
   • Posttraumatic stress disorder (2 fellowship positions, 1 in outpatient PTSD and one in residential PTSD)
   • Serious Mental Illness (1 fellowship position)
   • Family Therapy (1 fellowship position)
2. Clinical health psychology postdoctoral fellowship program (2 fellowship positions)
3. Clinical neuropsychology postdoctoral fellowship program (2-year specialty accredited program; 1 postdoctoral fellow is accepted into the program each year)

Across specialty areas, the fellowships focus on preparation for leadership roles in the profession and on training in the provision of supervision. There is support for achieving licensure by the end of the postdoctoral year. Fellows can spend up to 20% of their time in research, program evaluation, or administrative activities. The NMVAHCS has an evidence-based focus for training, and is a scientist-practitioner program. We have national trainers/supervisors in Prolonged Exposure, Cognitive Processing Therapy, ACT, CBT-I, CBT for Depression, and Motivational Interviewing on faculty. Fellows can refine their own training plans in consultation with the Director of Training and the Training Committee, and are encouraged to expand their professional repertoire to include administration, consultation, supervision, and program evaluation activities in addition to assessment, intervention, and research.

The fellowships are members of APPIC and are accredited by the American Psychological Association. The next APA site visit for the Clinical and Clinical Neuropsychology fellowships will occur in 2021 and the next site visit for the Clinical Health fellowship will occur in 2031.

We of course abide by our parent institution's non-discrimination policy. Applicants must be graduates of APA-accredited doctoral and internship programs, must be US Citizens, and, if male, must have registered with Selective Service.

Clinical Neuropsychology Application deadline: Friday, December 1, 2023

Clinical and Clinical Health Psychology Application deadline: Friday, December 15, 2023

APA Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation

Questions related to the accredited status of any of these programs should be directed to:
Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation
American Psychological Association
750 1st Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002
Phone: 202-336-5979 / Email: apaaccred@apa.org
Web: https://accreditation.apa.org/

Psychology Practicum Training

The Psychology Practicum Training Program at the New Mexico VA Health Care System (NMVAHCS) is appropriate for graduate students from APA-accredited Clinical or Counseling doctoral psychology programs. Interested students should contact Dr. Brian Kersh at Brian.kersh@va.gov and submit a CV. Acceptance is based on interview, availability of training sites, and recommendations from your graduate training program. We, of course, abide by our parent institution's non-discrimination policy. 

All About Albuquerque & New Mexico

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Psychology Training Leadership