Counseling & Psychological Services

The training committee has collaboratively agreed upon the following training values which underlie the training program:

• We train individuals to be well-rounded generalists in the practice of Health Service Psychology.
• We take an approach of meeting already well-developed individuals where they are and helping them to develop or fine-tune (refine) further.
• Our training is individualized. We do not prescribe all of what trainees need to be or do, but we help them to advance in what they want and need.
• We value a strong commitment to the field of psychology, including such areas as psychotherapy, testing and assessment, and research.
• We value trainees having a working knowledge of their own values, being self-aware, and invested in further growth in personal and professional awareness.
• We train in the practice of brief therapeutic interventions.
• Even though we train well-rounded generalists (something that we excel in as a counseling center setting), we do emphasize therapy and supervision.
• We value work with diverse populations. For example, we work extensively with clients struggling with the full range of developmental to more severe issues. We value diversity in cultures, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, physical ability, and sexual orientation as well.
• We value planful treatment. That is, we are thoughtful and directed in our approach to treatment and we encourage thinking through options and alternatives in therapeutic approaches.
• We value continued learning.
• We value interns having a sound theoretical and empirical knowledge base.
• The environment we value is respectful, supportive, and relaxed.
• We strive for a balance between structure and flexibility, between prescribed training and individualized training.
• We value interns taking responsibility for their own learning, self-motivation, self-direction, independent thinking and judgment in professional roles.
• We value knowledge of and engagement in ethical and legal behavior.
• We value interns being confident in their skills, but clearly recognizing their limits and practicing within their competence.
• We value interns being invested not just in their own professional development but being invested in that of their colleagues and having something professionally significant to share that would enable them to contribute to colleagues' professional development.
• We value interns being mentally healthy themselves. We want them to be free of any significant mental health obstacles that might interfere with them practicing competently and interacting with colleagues appropriately.
• We value professional development through extensive supervision.
• We value attention to practice within the larger systems in which we exist including the Division of Student Affairs and Appalachian State University as a whole.