Abigail Dunagan, Campus Carrier features editor

Cammie Wilks, Campus Carrier asst. features editor

Berry offers opportunities for students to grow and learn through different experiences, such as through classes or jobs in the LifeWorks program. One important option for students to earn knowledge in their desired field is through internships. There are many different kinds of internships depending on a student’s career goals, but the psychology department has some of the most diverse internship opportunities. This semester, several seniors have pursued unique internships in the Rome community, where they have gained eye-opening experiences that will help them in their careers after college. 

Assistant Professor of psychology Miguel Ampuero said that students can apply for many different types of internships. They are paid or unpaid, and some provide college credits. This way, students can earn experience for their future careers. To provide these internships to students, Berry’s psychology program partners with local service providers to make them possible. However, sometimes it can be challenging to find places willing to host interns, as availability be small.

These internships are important, because they help students solidify where they want to work, gain clinical skills and allow them to network with professionals in the field. Eventually, students will graduate and do more with the experience they received from their internships and their classes, whether they’re conducting research, attending graduate school or helping others.

“Experience is of extreme importance to inform a future professional,” Ampuero said. “Internships can have a very positive impact, especially early in a college career. It exposes most to what a field may look like.”

Ampuero got into psychology due to his passion for science and interest in what people do and how they act. The first psychology course he ever took was in behavioral analysis, and he immediately fell in love. A part of his time as an undergraduate was working in a research lab, which gave him a lot of research experience and allowed him to work as an in-home therapist for some children. For the last six years, Ampuero has been teaching at Berry and helping students discover the same passion that he possesses. 

“It’s great to see my students grow in the field because at some point, they will be my colleagues,” Ampuero said. “I go to professional events and get to see them in a completely different realm. They are graduate students, or in some cases, they may have graduated from their graduated programs, and now they’re my colleagues. It’s so great. It makes me want to continue to teach.”

Senior psychology major Monique Ruedas recently recieved an internship with the Northern Integrity Counseling Center in Rome, a forensic counseling intervention center for felons who have completed prison time and are currently on probation. The organization holds therapy groups from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and the goal of these sessions is to allow these individuals to rehabilitate into society. Ruedas began the internship this semester, and she currently goes there on Sundays to shadow these counseling sessions. While the internship has just started, Ruedas said that she will get the chance to lead a session in the near future. 

“I think it aligns with my interest, because I’ve always been curious to see if I want to take either a counseling or a corporate route to psychology,” Ruedas said. “It’s been very helpful in letting me know firsthand how a counseling session works, because I’ve never done this kind of thing before.” 

In addition to sitting in on these counseling sessions, Ruedas also spends her hours at the internship reading academic articles on the subject and taking notes during the therapy sessions. She plans to get a job after college, but she is considering eventually pursuing a master’s in counseling psychology. Although she enjoys working in her internship, Ruedas said, in the future, she would like to get more experience working with different groups of people.

“I know that when you go through programs for counseling, sometimes you are not able to pick and you just have to find an internship in your master’s program that lets you get hours,” Ruedas said. “People do different kinds of therapy, like for children or adults. Sometimes people don’t get to choose, but I think I would like to get more experience to see what population I like working with the best.” 

Senior psychology major and applied behavioral analysis (ABA) minor Hayla McClain is interning at an Anna K. Davie elementary school. McClain plans to become a school psychologist after college, and Henry Gund Professor of psychology Michelle Haney initially directed McClain to intern at the school so that she would get more experience in a classroom setting. The role of school psychologist involves a variety of duties, such as writing student IEP plans and running classroom diagnostics. McClain currently works in a special-ed classroom on Tuesdays and Thursdays, where she observes and assists the teachers, in addition to sitting in at teacher meetings. According to McClain, working inside of the classroom has helped her reach a better understanding of how her role as a school psychologist can benefit teachers. 

“It’s giving me some perspective,” McClain said. “It’s showing me what is able to happen in a day, and what might not happen in a day, so when I write out these IEP plans, I won’t have this outrageous list of things for them to do. I have a little bit more perspective about what is going to be done.” 

After college, McClain plans to pursue a master’s in education  and Ed.S (Educational Specialist Degree), which is required to work as a school psychologist. Many schools in Georgia and in lower-income areas do not have sufficient access to school psychologists, and there is a lot of misinformation about the profession. While this isn’t the first internship that she has had, McClain said that this has been a unique experience because school psychologists often work in different schools, and it is important to be comfortable working alongside teachers, students and parents.

“You have to learn how to work with a bunch of different people, and you have to learn how to explain things and meet people where they are at,” McClain said. 

Though balancing an internship along with classes and a LifeWorks job can be tough, many students at Berry take on the challenge so they can hone what they have learned into their future job and the rest of their lives. 

“Exposing the students to these kinds of experiences, which Berry does a great job of, already starts to give them something, and then from there, other ideas start to come up,” Ampuero said. “Start as early as possible, completing as many experiences as you can.”