A training programme for master–student counsellor interns at university counselling centre in Taiwan

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to describe a four-week internship training programme (ITP) within the frame of the developmental instruction model (DIM). Despite the importance of internship in counsellor education, research related to ITP in Taiwan can hardly be found. The ITP created by the author aims to assist intern counsellors to transit from being a graduate student to a clinical practitioner of counselling. Four aspects of the DIM were employed in this programme: structure, diversity, experiential learning and personalization. Supervisors at the university counselling centres (UCCs) could use the ITP to provide structure for interns to process what they have acquired about counselling learning information. They need to pay attention to the diversity of interns, and design the training details based on the demands and characteristics of individual intern. The ITP encourages the employment of experiential learning in enhancing the interns’ integration of their observation at the UCC and their experience, reflection, conceptualization and actual practice during the internship. By creating a humane learning atmosphere and facilitating a safe learning environment, the UCC staff could reassure the interns in risk-taking and wide in-depth learning.