Doctoral Students : We Need More Support !
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Doctoral students gain knowledge of the DSM during their master ’ s studies , but we all have found no advanced teaching or experience in the DSM at the doctoral level . This puts us in the position entering the clinical arena of having some knowledge , but not at the level desirable for a doctoral graduate . CES programs teach the DSM materials as academic material for the doctoral student to teach ; however , limited time is given to ensure that we can utilize and apply the DSM criteria in a clinical environment .
Supervision Challenges
Supervision is essentially a mentorship relationship between a professor and a doctoral student . The relationship depends on the doctoral student and the professor meeting one-on-one to have an intellectual and instructive dialogue , and where doctoral students can ask questions and receive feedback that assists in our professional development .
Research that appeared in a 2014 issue of Studies of Higher Education Journal ( https :// doi . org / 10.1080 / 03075079.2012.70 9496 ) showed that doctoral students who received continued feedback , met regularly with their supervisor , and had a healthy mutuality in their relationship with their supervisor were overall satisfied with their supervision experience . When those factors were not present , however , doctoral students seemed less satisfied with the supervision experience .
One of the biggest challenges faced by doctoral students is that too often the faculty supervision experience is not substantive . For example , some meetings are too brief to result in meaningful discussion and do not give doctoral students clear direction on how to proceed within their internship .
Further , when doctoral students find it difficult to locate a suitable site to complete our internship hours , a faculty supervisor should be a great resource in this area . Frequently they ’ re not . Lack of guidance and resources from the faculty supervisor tends to leave doctoral students feeling overwhelmed and anxious .
Doctoral students seek constructive feedback from our supervision experience to help develop our skills to a higher level . During supervision , sometimes this essential feedback is lacking from the faculty supervisor . Our supervisors should abet our desire to improve and advance our skills so that when our doctorate is conferred , the mental health profession gains professionals with knowledge and skills that exceed those we developed at the master ’ s level . The absence of this essential feedback is a disservice to soon-to-be doctoral graduates .
Solutions — What We Need
Many doctoral students in the Counseling Education and Supervision program apply for doctoral programs that focus on counselor education and supervision — and are accepted — despite having limited to no clinical or supervisory experience . The challenge for us then lies in creating and engaging in clinical and supervisory roles during the internship requirement . Ideally , all CES doctoral students would be able to acquire internship hours in these areas .
Each of us coauthors holds varying years of experiences in these areas . Those of us who have previous experience have chosen to enhance our skills while utilizing the knowledge and guidance of our professors . But , what about those who do not ?
Locating a desirable counseling site may not be a viable option for CES students working full-time while enrolled full-time in a CES program . We propose that CES advisors , professors , and supervisors aid us in providing clinical and / or supervisory opportunities at agencies with which they may be affiliated professionally .
HELP THOSE WHO EARN DOCTORATES IN COUNSELING AND COUNSELING EDUCATION TO HELP OTHERS !
Does the discussion in this article of the various barriers and challenges we doctoral students have encountered during our respective internship experiences seem familiar to readers who are now clinicians or educators in the mental health field ? Some are longstanding issues for which improvements are feasible . We have presented a few of our personal recommendations for CES programs , mentors , and professors that would aid doctoral students in the counseling field .
Our hope is that this article helps expand the conversation between doctoral students and their professors and mentors to help us become better prepared for the profession we are joining . The more prepared we are in the various areas of counselor education , the better skilled we will become , and the more we will be able to benefit our clients and the greater community .
We believe that the goal of doctoral students working together with professors , supervisors , and mentors is to enhance our overall experiences and learning . By doing so , we will not only benefit the students we teach and the clients we work with , we will propel the success of our field further by better preparing future counselors .
18 The Advocate Magazine Summer 2021 American Mental Health Counselors Association ( AMHCA ) www . amhca . org