Information for Students Starting or Preparing for Medical Internships
Off-campus internships are opportunities for you to gain advanced clinical skills in community sites under the guidance of licensed professionals. If you haven't done so already, please start by downloading (a) the Clinician's Handbook, (b) Internship Information Guide, and (c) the Internship Protocol. Read them before you begin your internship. On this page are some highlights and reminders to keep you on track.
Meet with an Advisor
It's essential that you meet with an advisor before signing up for a clinic or internship. Your advisor will work with you to make sure that you've met all the prerequisite needed and to help you request the internship experience that will best meet your professional goals.
Submit a Clinic Request Form for the upcoming semester
Clinical practicum placements must be requested one semester in advance by the posted deadline every semester (see program calendar). Clinic request forms can be obtained from the CD Clinic Office (BH 113).
Pay the $35 Lab Fee
All student clinicians enrolled in clinical practicum on campus must pay a lab fee each semester. Checks are made out to SFSU CD CLINIC and must be submitted prior to starting your internship.
Internship Placements
The SFSU CD Program has established internship agreements with many agencies hospitals and clinics around the Bay Area.
The CD faculty will review the requests for off-campus placements. The CD Medical Internship Coordinator will post the student placement assignments for confirmation. A mandatory meeting of all students approved for off-campus placement will be held after faculty approval. The purpose of this meeting is to discuss the assignments and answer any individual questions the students may have. One-on-one appointments between the student and the CD Medical Internship Coordinator can be scheduled as needed.
The CD Medical Internship Coordinator is responsible for placement of student interns and credential candidates. It is the CD Medical Internship Coordinator's job to assure that a valid contract exists between the site and SFSU, the site is appropriate to the student?s needs, and that the site supervisor is ASHA-certified in the appropriate area of supervision, holds California licensure and/or the appropriate credential. The CD Medical Internship Coordinator will contact prospective sites where students are desired and inform the supervisor which student(s) will be contacting them for interview(s).
The student is NOT to contact any off-campus site (relative to internship or credential placement) until specifically instructed to do so by the CD Medical Internship Coordinator. Site supervisors will not interview students nor will students be assigned to a particular site until the CD Medical Internship Coordinator has notified that site supervisor of the students who are eligible and who will be coming for interview(s). Failure to observe this protocol may jeopardize the student?s internship and/or credential placement process.
During the interview, the student should provide the off-campus supervisor with information about experiences, current number and categories of clock hours, and specific client needs. After the student has been tentatively assigned to an off-campus site, she/he should observe at the site during the semester preceding the assignment. The observation will provide an opportunity for the student to meet with the supervisor and obtain preliminary information regarding the setting. It will also allow the supervisor to meet and discuss with the student the requirements the supervisor will establish.
Preparing for Your Interview
Once the CD Medical Internship Coordinator gives you the approval, you will contact the internship site to set up an interview appointment. Prepare the following materials prior to your site interview:
1. Resume
2. Unofficial transcript
3. List of clinical hours by popluation and disorder (Cumulative Clock Hours Form)
4. A sample of a clinical report you've written with the identifying information of the client deleted
5. Proof of liability insurance (provided by University through the CD Clinic)
6. Proof of TB/Hepatitis clearance
7. Current contact information and message availability
8. Current CPR certificate (if requested by the site)
Assemble Intern Packet
Once your internship placement has been finalized, you must assemble an internship packet and review it with your on-site supervisor. The documents required in this packet include:
Site Supervisor Confirmation Letter - You will be sent a Confirmation Letter that you will give to your site supervisor. In return, your supervisor will fax a copy of his/her current ASHA Card and State License to the CD Clinic office at (415) 338-0916.
Memo of Important Dates - You will be sent a memo about CD Clinic meetings that you must attend during the semester. Mark your calendar for these dates and go over the dates with your supervisor to ensure that you are given the necessary release time for these mandatory on-campus meetings.
CD Clinic Semester Calendar
Intern Site Response Form/Supervisor Information - You must email the information as soon as possible to
Intern Data Sheet (SC-08) - Fax to the CD Clinic Office (415) 338-0916. During the semester an on-campus supervisor will use the information on the data sheet to schedule a site visit.
Semester Clock Hours Form (SC-10) - Review with your supervisor how your clock hours will be summarized for the semester
Intern Residency Hours Form (SC-09) - Review with your supervisor how your clock hours will be broken down and documented over the semester
Practicum Evaluation Form (KASA) - Your supervisor will submit their evaluation of your performance on one copy of this form at mid-term and another one at the end of the term. These correspond to your midterm and final grades.
Faculty Supervisor Site Visit
In addition to the on-site supervisor who will be mentoring your ongoing work at the school site, you'll also be assigned a faculty supervisor from SFSU. Your faculty supervisor will act as a liaison between your internship site and SFSU if any concerns were to arise during the course of the internshp for either the intern or the supervisor. He/she will also make at least one site visit to meet with both you and your on-site supervisor during the semester. The purpose of the visit is check-in with and to support both the supervisor and the intern. After the visit, the faculty supervisor will file a site visit report.
Keep Track of Your Clock Hours
Semester Clock Hours. Tracking your clock hours throughout the semester. Medical Interns should use the SC-09 Intern Residency Hours Form (pdf or doc).
Each clinician is responsible for keeping a record of his/her clock hours. At the end of each semester, the clinician completes two Semester Clock Hour Forms (SC-10) . Both copies are submitted to the site supervisor to be signed (ASHA number included) and submitted to the CD Clinic. One copy is placed in the clinician's student file in the CD Clinic office, while the other copy is returned to the clinician for his/her personal records.
Cumulative Clock Hours. In addition to the clock hours forms completed for each clinic (as described above), clinicians must also maintain a Cumulative Clock Hour form (SC-12, downloadable as a pdf or doc), which lists the number of hours required in each area for ASHA certification, CA licensure, and the CRS credential, so that the clinician can easily see where additionally hours are needed. Similarly, the breakdown by age group helps the clinician determine with what population he/she may need to work in order to round out their clinical experience. Two copies of the form are made and submitted to the supervisor to be initialed. One copy is kept in the clinician's student file, to be updated each semester (i.e., use the same Cumulative Clock Hours form each semester), while the other copy is retained by the clinician for his/her personal records. Each student is responsible for transferring clinical hours from SC12 to the ASHA Clinical Practicum form in their file.