Date

7-22-2025

Department

School of Behavioral Sciences

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy in Counselor Education and Supervision (PhD)

Chair

Kristy Ford

Keywords

practicum, internship, CACREP, supervision, fieldwork, standards, counselors in training

Disciplines

Counseling

Abstract

The following quantitative descriptive study explored the practicum and internship experiences of counselors in training (CIT) in consideration of the new 2024 Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) standard requirements. The updated standards mandate fieldwork sites to provide “quantity, quality and variety of expected experiences,” yet they lack specific guidance on what these experiences might entail. Despite the importance of fieldwork in counselor training, current literature offers limited data on the specific experiences of CITs encounter during their placements. To address this gap, this study utilized an anonymous survey to capture a multitude of fieldwork characteristics and experiences. Findings provide descriptive insights into types of sites, clients demographics, formats of counseling, and hours of exposure currently being experienced by CITs. A series of correlations and regressions were conducted to examine how these exposures align with CACREP descriptive criteria, and thematic analysis was used to analyze the singular qualitative question. This study provides implications for students, academic programs, site supervisors and CACREP, highlighting key trends that may inform future training and studies.

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