UVA Career Center

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The Psychology Department and UVA Career Center have partnered to establish the Spring 2023 Psychology Department Internship Placement Program Cohort. Through this unique program, students majoring in Psychology have access to exclusive Spring 2023 internships that will help connect their academic experiences to real-world, professional engagements. This program will match you with a customized internship placement based on the best opportunities for your interests, skills, and goals. 

Priority applications open Monday, October 31, 2022. Applications close Tuesday, November 22, 2022 (Note: IPP interviews need to be completed by the deadline).*

• Apply directly in Handshake.
• IPP Psych Internships are listed in Handshake (Handshake -> jobs -> label: “job - psychology internship program - spring 2023”). Check back often before November 22 as new opportunities will be added when they are approved. 
• Internship offers will be made prior to Winter Break 2022. 

*We strongly advise candidates to have their resume and application materials reviewed before they are submitted. University of Virginia Career Center counselors are available to assist with this. To schedule an appointment, call the University of Virginia Career Center at (434) 924-8900 or visit this link. You are also encouraged you to run your resume through VMOCK. Incomplete and late applications will not be considered.

Selection Process

The University of Virginia is committed to equal employment opportunity and affirmative action. To fulfill this commitment, the University administers its programs, procedures and practices without regard to age, color, disability, marital status, national or ethnic origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, veteran status, and family medical or genetic information; and operates both affirmative action and equal opportunity programs, consistent with resolutions of the Board of Visitors and with federal and state requirements, including the Governor's Executive Order Number One (2014).

As I pass the midpoint of my internship with the Arc Studio, I am awash with gratitude for the people I’ve met and the opportunity to exercise so many of my passions. Majoring in Psychology and Studio Art, I was surprised to find a position that nestled so snugly at their juncture. As I was scrolling through Handshake “Art” jumped out at me. The listing was for an “Art Therapy” intern. My interest piqued, I applied and was accepted. The Arc Studio is a program within the Arc of the Piedmont, Charlottesville, that facilitates art and creation for adults with developmental disabilities. Art making, to me, is a fundamental process for all. The more I’ve worked with my friends and fellow artists at the Arc, the less comfortable I’ve become with the term “Art Therapy” in this scenario. Art, for anyone, can be therapeutic. Where, though, does art for its own sake end, and art therapy begin? To assume that artists with developmental disabilities automatically require therapy feels as though we are saying that there is always something to be fixed. That is not to say that there have never been times in which I have helped someone to deal with frustration or grief through their art (this is where I would say it mingles with therapy in this context) however, I would be cautious about using Art Therapy as a blanket term when it holds so much nuance. That aside, even as I interviewed for the position with my now-supervisor, Amy Keenan-Amago, I  was blown away by the palpable similarity between our outlooks on communication, our definition of artistry, and our magpie-like hoarding of found materials. Almost as soon as I was chosen, Amy Keenan-Amago reached out to invite me to the Arc of the Piedmont’s annual Gala later that week. I enthusiastically accepted and dove headlong into helping to showcase the artists’ work. I worked tightly with her past intern to assist guests in purchasing art, I mingled, and I observed the fruits of months of their intense planning.

A few weeks later, at the official start of my internship, I met with Amy to be introduced to the space and the artists. My duties were to include wading happily through bushels of work (Amy informed me it would soon be obvious who had made what), matting and framing pieces to be hung, maintaining a clean studio space, and, most importantly, being a friend and resource. As my days at the Arc passed and continue to pass, I have formed real relationships with many of the artists and now certainly have no trouble deciphering whose work is whose. Other major points in my experience leading up to now have been hanging a show at the Jefferson-Madison Library, curating art for the walls of the Arc’s conference room, helping to build and grow an independent Arc Studio Instagram, and sourcing materials.

In working alongside people with differing backgrounds and communication styles, I have found myself using every ounce of my observational skills and creativity to breach those barriers. An artist I am constantly in awe of, and one of my good friends, is deaf. I have no background in ASL but the urge to talk with her about her art pushed me to begin learning fingerspelling and basic sign. This has been incredibly helpful with many people at the Studio who are non-verbal or struggle with speech. I’ve had someone say to me “I like you because you don’t interrupt me when I am speaking”. That made a large impact on me because it highlighted how little respect and patience people who need time to communicate with are often afforded. Being here to listen and interpret ideas has been so rewarding in the relief that I often see in my friends’ faces when they are heard. Moving forward, we are gearing up for a showcase at the Daily Grind and I am beyond excited to continue working with the Arc.