Recently, we asked one of our Fall Psychology Internship students to tell us about their experience. We are proud to highlight David Callahan and his experience as an intern for The Crossroads, Inc. a residential substance abuse treatment home for men, women, and Veterans across the valley.

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Intern: David Callahan

Major(s)/Minor(s): B.S. Psychology Major

Semester of Internship: Fall 2018

Internship Site: The Crossroads - Red Mountain

Give an overview of your site and what you do as an intern.

I currently intern at The Crossroads Red Mountain Campus, which is a men’s rehab facility. At the internship, I shadow one-on-one and group therapy sessions as well as lead my own sessions from time to time with supervision.

Why did you choose this site for your internship?

I chose to intern at The Crossroads because I feel like it closely relates to my career interests. Although I do not want to specifically work with those recovering from substance abuse, I strongly want to work with those who struggle regarding their mental health. Addiction and Mental Health often overlap, and because of this I see many who struggle with both at The Crossroads. Additionally, I want to go into counseling. My internship at The Crossroads assists with this by giving me first-hand experience by leading therapy sessions.

What did you like most about working at your site? What activities/responsibilities did you enjoy and learn the most from?

What I like the most about The Crossroads is the staff. They are very friendly and down-to-earth with the clients but they also know when and how to be professional. I enjoy shadowing group therapy sessions every morning and seeing how the therapists interact with the clients. I learned the most from shadowing these sessions as well as conducting my own. Shadowing and leading one on one therapy sessions also proves very useful by allowing me to interact with a client more personally and intimately.

What skills/knowledge did you gain at your internship that you will carry with you in your career path?

Right now, I’m learning a lot about how to interact with different clients who have varying personalities. Going into my internship, I felt like I was very reserved and more focused on observation. I’m now getting to the point that I am actively trying to interact and get involved rather than sitting back and watching the staff. There are many skills regarding interpersonal effectiveness that I will carry along with me in my career path including assertiveness and confidence.

Discuss your career goals and what your next steps are after you complete your Psychology degree.

My next step after my degree is to take a gap year. In that time, I’m hoping to get a job that will help me gain further experience in the field. This may possibly be at The Crossroads or at any other institution that works in the field mental health. Once my gap year is over, I want to apply to graduate school to get my Master’s in Counseling. When that is done, hopefully I’ll be able to get employed at a hospital and live my dream career as a Mental Health Counselor.

What advice can you give to other students interested in pursuing an internship?

Expect the unexpected. You will go in on the first day expecting a certain type of experience, but you will not get it. Instead, you will get an entirely different but immensely more amazing experience than the one you had been imagining. Also, dress business casual! I learned that one the hard way.