Students acquire a number of critical skills required for professional practice during their program of study. Academic residencies provide opportunities for face-to-face interactions that promote scholarship, socialization into the profession, skill building within a university community, and cohesion between students and instructors. These opportunities are focused during the Academic Year in Residence (AYR) that occurs during a consecutive 13-month period (typically starting between the second and third years of the program).
Several important facets of the student experience are described below. These experiences, all of which also occur in the face-to-face residency setting, are an integral part of student learning at Walden. These include skills development, peer interactions, exposure to and socialization into the profession, college and university engagement, and involvement in academic advising and support services. Emphasis on these components is focused during residencies.
Skills Development
The development of critical skills is a key component of the residency experience. All students attend a Milestone 1 residency within the first 6 months of matriculation and are required to participate in an Introduction to the Profession intensive. This provides students with an opportunity to demonstrate and receive feedback on basic interaction skills. During the Academic Year in Residence, most students participate in basic and advanced assessment courses that have face-to-face components. Additionally, a number of intensive seminars are offered that provide training on clinical skills in a variety of areas, research skills that lead to the development of the dissertation prospectus, and competencies required for field training experiences.
Peer Interactions
Psychology students have many opportunities to engage in interactions with peers, both virtually and in face-to-face settings. Given the dispersed nature of our university community, the Web-based classroom provides students the opportunity to engage in scholarly discourse with other students from all over the world, facilitating understanding of the issues, practices, and scholarship of psychology from national and international perspectives. The virtual classrooms provide opportunities for small group projects; engagement in formal, scholarly interaction; and/or involvement in informal discussions. During residency components, students are afforded the opportunity to gather in both social and learning community settings. They join each other for meals, share resources, and participate in special topic seminars, university-wide plenary sessions, and small group discussions. Students are able to communicate regularly through listservs and other virtual community-building mechanisms established for instructors and students within a given specialization.
Exposure to and Socialization Into the Profession of Psychology
Psychology students attending residencies are afforded the opportunity to hear speakers from a broad array of disciplines at university plenary sessions, intensive seminars, colloquia, and social events sponsored by the school or by the specialization directors. Additionally, there are opportunities to hear their colleagues present and discuss their research ideas in formal and informal settings. Whenever and wherever our students and instructors convene in face-to-face settings, small groups gather to share meals and engage in social and professional discourse. There are also opportunities to prepare research presentations at college-wide conferences that occur at each 12-day residency, which include both poster and paper venues. Residency experiences can also include attending professional conferences that provide additional opportunities for professional socialization.
College and University Engagement
Students have a number of opportunities for engagement in college and university service. These include participation in search committees, periodic curriculum reviews, and working groups and tasks forces for which student input is vital. At residencies, students and instructors frequently brainstorm together and provide input on issues affecting the college. Students have the opportunity to participate as graduate assistants who benefit the college and university in a number of ways, including providing research and other types of professional support and serving as teaching assistants.
Academic Advising and Support Services
Walden University learners are supported throughout their programs by a number of systems and services. Students are supported by professional academic advisors and specialization directors who provide professional mentoring (including dissertation supervision). Qualified instructorss supervise students during their practicum and internship experiences. The Office of Student Development offers a number of services that enhance student learning, including Web-based information resources for developing writing skills, writing tutors, and guidance on professional writing. The Research Office assists students in seeking grants and fellowships. Residencies offer opportunities for students to acquire these services in a face-to-face environment. Seminars in APA style, literature review methods, and basic writing skills refreshers are common, as are required advising sessions with instructors and academic advisors.
All students are required to complete one Milestone 1 residency within the first 6 months of matriculation and to successfully complete the Introduction to the Profession intensive seminar. In addition, licensure students must complete a number of activities during the Academic Year in Residence. Activities include, but are not limited to, the following: (a) assessment knowledge and skills acquisition (satisfied by completing the basic and advanced assessment courses), (b) conference attendance, (c) research development and presentation, and (d) preparation for field training. Students must complete the minimum activities and accrue at least 500 hours of residency experiences during a consecutive 13-month period to graduate; they must be enrolled full time during this period.
Students should contact academic advising to determine the specific AYR requirements. Students are also responsible for contacting their state licensing boards and for understanding the state-specific requirements for residency.
