Counseling & Psychology Internships

Counseling and psychology internships in South Africa will expose you to the complexities of South Africa’s mental health care system. Our internship placements will give you unique access to counseling and social support services across South Africa. Whether you are interested in a counseling student internship at an NGO, a clinical placement at a rehabilitation center or an organizational psychology internship at a for-profit company, we will find you an internship that matches your interests and objectives.

What would your counseling and psychology internship look like?

Children’s shelters: Intern at innovative therapeutic and developmental residential environment for vulnerable young women and children who have been traumatized and removed from their families for their own protection by an order of the local children’s court.

Trauma Counseling Centers: Interns participate in program facilitation for child survivors of family violence and present workshops to South African children to help them cope with anger, aggression, and rejection. The children learn problem-solving skills that will help them use alternatives to violence in the future.

Homeless Counseling Centers: Provides Psycho-Social Intervention Services to assist vulnerable members of the homeless population with material assistance such as accommodation, food vouchers, clothes, and blankets, as well as to provide psycho-social support in the form of counseling or referral to appropriate institutions.

HIV/AIDS clinic: Work with HIV/AIDS counselors to conduct HTS pre and post-test counseling. Pre-test counseling that is done in a proper and comprehensive way prepares the client and counselor for more effective post-test counseling. Because clients are often too relieved or shocked to take on much information during post-test counseling, the healthcare professional makes use of the educational opportunities offered by pre-test counseling.

Organizational Psychology Placements: Intern in the Human Resource department of a private company, and help South African companies solve problems in the workplace and work to improve their employee’s quality of life.

Why do a counseling and psychology internship?

Other advantages of counseling and psychology internships in include considerations such as:

Knowing you’re helping where it’s needed most – By using your skills to uplift and empower individuals and families that struggle with illness, poverty or debt you’ll be giving invaluable hope and support. As a trainee counselor, you’ll find endless opportunities to assist those in need of guidance.

Building an impressive practical resume – Theoretical knowledge is vital for a solid foundation and understanding of counseling, but there’s no substitute for real-world learning. When you take an internship, you’ll be placed in authentic situations that will require you to draw on and apply what you’ve learned and use the hours to count towards your professional degrees.

Exposure to various scenarios – A counselor needs to be able to adapt to a wide range of situations. The advice you’d give to a physically traumatized teenager is not the same as what a pensioner needs when he’s lost his life savings. Your time will allow you to apply and build your knowledge in diverse circumstances amongst diverse cultures.