Being an Internship Director: Making the Decision of What to Include and What to Let Go

Being an Internship Supervisor – Graphic looks like a hanging sign. The top of the graphic includes the website URL, “www.musictherapyworks.com” followed by the title, “Being an Internship Supervisor.” and the word, “explained,” on the part of the sign that dangles below.
I am currently in the awkward place of going through the assignments that I offer to my interns during their internships. I am having to make decisions about what to include and what to let go of right now.

Now, this is something that I do to some extent after every run of interns. I always review their assignments and look at what worked and what has to be changed. Over the last three interns, as I have mentioned several times lately, no one has been able to finish assignments on their due dates. This concerns me as it indicates (to me, at least) a failure on my part to help my interns establish good time management practices during their time with me. So, I am trying to figure out all sorts of things when it comes to assignments.

For this process, I start with the AMTA competencies. In case you didn't know, I strive to run an internship that is governed by the AMTA competencies - every assignment is based on the competencies and is part of the operational definitions that I have developed over the years. I am now in a position where I am having to sit down and make some decisions about what I can and cannot provide my interns during their time with me.

This is not an easy task, by any means. Fortunately, the AMTA Competencies have not been updated since 2013, so I don't have to start from scratch this time around. Immersing myself in the competencies is a good place to begin because I have the advantage of 10 more years of clinical practice with which to interpret what these skills actually entail in my facility and practice orientation.

My sister told me that I am "very analytical" this weekend when she shared a conversation that she had with a close family member. I agree. I am "very analytical" when it comes to some things - I am not going to stop being a vaccinated human being because there are some folks who think that we are being microchipped in the process. I figure that, if the government is THAT interested in what I'm doing, I am already carrying a device that feeds them constant information in my purse at all times. They will quickly lose interest in my comings and goings since I am about the most boring person in the world! If they care so much about me that they have to microchip me, they are not going to be happy with the information that they receive from my chip.

Anyway - I use my penchant for analysis to define all of the AMTA competencies into demonstrable skills. For example, competency 1.1 "Recognize standard works in the literature" (HORRIBLE competence, by the way) includes skills such as "use client-requested music during sessions." I strive to have all of the skills answered with the ratings of either YES or NO. I also include a SOMETIMES in there, for evaluation purposes, but my goal is to get interns to YES on 85% of their skills. I think I am about at 94% of competence at any given time on the skills I have listed even after 30+ years of clinical work experience, so I figure that 85% is a good accomplishment for interns at the end of their time with me.

The entire purpose of this post, though, is to remind myself that there are some things that I cannot cover... and that's okay.

The process that I will be going through in the next weeks will include the following steps:

  • printing out a fresh copy of the AMTA Professional and Advanced Competencies and my internship handbook
  • making an empty grid for my operational definitions to go when I have finished them
  • starting from scratch as I write out what each competence means in an objective, Yes/No criterion, skill-based manner
  • transferring the operational definitions onto the competency-based evaluation form that I use to evaluate interns
  • reviewing all assignments to ensure that they have strong links to the competencies
  • removing or changing the assignments that no longer have strong links to the competencies in the internship handbook
This process is something that is ongoing. It is not easy, but I consider it to be essential if I want to give my interns every opportunity to succeed as music therapists in their futures. I want them to have a good idea of what the professional world will expect of them, and meeting deadlines (the impetus for all of this inspection and focus) is a BIG thing that is expected in the professional world.

My internship program is not an easy one, but I don't think I am overloading my interns, either. It may be too much for our current students to accomplish, so I am heading back into what I am asking them to do to see what can be adapted or left out entirely.

I cannot cover all of the competencies, but there are some that need to be covered, There are others that have nothing to do with interns. So, I have to let some things go.

It is time to get ready for my day. If you are interested in more about my competency-based evaluation, please do not hesitate to contact me - leave a comment here or on the social media link that led you here. I am always happy to share this document with anyone who asks.

Happy Monday.

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