Welcome
Welcome to the University of Florida Counseling and Wellness Center’s (CWC) Training Program. Thank you for your interest in our training site. We provide a wide variety of training opportunities from practicum to postdoctoral training. The training program is an integral part of the mission of the CWC, and the entire professional and support staff is involved in the supervision and training of our trainees. Our overarching aim is to help develop counselors who are competent, highly ethical, and culturally sensitive. The program follows a practitioner-scholar model of professional training, which emphasizes experiential learning. In addition, the training staff provides a wide variety of clinical and supervision orientations used in training.
Committed to Individual and Cultural Diversity Competency Training
Our training program is strongly aligned with and steeped in a commitment to individual and cultural diversity competency training that has grown out of the fields of counseling and psychology programs. We believe that this training is vital to all parts of counselor development and competence. It is incorporated into all areas of supervision, training seminars, evaluations, and professional activities.
A trainee’s willingness to explore biases and engage in growth while serving a diverse public is an important step in the successful completion of training for any student here. National organizations in the mental health field have made ethical code and accreditation standards that reflect the importance of working with a diverse public.
Natasha Maynard-Pemba, Ph.D.
Training Director/Associate Director
About the CWC
The Counseling and Wellness Center is part of the Division of Student Life and works closely with the other areas (e.g., Career Connections Center, The Center for Inclusion and Multicultural Engagement, Disability Resource Center, Dean of Students Office, Housing, J. Wayne Reitz Student Union, Gatorwell, and Recreational Sports).
CWC Staff
The CWC is staffed by 56 clinicians, 15 support staff, 4 Postdoctoral Fellows, 5 doctoral psychology interns, 2-3 doctoral counselor education interns, along with approximately 10-15 doctoral practicum students, advanced practicum and master’s students. In addition, we work closely with Student Health Care Center psychiatry department staff of 7 psychiatrists, 3 psychiatric nurse practitioners, and 2 case managers. Many clinicians at the CWC are affiliate faculty members in the American Psychological Association (APA)-accredited doctoral program in Counseling Psychology and/or Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) accredited Counselor Education program. As such, they teach courses, serve on doctoral committees, and occasionally conduct research.
Counseling and Wellness Center clinicians are actively involved in numerous local, state, and national professional organizations, including the American Psychological Association (APA), American College Personnel Association (ACPA), American Counseling Association (ACA), American Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (AAMFT), International Accreditation of Counseling Services (IACS), Association of Counseling Center Training Agencies (ACCTA), Southeastern Psychological Association (SEPA), Florida Psychological Association (FPA), Association of University and College Counseling Center Directors (AUCCCD), American Group Psychotherapy Association (AGPA), Association of Psychology and Internship Centers (APPIC).
CWC Services
The Counseling and Wellness Center is committed to providing high quality psychological, developmental, and preventative services to the UF community for a wide range of psychological concerns. The center provides services to UF students, while also providing consultation services to faculty, staff, administration and parents. The center provides individual counseling, couples counseling, group counseling, outreach programs, and teaching to the UF community. The CWC’s well-developed group counseling program covers a wide range of topics. Examples of the types of groups offered are: Understanding Self and Others, Anxiety Management, Stress Management, LGB Support, Graduate Student Support, International Student Success, Trans Support, and Sacred Space: Black Women+, Bereavement. Clinicians also provide consultation services to a variety of campus departments and groups, including law enforcement, family housing, professional schools, and athletic programs. The Center has specialty programs in several areas, all of which are open to intern involvement. For example, ASPIRE is an enrichment program targeting the needs of African American/Black, Latinx/Hispanic, and first generation students in support of achieving academic success. Opportunities to work with mind-body therapy are offered via individual and group training in mindfulness, imagery, and innovative stress management techniques. In addition, staff members are active members of the campus community and are part of the Crisis Response Team which sends teams out to help members of the university community to cope with tragedies or loss of life.
Facilities
In May of 2010, the Counseling and Wellness Center moved into a state of the art newly constructed green building. The facility has multiple group rooms and conference rooms equipped with cutting edge technology and equipment. The Center also contains a convenient kiosk with coffee and snacks. Each individual intern and practicum office is furnished, well equipped with computers, and with video recording capabilities. Practicum and advanced practicum students share a case management office in which they can review video recordings and write progress notes.