Psychology
Warm greetings!
I have written to your office to endorse my former student who applied for the counselor post in your community mental health center. As her former training director, I believe that I am capable of sharing with you her competencies as a rightful candidate for the counselor position. I have known the applicant for more than four (4) years while pursuing her graduate work in Counseling Psychology. She recently graduated her Doctor of Philosophy in Counseling Psychology with community mental health as her main field of specialization. She was a consistent A-student since she started her graduate work. The applicant’s career goal is to work with children and youth, particularly girls, in preventing abuse, exploring creative techniques in cognitive behavioral therapy, and promoting social justice.
As a former student, the applicant had demonstrated an excellent work in the practice of counseling based on the standards of the Division of Counseling Psychology of the American Psychological Association (APA). She had worked with individuals and groups in dealing with their physical, emotional, and psychological health issues through hands-on and supervised work in psychological counseling and psychotherapy. She helped her clients deal with their crises and provided support to resolve their personal issues, which in return commended by clients and peers due to her therapeutic nature.
APA specified that Counseling Psychologists, such as the applicant, should focus on the heathy aspects and positive traits of clients; the environmental influences that affect behavior; social involvement and advocacy; and career and vocations.
As a graduate student, the applicant obtained comprehensive training in therapy and intervention, assessment and diagnosis, teaching and research, and community advocacy. During her stint at the university, she maximized opportunities to undergo mentorship with various faculty members who are also engaged with the actual practice of counseling and psychotherapy.
Since the applicant’s interest focused in community mental health, she concentrated her graduate work in conducting research and training in cognitive behavioral therapy applied to rehabilitation of abused children and adolescents who suffered or showed some manifestations of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of trauma became her main subject of interest with cognitive-behavioral theory as her guiding theory in designing and conducting intervention programs supervised by faculty members and experts in the fields.
I highly recommend the applicant on the basis on the different competencies of a Counseling Psychologist.
In this competency, the applicant demonstrated an excellent work in assessing and diagnosing psychological problems among children and teenagers. She used tests such as the Weichsler and Standford-Binet intelligence tests in assessing the intelligence level of the clients. She had also been trained in utilizing objective and projective personality inventories in assessing the personality of her clients. Her most recent works include administration, scoring, and interpretation of the Rorschach Inkblots and the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT).
Aside from the use of psychological tests, the applicant is also skilled in interviewing and gathering information from the client. She adopted creative activities to aid the clinical interview process, which made the clients more receptive to her assessment method.
She also maximized the DSM in determining the severity of the psychological problems that her clients encounter. Through her mastery of the DSM, she assisted in institutionalizing the multi-discipline approach in the therapy and intervention of abuse victims. She could write timely and credible psychological reports based on the results of assessments and diagnosis.
- Therapy and Intervention. Counseling Psychologists should also master the application of psychological theories in providing the necessary intervention to clients to induce changes in the client’s behavior, thoughts, and feelings. The establishment of relationship between the client and the therapist plays a significant role in facilitating change in behavior of client undergoing a psychological maladjustment or problem.
The applicant adopted the cognitive-behavioral approach during her supervised training with the community setting. She applied the CBT in providing psychological help to abused girls in the rehabilitation facility. She was able to incorporate the learning theories in therapy through intervention activities that sought to achieve planned changes in the observable behavior and thinking of her clients. She served as facilitator in changing not only the negative behaviors of abused girls but also in teaching a positive and constructive attitude towards their difficulties. She taught her clients not only to deal and change their behaviors, but also to consider the feelings, motives, and needs of their peers. She focused on changing the victim-syndrome and conducted research on how to teach resilience to her clients.
As a cognitive behavioral therapist, the applicant focused her psychological intervention work with the vicarious learning and the role of the mediators in behavior and thinking of her clients. As an advocate, she volunteered in support groups that placed emphasis in encouraging self-efficacy among the survivors of abuse. Aside from reinforcement, the interventions aimed to institute change in behavior.
In her practice of cognitive behavior therapy, she faced the challenge of distrust from her clients. Since her clients were victims of abuse, it was a common experience for her to be dismissed or shunned by her clients. But her compassion and eagerness to help her clients did not disheartened her to from exhausting all means to build rapport and establish a therapeutic relationship. She used art and play to build a better working relationship with her clients. Aside from letting them draw or write about their experiences, she combined group and individual activities and applied the principles of pedagogy in the process of intervention. She also used multi-media resource materials to educate and make her clients reflect on their experiences based on the stories of others who experienced the same life event.
The application is to set a foundation of learning to children and youth on trauma and recovery through the cognitive behavioral therapy. Her sessions mainly consisted of combination of creative activities and clinical interviews that sought to establish a solid relationship with the client. Trust and alliance between the applicant and her clients coupled with collaborative work made her work more notable due to its positive outcomes.
- Ethical competency. The applicant ensured that her work is supervised by a highly-qualified practitioner or faculty member to avoid ethical dilemmas. She is guided with the ethics of Counseling Psychologists and constantly sought for guidance from her supervisors to examine her therapeutic relationship with her clients. One of the ethical dilemmas that she had faced was her advocacy on the issue of her clients. While she tried her best to remain objective and unbiased, she had to deal with countertransference as she considered herself a feminist and an advocate of change. On the other hand, her advocacy motivated her to continue pursuing work with the community instead of engaging into private practice. Still, her personal convictions have the tendency to influence her practice, which made her subjective sometimes and insist on what was right for her clients to do. Nevertheless, her mentors were able to address her countertransference through clinicing and co-counseling sessions to supervise her practice and to avoid more ethical dilemmas. Another ethical dilemma that she encountered was cultural difference. She had worked with variety of clients in the past and during that time, she needed to study further on cultural differences to adjust her intervention programs. s
The applicant is now capable to dealing her own convictions. She is self-aware, willing to rectify her mistakes, authentic, sincere, and honest, above all, adherent to the ethical standards of APA and the American Counseling Association (ACA).
- Research. Counseling Psychologists conduct researches to test the reliability and validity of psychological theories and to formulate or modify a theory based on the efficacy and efficiency of the intervention. The applicant had integrate research into her supervised work in the community setting. As a graduate student, she complied with research requirements of her graduate courses and submitted a well-written output based on her supervised training. She had her research papers reviewed by peers and her professors. So much studies had been undertaken about children and the youth, but her papers were relevant and tackled serious psychological issues that she culled from her experience in her supervised training. She had contributed papers and articles to school journals and publications on trauma and recovery, and resilience among children and the youth in multi-cultural dimensions. Her interest in feminism also paved way for her consultancy on research undertakings conducted by women’s rights’ groups and child-focused organization. She had been tapped by government and non-government agencies in the local state to head various research teams that tackled risk and resiliency among children and the youth.
- Teaching. The applicant had demonstrated an excellent ability in teaching and training. She taught undergraduate courses in Psychology while taking up her PhD in Counseling Psychology. She left the university during the course of her dissertation writing. In her last faculty evaluation, the school administration gave her an excellent feedback for her innovative and creative teaching methods that encouraged her students to be more participative in class. Aside from her teaching, she also became a facilitator to non-government organizations (NGOs) on providing psychological help to victims of abuse. Her work with various groups also earned her accolades from the civil society for her dedication to her advocacy.
Aside from the abovementioned capacities, the applicant had also managed organizations inside the university that makes her more capable of administrative functions and work relationships.
The applicant had been a full-scholar during her years at the graduate school. She obtained the scholarship through her research work and evidence-based practice. She also rendered most of her advocacy services in pro-bono and offered her research consultancy for a minimal charge depending on the client that she would serve. According to her, she wanted to work with the community mental health institution to further maximize her skills and to serve more communities in need of help.
I strongly recommend the applicant to be part of your team of helpers in the Center as she would be an indispensable employee. She would really contribute a lot in ensuring the smooth flow of the intervention programs of your office. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at ___________________________.
Thank you very much.
Sincerely yours,
Dr. William Smith
Training Diretor, __________________________
References
American Psychological Association. (n.d.). Counseling Psychology. Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/ed/graduate/specialize/counseling.aspx
Brems, C., & Johnson, M. E. (1997). Comparison of recent graduates of clinical versus counseling psychology programs. Journal of Psychology, 131, 91-99.
Corey, G. (2009). Theory and practice of counseling and psychotherapy. Australia: Thomson/Brooks/Cole.
Gelso, C.J., & Fretz, B. (2001). Counseling Psychology, (2nd ed.): Brooks Cole.
Mayne, T. J., Norcross, J. C., & Sayette, M. A. (2000). Insider's guide to graduate programs in clinical and counseling psychology (2000-2001 ed). New York: Guilford.
Society of Counseling Psychologists. (n.d.). About counseling psychologists. Found online at http://www.apa.org/ed/accreditation/doctoral.html
