Supervision

[autumn7]

I'm in the middle of my first semester at a well-ranked MSW program. I interviewed for and accepted an excellent field placement in the psychiatry department. However, my supervisor happens to be newly licensed. This concerns me, because I came to school specifically seeking the best clinical training for MSWs, with the hopes of doing psychotherapy. I've worked in a psychiatry department before, and I found it to be pretty intense, so I'm very interested in having an experienced supervisor.

Given that my field placement is a full year, this field experience is a big part of what I'm paying for. Had I waited another year and applied for funding at other clinical program, I can't help but wonder if I might be getting better training, and incurring less debt. Are my concerns well-founded? Or should I be less concerned about the supervision, given that the psychiatry department is already well ranked?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

The upside to someone newer to the field is that they should be up to date on EBTs, though they may not be as seasoned with the supervision/mentorship relationship. This is something worth discussing with your Director of Clinical Training and/or a professor that you trust.

 

[AcronymAllergy]

I agree with T4C--while time in the field can certainly be one indirect indicator of the quality of a supervisor, it's neither a necessary nor specific characteristic. I've heard it mentioned multiple times, for example, that post-docs often make the best supervisors because they have the time and energy to spend, and they're still involved in training themselves. The same could be said for new faculty; they're freshly removed from training, and so they're still likely in touch with the sorts of things they liked and/or wanted to get out of supervision.

As T4C mentioned, the biggest stumbling block is usually in properly moderating the supervisor-supervisee relationship. Some folks naturally fall into that role while others have to work at it a bit.

However, by and large, I wouldn't automatically discount this person simply because they're newly-licensed.

 

[ikibah]

I would not worry about it unless some red flags pop up. My supervisor is semi-new as well but is incredibly knowledgeable in the field.