What do these volunteer experiences count as?

[Ghiradelli]

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There are two programs I'm considering participating in and was wondering whether they would count as clinical experience or non-clinical volunteering.

1. A part of the university mental health counseling center is staffed by undergraduates in a particular program run by the psychology department, which I qualify for. It's essentially peer counseling, talking with other students about low-impact things that are bothering them like being depressed over their girlfriend breaking up with them, helping them through anxiety over final exams, teaching them time management strategies, how to get along with bad roommates etc. while the more serious problems are handled by the real psychologists and counselors. The goal is to let undergraduates learn about counseling while freeing up the professionals for the severe problems where their time is better spent. Technically you are filling the role of an actual psychologist, providing in person "treatment" to "patients" but I don't know if it's significant enough to count as clinical.

2. An unpaid position answering calls for a phone based suicide hotline, including other random mental health related reasons people call it. You're effectively giving the people who call over the phone counseling and trying to make them feel less hopeless, connect them with resources they can use, and not kill themselves. Unlike the university counseling center thing that only deals with low-impact issues, this could be anything from someone just wanting to talk because they have no friends, all the way up to someone holding a gun to their head screaming at you and threatening to murder their neighbors for 3 hours straight. However, it's not in-person and I don't know if that makes it unworthy of being considered clinical even though it's far more intense than stocking blankets at a hospital.

What would these count as?

 

[dr_kateb]

Non clinical for both imo

 

[Goro]

There are two programs I'm considering participating in and was wondering whether they would count as clinical experience or non-clinical volunteering.

1. A part of the university mental health counseling center is staffed by undergraduates in a particular program run by the psychology department, which I qualify for. It's essentially peer counseling, talking with other students about low-impact things that are bothering them like being depressed over their girlfriend breaking up with them, helping them through anxiety over final exams, teaching them time management strategies, how to get along with bad roommates etc. while the more serious problems are handled by the real psychologists and counselors. The goal is to let undergraduates learn about counseling while freeing up the professionals for the severe problems where their time is better spent. Technically you are filling the role of an actual psychologist, providing in person "treatment" to "patients" but I don't know if it's significant enough to count as clinical.

2. An unpaid position answering calls for a phone based suicide hotline, including other random mental health related reasons people call it. You're effectively giving the people who call over the phone counseling and trying to make them feel less hopeless, connect them with resources they can use, and not kill themselves. Unlike the university counseling center thing that only deals with low-impact issues, this could be anything from someone just wanting to talk because they have no friends, all the way up to someone holding a gun to their head screaming at you and threatening to murder their neighbors for 3 hours straight. However, it's not in-person and I don't know if that makes it unworthy of being considered clinical even though it's far more intense than stocking blankets at a hospital.

What would these count as?

I consider them borderline clinical. Is a client a patient? Sounds like a good interview question!

 

[Catalystik]

There are two programs I'm considering participating in and was wondering whether they would count as clinical experience or non-clinical volunteering.

1. A part of the university mental health counseling center is staffed by undergraduates in a particular program run by the psychology department, which I qualify for. It's essentially peer counseling, talking with other students about low-impact things that are bothering them like being depressed over their girlfriend breaking up with them, helping them through anxiety over final exams, teaching them time management strategies, how to get along with bad roommates etc. while the more serious problems are handled by the real psychologists and counselors. The goal is to let undergraduates learn about counseling while freeing up the professionals for the severe problems where their time is better spent. Technically you are filling the role of an actual psychologist, providing in person "treatment" to "patients" but I don't know if it's significant enough to count as clinical.

2. An unpaid position answering calls for a phone based suicide hotline, including other random mental health related reasons people call it. You're effectively giving the people who call over the phone counseling and trying to make them feel less hopeless, connect them with resources they can use, and not kill themselves. Unlike the university counseling center thing that only deals with low-impact issues, this could be anything from someone just wanting to talk because they have no friends, all the way up to someone holding a gun to their head screaming at you and threatening to murder their neighbors for 3 hours straight. However, it's not in-person and I don't know if that makes it unworthy of being considered clinical even though it's far more intense than stocking blankets at a hospital.

What would these count as?

Both provide excellent opportunities for using your communication skills and would add value to your application. I'd consider the first one as most-likely nonclinical and the second as having some clinical elements (depends on what percent of the people calling in have mental health issues, vs feeling lonely). You won't know until you've done it.

 

[LizzyM]

I'd call both non-clinical volunteering. Let the adcoms "up-code" it if they think that it is clinical but calling it clinical and having an adcom second guess you on that can hurt your chances.

I'd call the first "peer counseling" and the second is a classic "telephone help line".

 

[Planes2Doc]

I'd call them both "awesome." But for real, I second what others have said and call it non-clinical. If you put a psychiatry emphasis on your personal statement, that can work in your favor. Keep it up!