Externship Program

Training the next generation of psychologists is not an afterthought at Old Town Psychology; it is a core part of who we are. We believe that great clinicians are shaped by rich, varied, and meaningful training experiences, and our externship program is designed to provide exactly that. If you are a doctoral student in clinical or counseling psychology looking for a training environment that takes both your clinical development and your growth as a professional seriously, we want to hear from you.

About the Externship

Old Town Psychology offers a 12-month externship experience that places doctoral students at the intersection of therapy, assessment, and the kind of varied clinical work that accelerates professional development in ways a narrower training site cannot. Our externs work with children, adolescents, and adults across a wide range of presentations, building a caseload that is genuinely diverse in age, diagnosis, and treatment approach.

This is not a passive training experience. Externs at Old Town Psychology carry real clinical responsibility, receive meaningful supervision, and are treated as emerging professionals whose perspectives and development matter.

What Externs Do

Therapy

Externs carry a caseload of approximately six to eight therapy clients per week, providing long-term individual therapy to clients presenting with a range of concerns, including depression, anxiety, OCD, trauma, grief and loss, adjustment issues, stress, and relationship difficulties. Externs also have the opportunity to gain experience in couples counseling.

Training is provided in evidence-based modalities with strong research foundations, including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), mindfulness-based interventions, and multicultural approaches to therapy. Externs leave the year with a treatment repertoire that is both broad and clinically grounded.

Psychological Assessment

In addition to therapy, externs have the opportunity to conduct psychological and cognitive assessments, including intelligence testing, academic achievement testing, learning disorder assessments, and ADHD evaluations. Externs write comprehensive testing reports and conduct feedback sessions with clients, developing the full arc of assessment competency from administration through communication of results.

The combination of therapy and assessment training in a single externship year is a meaningful differentiator. Most training sites offer one or the other. We offer both.

Training and Supervision

Clinical training is taken seriously at Old Town Psychology, and our supervision structure reflects that commitment.

Individual Supervision: Externs receive weekly individual supervision in accordance with DC Externship Consortium guidelines. All supervisors are doctoral-level (Ph.D.) psychologists with specialized clinical expertise. Supervision is substantive, case-focused, and designed to push externs toward greater clinical sophistication and self-awareness.

Group Supervision and Didactics:  Externs attend weekly group supervision and didactics every Thursday at 11 am, available both in-person and virtually. These sessions provide structured training in evidence-based approaches, case consultation, and the kind of collegial clinical dialogue that sharpens thinking in ways individual supervision alone cannot.

Opportunity Details

• Externship duration: May/June 2027 through May/June 2028
• On-site hours: 8 to 16 hours per week required; strong preference given to externs available for two full days (16 hours) per week
• Therapy caseload: Approximately 6 to 8 clients per week
• Assessment caseload: Approximately 2 to 3 testing cases per month
• Compensation: Provided
• Location: 1221 King Street, Alexandria, VA 22314, metro accessible, a 10-minute walk from the King Street Metro station

Requirements

• Currently enrolled in a doctoral program (Ph.D. or Psy.D.) in Clinical Psychology or Counseling Psychology at an APA-accredited institution
• A master’s degree must be obtained prior to the start of the externship
• Completion of at least one year of supervised clinical practicum

What Our Patients Say

"We brought our daughter in for testing and the OTP team was amazing. They were so kind, caring and great with children. My daughter is shy and takes a little time to warm up when first meeting someone new. The Doctor was patient and encouraging and my daughter had a wonderful time. They also provide fast results and meet with you to explain everything in the report. I would definitely recommend them."

"Very prompt response to our inquiry. Welcoming environment and very professional, thorough communication. The staff genuinely seems to care that your needs are met."

"Excellent service, knowledgeable staff, incredible responsiveness, diligence and follow through -- we feel lucky we found such a great therapy practice. We cannot recommend them highly enough!"

“My daughter took WISC-V test there and we are very pleased with our experience. They are professional, patient and wonderful throughout the entire process. My daughter had such a great time that she hardly felt that was a test - she even asked when she could take it again. I would highly recommend them to whoever needs child IQ testing services.”

“I took my children here for TAG testing. Both of my kids actually enjoyed their assessments. I was very pleased with the time and care taken to assess my children, the thoroughness of the report, and the fact that there was a follow-up session to discuss any questions that I had relative to the assessment included. Also-- the tea selection in the waiting room is top tier :)”

“Very prompt response to our inquiry. Welcoming environment and very professional, thorough communication. The staff genuinely seems to care that your needs are met.”

About Old Town Psychology

We are a psychology practice built around a genuine belief that the best clinicians are those who engage with the field in multiple ways, not just through direct clinical work, but through research, training, assessment, and community outreach. We believe these roles enrich one another, and that a therapist who is also a researcher, a trainer, or an assessor brings a deeper and more dynamic perspective to every client they see.

Our practice is collaborative and inclusive. We welcome clinicians and clients of all ages, races, ethnicities, cultures, national origins, sexual orientations, genders, religions, and abilities. Our training environment is warm and supportive, ideas are actively encouraged, and our clinical work is strengthened through regular peer consultation and a culture of ongoing learning.

Externs who train at Old Town Psychology join a community of professionals who are pushing the field of psychology forward through meaningful clinical work, clinically grounded research, and a shared commitment to providing exceptional care.

For questions about the program, contact us at careers@oldtownpsychology.com or (571) 478-9499.