The Child Life Department at Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas is a vital component of the healthcare team. Staffed by professionally trained individuals, our Child Life team helps children and their families cope with the emotional and psychological stress of hospitalization, illness, surgery and medical treatment. The Child Life staff act as advocates for patients and their families, working to reduce the stresses and anxieties that children and their families may encounter as a result of hospitalization.
Child Life Specialists work as a part of the interdisciplinary team in the following areas: five inpatient units, NICU, PICU, surgery, imaging, specialty care center, outpatient dialysis, hematology/oncology clinic and the emergency center. Child Life staff also supervise inpatient and outpatient play areas, coordinate community involvement and provide music therapy for the patients. We have dedicated staff members in most areas of the hospital who utilize therapeutic play to promote growth and development, communication opportunities and coping skills for patients and families.
Our Child Life internship program is geared toward those with a degree from undergraduate or graduate school looking to advance into the Child Life profession. Our goal is to provide interns with opportunities to build independent professional skills, strengthen therapeutic group play skills, and develop assessment and interventions skills with individual patients and to refine advanced clinical skills. Our internship program offers no stipend and does not guarantee future employment. Housing, transportation, parking expenses, meals and medical insurance are the responsibility of the intern. Individual liability insurance is not required for interns, as all child life students will go through our Volunteer Services Department for orientation, hospital badge, criminal background check and other hospital policies. Attached is additional information about our entrance requirements, the application process and program description.
Child Life Internship Requirements
- Bachelor’s Degree or graduate school completion. We are unable to accept applicants currently enrolled in a university program. Priority is given to applicants with backgrounds in child life, child development, human sciences or other related fields.
- Applicants with high academic achievement will have priority.
- Verifiable supervised experience with hospitalized children (min 150 hours)
- Ability to commit to a 560 hour, 15 week, full time Monday –Friday internship. Work hours will vary depending on the needs of the patients. Some evenings and weekends will be required.
- Participation in a mandatory interview
- Confirmation of classes taken approved by the Child Life Council through the Course Work Review. Information can be found on http://www.childlife.org/. Due to examination application deadlines, no reviews will be done during the following months: March, April, August and September.
Application Process
Interested applicants meeting the minimum entrance requirements will need to submit an application. Applications not containing all of the following components will be considered incomplete and will not be reviewed. A complete application must include the following:
- Internship Application Form
- Professional resume including academic and clinical experiences
- Academic transcripts from all universities attended (student copy is acceptable)
- Course Work Review by the Child Life Council – confirmation letter due BEFORE the internship begins
- Letter of Recommendation (x2) – from an academic professor, a supervisor, or another professional who has directly observed your work with children
- Essay (300-500 words) – Explain why you are pursuing the a child life internship, what your professional goals and objectives are, and how child life contributes to the health care experience of a child and the family
- Verification of at least 150 hours working with children in the healthcare setting on institution letterhead other professional who has directly observed your work with children
Internships are offered three times a year and follow the recommended dates from the Child Life Council as stated below.
| Internship Begins | Application Deadlines | Offer Deadlines | Acceptance Deadlines |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | May 5 | June 22 | June 28 |
| Winter/Spring | September 5 | October 22 | October 28 |
| Summer | January 5 | February 22 | February 28 |
After review of complete applications, applicants may be contacted for an interview. Selection of interns is based on college major, high level of academic achievement, letters of recommendations, written and verbal communication skills, strong personal qualities appropriate when working with children, families, staff and supervisors and strong knowledge of child development and child life.
Internship Components
- The internship experience is divided into one week of orientation and two seven-week clinical rotations. All rotations will be supervised by a certified Child Life Specialist meeting the standards required by the Child Life Council.
- Planning and implementing developmentally appropriate activities in the group and individual setting
- Increased knowledge in observation, assessment, planning, charting and other intervention skills such as coping, education and support.
- Weekly meetings with Child Life staff discussing required readings and various topics.
- Participation in multidisciplinary meetings, special hospital events, support groups and working with volunteers.
- Completing assignments including but not limited to readings, case presentations, diagnosis presentation, journals and other special projects.