Child Life Internship

The Child Life and Creative Arts Therapy Department at UC Davis Children's Hospital offers an educational 16-week full-time internship program for highly motivated and qualified individuals. Our emphasis is on providing a comprehensive and hands-on training program for individuals seeking a career as a child life specialist.

Supervised by our staff of Certified Child Life Specialists, the intern will have a well-rounded experience that includes providing multidisciplinary and family-centered care in the following pediatric areas and specialties:

• Davis 7 Pediatric Unit
• Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) 
• Children's Surgery Center, including out-patient procedures
• Pre-operative tours
• Hematology and Oncology
• Pediatric Trauma 
• Pediatric Cardiology 
• Renal Transplant
• Pediatric Rehabilitation

Interns will learn the fundamentals of child life programming, including medical play, surgical and procedural preparation, stress point coping, charting, planning and implementing therapeutic interventions, bereavement support, sibling interventions, and individual and playroom experiences. Additionally, interns will participate in multidisciplinary rounds, in-service training, and classes through our Center for Nursing Education.

Qualifications

Individuals seeking an internship need to have a minimum of a bachelor's degree in child development, psychology, special education, therapeutic recreation, creative arts therapies, or another related field of study. Candidates must have completed at least 100 hours of volunteer experience within a pediatric hospital setting.

Application

Candidates should submit their completed application form with the following documents:

• Current resume
• Documentation of at least 100 hours of volunteer experience within a pediatric hospital setting
• 2 letters of reference
• Official transcripts from all colleges/universities attended
• Documentation of course work review and approval of a minimum of 10 courses from the Child Life Council
• A Statement of Purpose focusing on the following:

Completed applications must be submitted by:

Selection

Selection of our intern is highly competitive and based on the following criteria:

• Academic performance 3.0 or above
• Previous experience working with children, especially in the healthcare setting
• In-person panel interview
• Knowledge of typical growth and development, child development theories, and the child life profession
• Written and verbal communication skills
• Accurately completing the application process

Disclaimer: Completion of a child life internship does not guarantee eligibility to sit for the child life certification exam. Please visit www.childlife.org for information about educational requirements to sit for the exam.

Please mail completed applications to:

UC Davis Children's Hospital
ATTN: Diana Sundberg, Child Life Department
2315 Stockton Blvd, Sacramento, CA 95817

Please click here to download the Child Life Internship application.

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