Is there an opportunity for field training for the internship requirement?
While neither field training nor internships are required, we strongly encourage students to participate in shadowing. Because many PhD students have little exposure to venues relevant to their research, we have established the opportunity for students to have a formal shadowing experience with a preceptor (e.g., clinician, policy analyst, senior manager). Benefits of shadowing to the students include: (1) gaining an appreciation of a venue relevant to the dissertation (and subsequent research); (2) formulating a research question with greater policy and/or management relevance; (3) learning to work with preceptors from different disciplines; and (4) establishing a relationship with a preceptor who may serve on the dissertation committee. More information about this activity can be found in our Guidelines and Procedures manual.
