Psychology Postdoctoral Fellowship - Multiple Tracks

Psychology Postdoctoral Fellowship

About

Allina Health, a not-for-profit health care system, with more than 90 clinics and 13 hospitals, cares for people from the beginning of life to the end of life. In alignment with our mission, vision, values and promise, Mental Health & Addiction Services has been strategically positioned within our primary care clinics, behavioral health hospital-based clinics, and inpatient mental health settings to serve people who have higher-acuity mental health needs. To learn more about Allina Health, visit our About Us page.

Allina Health System’s Postdoctoral Psychology Fellowship program offers four positions each year. These are full-time, one year postdoctoral fellowships of 2,080 training hours. Our goal is to provide the training necessary to fully prepare you with the knowledge and skills necessary to have a successful career as a Health Service Psychologist.

You will receive experience in core clinical services with a diverse patient population.  

Allina Health offers psychology trainees a well-rounded and unique training opportunity. We provide high-quality training in clinical therapeutic intervention, clinical assessment, and supervision.

Aims

The aim of the Psychology Fellowship is to prepare you for practice in Health Service Psychology. We do this by:

• providing you with a diverse clinical experience and client population
• following a model of training that provides supervised experience in areas of assessment, intervention and consultation
• focusing on relevant research and evidenced-based practice that can be incorporated into your postdoc fellowship experience through direct clinical services, didactic experiences, consultation and/or supervision
• valuing and focusing on your individual training needs and desires. As you become more familiar with your location and clients, gain experience and develop professionally, closer supervision will transition to mentorship and, eventually, relatively autonomous practice.

Allina Health’s Psychology Postdoctoral fellowship values individual and cultural diversity. The training staff recognize that the services we provide our patients and the training you receive as a postdoctoral fellow is vastly improved when a compassionate view of human differences is adopted by all. Given such, it is the goal of the training staff to continuous development of cultural competencies. It is one of our top priorities to be a mentor to you in this continuous learning process.

While the pace of your training is based on your developmental needs, our commitment to you is to help you develop the core competencies listed below, which are needed for independent practice in Health Service Psychology.

Tracks and rotations

Postdoctoral fellows begin the year by completing a self-assessment that provides insight into current knowledge and skill in the areas of evaluation/assessment, the provision of psychological interventions, and other skills related to the program’s competencies. A postdoctoral fellow’s skill level, past experience, interests and goals are taken into account in formulating a training plan for the year. The training plan for the year consists of goals and a plan by which to meet those goals. Individualized training plans can be modified throughout the year, depending on a postdoctoral fellow’s needs. All training activities are structured according to a developmental model, with trainees initially being provided close and detailed supervision as appropriate, with opportunities to master fundamentals in assessment, interventions, supervision/consultation, and ethics. As the year progresses, more time is allocated to more focused skills and techniques/approaches. As the year progresses, training staff encourage Postdoctoral fellows to use themselves and each other as resources more and supervisory relationships become increasingly consultative. 

Supervised service delivery is the principal means by which skills are taught and integrated. Techniques such as observational learning, video recording and role playing are used to facilitate the development of clinical skills. In addition, didactics and corresponding readings support clinical skill development. 

TRACKS (one position for each track)

Adult Primary Care 

• As a fellow you will gain proficiency in implementing evidenced-based practices such as CBT, BT, IPT and mindfulness-based interventions as well as brief assessment.  You will also implement an integrated health model, consulting with other on-site medical professionals. You also will gain skills in consultation between disciplines, honing your diagnostic skills and providing consultation services.  There will also be opportunities for training in individual and / or group supervision with doctoral-level psychology trainees.  Last, there will be opportunity for research and/or program development work.

Child / Adolescent Primary Care 

• As a fellow you will gain proficiency in implementing evidenced-based practices such as CBT, BT, IPT and mindfulness-based interventions as well as brief assessment. You will also implement an integrated health model, consulting with other on-site medical professionals. You also will gain skills in consultation between disciplines, honing your diagnostic skills and providing consultation and early intervention services.  There will also be opportunities for training in individual and / or group supervision with doctoral-level psychology trainees.  Last, there will be opportunity for research and/or program development work.

Adult Inpatient and Hospital-Based Outpatient Clinic 

Hospital-Based Clinic

• Psychology fellows will work with people who have a higher level of mental health acuity and/or are in need of specialized services. These patients may benefit from longer-term, evidenced-based therapy and/or additional collaboration with other members of the treatment team. Your team will include therapists, psychiatrists, registered nurses and certified medical assistants. Clinical activities will include individual and group therapy and assessment. You will gain exposure to diagnostic assessment and psychological evaluation as well as provide evidenced-based therapies such as CBT, mindfulness-based, and IPT. These assessment opportunities will help you develop competence in diagnostic interviewing as well as administration and scoring of psychometrically- validated instruments that assess cognitive function and personality.  

Inpatient

• The Inpatient adult rotation occurs at Unity Hospital. The clinic interdisciplinary staff specializes in the treatment of mental health disorders. Psychology Postdoctoral Fellows attend staff meetings, providing clinical assessment and interventions such as diagnostic interviews, individual therapy, presenting psychoeducational classes, co-facilitating psychotherapy groups, and completing documentation.  

• Across both rotations, there will also be opportunities for training in individual and / or group supervision with doctoral-level psychology trainees.  Last, there will be opportunity for research and/or program development work.

Child/Adolescent Inpatient and Hospital-Based Clinic 

Hospital-Based Clinic

• Psychology postdoctoral fellow will work with people who have a higher level of mental health acuity and/or are in need of specialized services. These patients may benefit from longer-term, evidenced-based therapy and/or additional collaboration with other members of the treatment team. Your team will include therapists, adult and/or child and adolescent psychiatrists, registered nurses and certified medical assistants. Clinical activities will include individual and group therapy and assessment. You will gain exposure to diagnostic assessment and psychological evaluation as well as provide evidenced-based therapies such as CBT, mindfulness-based, and IPT. These assessment opportunities will help you develop competence in diagnostic interviewing as well as administration and scoring of psychometrically- validated instruments that assess cognitive function and personality.  

Inpatient

• The Inpatient adolescent rotation occurs at Abbott Northwestern Hospital. The clinic interdisciplinary staff specializes in the treatment of mental health disorders. Psychology Postdoctoral fellows attend staff meetings, providing clinical assessment and interventions such as diagnostic interviews, individual therapy, presenting psychoeducational classes, co-facilitating psychotherapy groups, and completing documentation.  
• Across both rotations, there will also be opportunities for training in individual and / or group supervision with doctoral-level psychology trainees.  Last, there will be opportunity for research and/or program development work.

Salary, benefits and resources

The postdoctoral year begins on the second Monday in August and continues a full 12 months. Your yearly training stipend is $48,000. Also included is the option for health insurance and 29 days of time away (including vacation, illness, personal appointments, outside educational opportunities, job interviews and other relevant activities). In addition, postdoctoral fellows are provided time off for these holidays: New Year’s Day (or observed), Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day (or observed). You also will be provided the option for benefits including long-term disability, dental, vision and life insurance.  Medical Leave (including maternity leave) is processed per Allina Health’s system wide policy, which indicates all Allina employees working in benefit eligible positions are entitled to working with HR regarding specific LOA policies, procedures, and benefits.

Application requirements

• Completion of doctoral degree in clinical, counseling, or school psychology within 90-days of the start of fellowship
• Applicants must have graduated from an APA/CPA-accredited program
• Completion of an APA/CPA accredited internship
• This postdoctoral training program meets the postdoctoral supervised practice requirements for the state of Minnesota.

Additional Information

Upon applying, please indicate in your cover letter which of the four tracks to which you are applying (Adult Primary Care, Child/Adolescent Primary Care, 

Applicant Selection Process

PURPOSE: The selection process for the postdoctoral fellowship assesses the applicants past educational experience, training experience, involvement in research noted strengths. The selection process also evaluates the applicant’s capacity to succeed in the training program. The selection process involves clinical supervisors and other staff members in the application review and interview process.

• 1. Application are received through the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC) application process (APPA CAS).

2. Interviews will include: 

a. Overview of Allina Health Mental Health and Addiction Services Clinical Service Line 

b. Tour of the facility 

c. Overview of the training program and available rotations and tracks 

i. Opportunity for questions and answers with supervisory staff 

ii. Opportunity for questions and answers with current postdoctoral fellows 

iii. Panel interview with two to four Training Committee members will also be conducted. The interview will consist of structured interview questions, as well as, clinical vignettes. 

3. All other factors deemed equal, the higher ranking will be given to an applicant who identifies a factor of individual or cultural diversity. 

4. The Training Director will extend an offer in accordance with APPIC interview and offer guidelines.

If you are selected for an interview, you will be notified via the email listed on your application materials. Interviews will be scheduled individually given our current timeline. Although an in-person interview is preferred, phone and Skype interviews will be considered upon request. In-person interviews will consist of an overview of Allina Health Mental Health and Addiction Service line from leadership, panel interviews with Training Committee members, a tour of the facilities, Q&A sessions with the Training Director and a separate session with current Postdoctoral fellows. 

Contact Us

Please contact the Training Director with any questions related to the Psychology Postdoctoral Fellowship or application requirements.

Tonya Freeman, PsyD, LP

Tonya.Freeman@allina.com

763-236-0600