Working with a Graduate Level Therapist in Philadelphia, PA
by Melanie Taylor, LMFT, RYT-500
So, you’re looking for affordable therapy options in Philadelphia….
You know it would be helpful to see a therapist, but the typical private pay fees seem difficult to manage. You find a sliding scale therapy option and decide to schedule. It’s with an “intern”, and although you’re relieved to have finally taken the step toward the change you want, you feel a bit apprehensive.
What does it mean exactly to see a therapy intern?
Let us tell you!
Working with a graduate level therapist means your therapist is currently in training to receive their diploma and eventual licensure as either a licensed professional counselor, licensed marriage and family therapist, licensed clinical social worker or licensed psychologist. In the Philadelphia area, this means most interns are students at Villanova, University of Pennsylvania, Drexel, Temple, West Chester University, Immaculata University, LaSalle and more.
We know it can feel a bit uncertain to see a counselor “in training”, but there can be many benefits that may go unnoticed. We want to provide you the lowdown on what it actually means to see a graduate level therapist.
Benefits to Working with an Intern Counselor
Benefit #1: Reduced Rate Therapy
It goes with out saying- therapy can be pricey. It’s an investment, for sure. One that we believe is well worth the resources, however, everyone’s resources look a bit different.
In Philadelphia, many therapy centers are private pay, which means you likely are not using insurance to pay for therapy or have to use out of network benefits if you have them.
There is a lot that goes into consideration when setting the fee for therapy, like office rent, taxes (being self employed in Philadelphia ain’t cheap, y'all), licensure maintenance, business insurance, training needs etc. And, that’s not even mentioning being sure there is enough to take home to pay the family bills. The great thing about a graduate level therapist is that they are not having to take as many of these factors into consideration yet, so they are able to offer reduced rate therapy for those seeking more affordable therapy options.
An intern’s fee is just needed to cover the cost of supervision, office space, and of course, taxes- that means a lower cost for you!
Benefit #2: You Get the Expertise of Multiple Therapists
Ok, so sliding scale therapy is nice, but what’s the benefit of working with a novice psychotherapist in Philadelphia, really?
When you are working with your graduate level therapist, you are actually being supported by a lineage of more seasoned therapists.
Every intern is actively engaged in multiple forms of supervision. Not only are they receiving weekly individual supervision with a psychology professor at school along with group supervision with a professor and fellow therapists-in-training, but they are also receiving weekly individual supervision from a seasoned therapist at the practice. And, here at Spilove Psychotherapy, our intern supervisors are also receiving their own supervision of supervision. That’s a whole lot of therapist wisdom.
This is what the layers of support look like!
In supervision, your graduate level therapist is receiving support and training on how to best serve your needs.
This breadth of consultation (which is all HIPPA compliant, of course) means you are firmly supported in your journey of growth and healing. So, although it may be just you and your therapist in the physical space together, your work is held and supported to the maximum. There is the foundation of knowledge, theories and interventions, the wrap around support of the clinical team and fellow therapists- in- training and the oversight and guidance of your therapist’s supervisors and supervisors of supervisors.
Honestly, there is never really another time that a therapist has quite as much clinical support as they do during their graduate internship. Its a truly unique and enriching experience for both intern and client.
Benefit #3: Beginner’s mind
Have you ever expressed a feeling or experience to your friend or family member or maybe even another therapist and felt like they weren’t even really interested in your lived experience of that feeling? Maybe they said something like, “Oh sure, I know what you mean” or “Yea, I feel that way all the time” or just went into advice giving or problem solving and you left feeling unheard? What’s usually lacking in these scenarios is a sense of curiosity and beginner’s mind.
Beginner’s mind is a term that simply means attending to something as if you had no expectations of what it “should" be.
And, who would be better at beginner’s mind then a therapist-in-training!?
In therapy, being “green" comes in handy because it motivates the therapist to learn about a feeling or experience through your lived perspective. Once a therapist is able to understand how it feels through you, not only can they offer genuine validation, but also, they can add their clinical knowledge to then create the solutions to assist you in growth and change.
It’s a win-win.. you are the expert of your own experience and the intern is implementing the expertise of clinical wisdom from class, supervision and their own therapeutic intuition, fostering a creative atmosphere for problem solving, validation and healing.
So, these sound great, but are there any down sides to working with a graduate level therapist?
We actually don’t believe there are. Sure, a graduate level therapist is not yet a specialist in psychotherapy yet, but when engaging fully in an internship experience, they are deeply supported and guided by a family of counseling experts, meaning you are too.
Is there a catch?
In the spirit of transparency, there are a few things to be aware of when working with graduate level therapists. We don’t believe these are a “catch”, but they are a natural part of the process.
Your sessions will likely be audio and/or video taped. These tapes are held to the utmost standards of confidentiality. The purpose of the tapes are for the supervisors to witness the work of your therapist (without awkwardly sitting in the corner of your session) and for the therapist-in-training to prepare and practice to better serve you. Usually the audio/video recording device is placed in an inconspicuous place, so as not to distract you or your therapist. You also sign a waiver for this, so you have full right to deny these recordings. At Spilove, we require our interns to tape their sessions, so that we can ensure you are receiving the best care possible. Recordings are deleted immediately following review.
At some point, your graduate level therapist will graduate and successfully receive their diploma and be on the road to licensure. Although a very exciting time, this usually means they will have to stop their therapy sessions. You will be well aware of when this would happen, and if you are still interested in receiving therapy services, you will likely be transferred to another therapist in the practice that will fit your needs. You will not be left without a plan. At Spilove, we start this plan for transfer or termination of services well in advance so as to have less impact on you.
We deeply value our internship program at Spilove Psychotherapy.
We feel blessed to be able to provide a supportive space for graduate level therapists to learn the meaningful work of therapy and also to be able to offer a reduced rate therapy option. We’re excited to announce that will have three new interns starting in January 2020, offering sliding scale therapy in Center City, Philadelphia, West Chester and Bryn Mawr! We have a brand new therapy center opening on Walnut St, right next to Rittenhouse Square in Center City!