Practicum Experience Training Outline

 Welcome to the Nesting Space Therapy Practicum Experience Training Program! This year-long training experience is designed to support your growth as both a clinician and a future leader in the mental health field. Over the course of the academic year, you’ll be immersed in a comprehensive curriculum that balances hands-on experience with structured learning, grounded in three core themes: practice management, clinical ethics, and business operations.

At Nesting Space, we believe that great therapists are not only clinically competent, but also ethically grounded and operationally informed. That means we’re not just teaching you how to do therapy—we’re preparing you to navigate real-world clinical work with confidence, clarity, and authenticity.

You’ll be trained by highly experienced supervisors who are deeply passionate about trauma-informed care, relational therapy, and the development of well-rounded, thoughtful clinicians. Our goal is to create a space where you feel supported to stretch, ask questions, make mistakes, and grow into the kind of therapist you want to be.

This outline provides a month-by-month look at the topics you’ll engage with throughout your internship, blending foundational clinical training with essential operational knowledge. We’re so excited to work alongside you.

 

AUGUST: Orientation & Foundations

  • Welcome + Expectations

  • Onboarding & Basic Training

    • EHR overview, practice policies, and operational workflow ✔️ Practice Management

  • Intro to Clinical Documentation & Ethics

    • Note types, informed consent, boundaries, mandated reporting ✔️ Clinical Ethics

  • Authenticity & Relational Therapy

    • Building trust, showing up as yourself across modalities ✔️ Clinical Ethics

 

SEPTEMBER: Clinical Competency Basics

  • Diagnosing in the Client’s Best Interest

    • Avoiding pathologizing, DSM-5 overview, clinical utility ✔️ Clinical Ethics

  • Insurance 101 + Documenting for Insurance While Protecting Clients

    • Compliance vs. clinical care, blending requirements ✔️ Business Operations + Clinical Ethics

  • CBT Basics

    • Skill-based interventions, psychoeducation, common uses ✔️ Clinical Ethics

 

OCTOBER: Working with Core Presentations

  • Working with Mood & Anxiety Disorders through a Trauma Lens

    • Assessment, treatment planning, psychoeducation ✔️ Clinical Ethics

  • DBT Basics

    • Modules overview, skills training, integration into sessions ✔️ Clinical Ethics

  • Client Crisis Management for Safety & Compliance

    • Risk assessment, safety planning, escalation protocols ✔️ Practice Management + Clinical Ethics

 

NOVEMBER: Systems & Family Work

  • Working with Littles + Intro to Play Therapy

    • Engagement, regulation, caregiver involvement ✔️ Clinical Ethics

  • Working with Family Systems

    • Genograms, communication patterns, multigenerational trauma ✔️ Clinical Ethics

  • Working with Teams

    • Interdisciplinary communication, coordinated care ✔️ Practice Management

 

DECEMBER: Personality & Complexity

  • Working with Personality Disorders through a Trauma Lens

    • Stigma reduction, emotional regulation, relational work ✔️ Clinical Ethics

  • IFS Basics

    • Parts work, trauma narratives, integration into treatment plans ✔️ Clinical Ethics

  • Mid-Year Check-In

    • Reflective supervision, skill review, learning goals reset ✔️ Practice Management

 

JANUARY: Business 101

  • Contracting & Credentialing 101

    • Networks, NPI types, CAQH, application timelines ✔️ Business Operations

  • Billing & Revenue Cycle Management

    • What happens after the note: claims, denials, follow-up ✔️ Business Operations

  • Medicaid Statutes

    • State-specific guidance, medical necessity, ethical implications ✔️ Business Ops + Clinical Ethics

 

FEBRUARY: Ethical & Profitable Practice

  • Being a Profitable & Ethical Business Owner

    • Time tracking, boundaries, sustainable caseloads ✔️ Business Ops + Clinical Ethics

  • Marketing & Referrals for Clinicians

    • Ethical self-promotion, relationship-building ✔️ Business Ops + Clinical Ethics

  • Insurance Billing vs. Private Pay

    • Pros/cons, transparency, impact on clinical work ✔️ Business Ops

 

MARCH: Client-Centered Care Deep Dive

  • Revisiting Trauma-Informed Care

    • Re-grounding in clinical orientation, somatic cues ✔️ Clinical Ethics

  • Case Conceptualization Across Modalities

    • Pulling together CBT, DBT, IFS with relational lens ✔️ Clinical Ethics

  • Special Topics: LGBTQ+ Affirming Work, Neurodivergence, Cultural Responsiveness

    • Intersectionality and clinical adaptability ✔️ Clinical Ethics

 

APRIL: Real-World Prep

  • Professional Identity + Career Pathing

    • What comes next? Licensure planning, long-term goals ✔️ Practice Management

  • Imposter Syndrome & Clinical Confidence

    • Naming fear, normalizing growth edges ✔️ Clinical Ethics

  • Peer Consult + Case Presentations

    • Practice presenting complex cases ✔️ Practice Management

 

MAY: Wrap-Up + Exit Strategy

  • Final Documentation & Case Closure

    • Discharge notes, terminations, warm handoffs ✔️ Clinical Ethics

  • Exit Interviews + Feedback

    • Reflection on growth, supervisor evaluations ✔️ Practice Management

  • Celebration + Certification of Completion