Child Life Internship

Child life internship (San Francisco)

Internship requirements

San Francisco's internship program is accredited by the Association of Child Life Professionals. To qualify for the program, you must have:

• 100 hours of experience working with well infants, children, youth or families
• 100 hours of experience working with infants, children, youth or families in stressful situations, health care settings or programs designed for children with special needs
• Successfully completed child life coursework in the six applied areas of study, as required by the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP)
• Completed the academic course work portion of the ACLP eligibility assessment
• Completed the child life internship application

Before beginning the internship, you must also:

• Provide photo ID and proof of health clearance, immunizations and an up-to-date TB test.
• Provide documentation of liability insurance coverage, either through a university affiliated with UCSF or through private liability insurance. We do accept non-affiliated students.

During the program, you must be willing to:

• Work a minimum of 40 hours a week, including holidays, evenings and weekends
• Meet weekly with your rotation supervisor and internship coordinator
• Keep a journal, including sample chart notes and developmental assessments
• Create personal goals and rotation goals
• Prepare a case study and present to the Child Life Services team
• Observe in-service trainings as requested
• Attend weekly classes taught by the Child Life Services team
• Complete rotations as assigned
• Prepare a significant project that directly benefits Child Life Services and its goals, which must be approved by the internship coordinator and rotation supervisor

Internship program structure

Interns work at the bedside with a certified child life specialist conducting therapeutic play, diagnosis teaching, preparation, procedural support, sibling support, charting and more.

The 15-week program consists of:

• Week 1: Orientation with internship coordinator
• Rotation 1 (six weeks) and rotation 2 (six weeks) with a certified child life specialist
• Two elective weeks
• Weekly meetings with internship coordinator
• Weekly classes with the Child Life Services team

Internship hours are mostly completed during the week, with some holiday, weekend and evening hours.

A rotation supervisor is assigned to each intern. Your supervisor will meet with you once a week to discuss goals, journal entries, a case study and specific rotations and interventions.

Internship application process

Please make sure you meet all the requirements listed above before applying for the internship.

To apply, please complete our online application.

We also require two letters of recommendation, one from a someone affiliated with an academic institution and the other from someone affiliated with a clinical institution. Your references can submit their letters of recommendation using our online form or the QR code below:

We follow the ACLP application deadlines. Once the due date has passed, we will contact you after reviewing your application. The internship committee reviews the applications of all candidates who meet the requirements to choose finalists. If chosen as a finalist, you will be interviewed by the internship coordinator and supervisors for the internship.

We accept up to two child life interns per semester.

Child life internship (Oakland)

The Child Life Department at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland offers full-time internships to qualified students enrolled in a graduate child life program. The internship is a 600-hour, 15-week program designed to prepare students for a career as a child life specialist. The internship aligns with the recommendations of the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP).

Internship requirements

We require at least 100 hours of paid or unpaid pediatric hospital experience. In addition, participants must provide the following before starting their internship:

• Background check completed by UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland
• Health clearance (proof of immunizations and an up-to-date TB test)
• Documentation of liability insurance coverage or insurance coverage through an academic institution

Internship program structure

Our child life internship offers a comprehensive learning experience that includes therapeutic play activities, advocacy strategies, preparation and procedural support.

The 15-week program consists of:

• Two six-week rotations on distinct medical services
• One three-week rotation that will be determined during the course of the internship
• Weekly meetings with your primary supervisor

Internship application process

Please refer to the ACLP guidelines for internship application deadlines. We accept applications for the winter/spring, summer and fall semesters.

To apply, complete and sign the ACLP Common Child Life Internship Application.

Applications must include all the items listed in the application checklist review to be considered for an interview. Applications won't be reviewed until all of the items are received, including an official ACLP eligibility report, a cover letter and a resume.

Please also complete and submit all relevant supplements included in the Common Child Life Internship Application, such as the Confirmation of Child Life Course In-Progress form and the Child Life In-Progress Practicum form.

Prepare and submit the following additional documents with your application:

• Academic transcripts
  Unofficial transcripts are acceptable for the application. If accepted for the internship, official transcripts must be supplied upon request. Include transcripts for any undergraduate, graduate or post-graduate work.
• Two child life internship candidate common recommendation forms
  These forms are included as supplements in the Common Child Life Internship Application. One form should be from someone affiliated with an academic institution and the other should be from a qualified representative of your hospital experience, preferably from a certified child life specialist who supervised you. Letters of reference from both sources along with the reference forms are strongly recommended. Your references may submit recommendation forms and letters of reference via email.
• Supplemental essay questions
  Write two 300-500 word essays responding to the following questions in separate documents: 1) What are your core values when working with vulnerable populations such as children and families in a health care setting? 2) Describe a challenging experience when working with a hospitalized patient. Upon reflection, is there anything you would have done differently? If you're applying for a second internship, please describe an experience from your previous internship.
• Diversity, equity and inclusion statement
  The selected intern will receive an $8,000 equity stipend. University policy states that a candidate's race or gender may not be considered in selecting interns. However, to attract excellent interns who will contribute to the University's diversity imperative, a written diversity statement will be weighed as part of the child life internship application. In 1,000 words or less, please describe how you have contributed to increasing diversity, equity and inclusion.

When your application packet is complete, please email the documents to the address listed below.