Study programme

Programme outline

Period 1Period 2Period 3 and 4
  • Effective Mental Health 
    Intervention for Youth
    5 EC
  • Introduction to Cognitve Behavioural Therapy for Youth 5 EC (Period 1 and 2)
  • Introduction to Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Youth 5 EC
  • Elective course 5 EC
    Recommended courses within the faculty:
    -  Interventions in Diverse Contexts
    -  Juvenile Forensic Psychopathology
  • Possibility to do an elective course in Period 3 instead of Period 2, 5 EC
  • Academic Professional
    (Period 1 to 4, 5 EC)
  • Internship (Period 1-4, 15 or 20 EC)*
  • Thesis (Period 1-4, 20 EC)
  • Academic Professional
  • Internship
  • Clinical Skills Lab  5 EC*
  • Thesis
  • Academic Professional
  • Internship
  • Thesis

* As a student you do either a 15 EC or 20 EC internship, depending on the tasks and length of the internship. It is for the internship coordinator to decide how much your internship is in EC's. Students who do a 15 EC internship need to combine this with 5 EC Clinical Skills Lab in Period 2. The course Clinical Skills Lab cannot be used as an elective. 

Courses

The programme starts with two core courses of our master: Effective Mental Health Intervention for Youth and Introduction to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Youth. These courses provide the foundation for our Master’s programme. Next to these courses, most students will start with their internship from September onwards. Over the entire year, you will discuss and reflect on professional values in the Academic Professional course. Although all students start with their thesis in the first semester (preference for topic, proposal, ethical approval), the emphasis of thesis activities (writing) will be in the second semester for most students.

Below, you will find an overview of courses from the current academic year of this Master's. This overview is meant to give you an idea of what to expect. The course offer may change in the coming academic year.

I did my internship at Orthopedagogen Psychologen Praktijk Utrecht, where I diagnosed children ages 6 to 18 with all sorts of problems, and gave recommendations for treatment.

Internship

During the internship you will familiarise yourself with the clinical child and adolescent psychology profession, train your skills and apply your knowledge in practice. A suitable internship can be in a clinical or research/policy setting in the Netherlands or in your home country (for international students) as long as it meets the requirements (please check with the Internship Coordinator by email). 

We advise you to start looking for your internship as early as possible, preferably February before the start of the programme in September. You are supported by the department in finding a place to do your internship. However, you are responsible for finding and applying for a suitable place to conduct your internship. English-language internships are very scarce in the Netherlands as there are not many Dutch children in the Netherlands that also speak English. If you do not master the Dutch language sufficiently you are invited to find a suitable place for doing your internship abroad.

We strongly recommend to attend our internship information meetings as finding a suitable internship has proven to be difficult. During these meetings we will inform you about the requirements and possibilities for the internship and we will provide tools that can help you with your search. If you have any questions, please email us at internshipccap@uu.nl.

Examples of internship organisations:

  • Medical institutions: child- and youth psychiatry (outpatient and residential clinics), medical psychology departments in general hospitals, and rehabilitation centres.
  • Municipal mental health offices: Youth Care Office, medical day care institutions, mental health institutions, or private practices.
  • Care for the disabled: childcare centres and residential institutions for the mentally impaired, institutions for children and young people with auditive or visual disabilities.
  • Legal institutions: Child Protective Services, parole offices and penitentiaries.
  • Education: school advisory and supervisory services, special education, secondary education.
  • Research and/or policy institutions.

What do graduates have to say about their internships?

“I gained a lot of satisfaction from my internship at a private practice. I especially liked teaching social skills training programmes, because for 10 weeks I was intensively involved with the children, and I was able to watch their progress. When the parents also said that their children were doing much better, that gave me such a feeling of satisfaction.”

“I did my internship at a school for special primary education, where I conducted parent interviews, treated children and performed psychodiagnostics. I was also a member of a team in which I contributed to consultations and to meetings of the supervisory committee. I was able to practice my treatment and intervention skills during individual treatments for several different students.”

“As an intern at a municipal mental health institution, I had the opportunity to conduct psychodiagnostic tests (intelligence tests, projective techniques, personality- and problem-oriented questionnaires) with children, and to earn my Basic Psychodiagnostics Register certification.”

Thesis

During your thesis, you will use the theoretical knowledge, data analytical and research methodological skills acquired during your Bachelor’s and Master’s studies. You will carry out research and report on your findings in a scientific paper.

Examples of research topics

  • How do cultural orientations shape children’s social development?
  • Does Virtual Reality provide a promising means for the assessment and treatment of youth?
  • Understanding and promoting adolescents’ eco-friendly behaviour.
  • The determinants and development of children’s internalizing problems.
  • Immigrant children: the problems they may face, and the resilience they may show.
  • Personality development in adolescents.
  • Parental factors that may influence children’s problem behavior.