• Job Type: Officer of Administration
• Regular/Temporary: Regular
• Hours Per Week: 35
• Salary Range: $160,000-175,000

Position Summary

Under the leadership of the AVP, CPS, the Associate Director for Postdoctoral Training oversees all aspects of the CPS postdoctoral fellowship in college mental health. The incumbent is responsible for the full lifecycle of the fellowship program, including the annual recruitment, selection, orientation, and onboarding of postdoctoral fellows ; the coordination of individualized supervision and mentorship; and ensuring compliance with all legal and ethical standards governing postdoctoral training in psychology.

The Associate Director appoints and oversees a team of senior clinicians who contribute to supervision of the fellows, ensuring that fellows provide quality patient care while benefiting from a rich and meaningful training experience. In addition, the incumbent also maintains an active clinical caseload, proving diagnostic assessment, treatment planning, crisis intervention, and brief psychotherapy to students. This is an essential, onsite role. Visa sponsorship is not available for this role.

Responsibilities

Direct Patient care (40%)

• Provides diagnostic assessment, treatment planning, crisis intervention, and brief psychotherapy to students
• Facilitates or co-facilitates a therapy group or support space, as service needs and time constraints permit
• Maintains timely and appropriate clinical records and perform other administrative tasks in support of clinical work
• Triages caseload and refers students to other resources, as needed
• Meets, as needed, with family members, advisors and others in support of treatment

Supervision, Mentorship, & Risk Management (25%)

• Appoints and oversees a team of senior clinicians best suited to supervise fellows; creates appropriate supervisory assignments for each fellow.
• Monitors the progress of each fellow through direct observation, chart reviews, and meetings with supervisors; conducts a semi-annual evaluation by supervisors using a standardized assessment instrument.  Provide formal feedback to fellows twice yearly.
• Personally provide weekly one-to-one supervision to three fellows; and monthly one-to-one mentorship to those fellows not directly supervised.
• Convenes and facilitates monthly supervisors’ meetings
• Provides oversight and professional development opportunities for staff new to the supervisory role.
• Organizes and implements, as appropriate, in-service presentations, readings, and other activities to nurture the skills of the supervisory staff.
• Personally provide weekly one-to-one supervision to three fellows; and monthly one-to-one mentorship to those fellows not directly supervised.
• Co-facilitates a consultation group for clinical staff
• Ensures all cases assigned to fellows are appropriate to their level of training and competence.
• Ensures that all documentation meets clinical, legal, ethical and accreditation standards and are read and co-signed by licensed staff in a timely fashion.
• Intervenes directly, if needed, to manage cases that evolve into high-risk situations by providing additional supervision and guidance, or introducing a senior clinician into the treatment, or transferring the case, or taking other appropriate actions.

Recruiting, Interviewing, Selecting, Onboarding, & Orienting (10%)

• Under the guidance of the AVP, implements an annual plan for recruiting a deep and talented pool of postdoc applicants. Recruitment strategies include: Cultivating and maintaining positive relationships with, and outreach to, clinical and counseling doctoral program and internship directors; timely and effective advertising of positions; and arranging and participating in virtual open houses.
• Tracks and oversees the review of all application materials.
• In collaboration with the AVP and other supervisory staff, as needed, interviews and rates highly qualified applicants; and extend offers to finalists on a “rolling admissions” basis.
• Interfaces with HR and Health Communications to ensure timely posting, advertising, review of credentials, and generation of offer letters to selectees.
• Ensures that all fellows are on boarded in a timely manner consistent with HR and accreditation standards and with NYS law.
• Oversees a comprehensive orientation program for fellows covering critical topics including: risk management, confidentiality, the brief treatment model, University policies and procedures, an over-view of other divisions of Health, an introduction to the Columbia student health insurance plan, referral resources, and referral considerations.
• Annually reviews, and revises as needed, all recruitment, interviewing, selection, and onboarding processes.

Didactic Training (10%)

• Organizes, implements, and oversees a weekly didactic seminar that covers critical topics in college mental health such as the initial intake with emphasis on mental status, diagnosis, and treatment planning; cultural competence; late adolescent and emerging adulthood development; working collaboratively with psychiatrists; academic problems; eating disorders; substance use disorders; trauma; transference and countertransference, and related topics.
• Develops, implements and revises, as needed, a tool that allows fellows to provide feedback about each module of the seminar; adjusts the curriculum as necessary based on their input and changes in the service delivery environment
• Teaches select sections of the didactic seminar;  arranges guest lecturers from outside CPS as appropriate.
• Meets with each fellow to ascertain areas of clinical interest (e.g., eating disorders, LGBTQ+ issues, trauma, etc.) and to the extent possible arranges appropriate training opportunities, including, but not limited to, participation in preferred elective rotations
• Periodically reviews, evaluates and revises, as needed, the structure of all electives
• Monitors and ensures balance between time devoted to didactics, supervision, and clinical activities.
• Oversees the selection of appropriate long term training cases for each fellow that provide exposure to students with a range of backgrounds, developmental issues, and presenting problems; identifies training cases suitable for presentation in a year-long seminar on psychodynamic psychotherapy taught by an expert on the application of psychodynamic thinking to college mental health.

Administrative Oversight (5%)

• Works with the Associate Director of Operations to establish appropriate office assignments, intake hours, Urgent Concerns assignments, and manages all other relevant aspects of clinical scheduling.
• Ensures that each fellow co-facilitates a group each semester, to the extent practicable; arranges for specialized group supervision.
• Oversees fellows’ involvement in postvention activities, should they arise, treating this as a training opportunity
• Monitors fellows’ compliance with Columbia Health policies and procedures
• Periodically reviews and updates as needed all policies and procedures pertaining to the fellowship program, as well as the postdoctoral fellowship manual.
• Reviews and co-signs clinical notes for cases presented in seminar, case conference
• Addresses any grievances or conflicts that may arise within  supervisory relationships, involving the AVP, HR, or other appropriate Columbia offices and personnel as necessary.

Legal & Ethical Compliance (5%)

• Keeps abreast of changes in the legal landscape that may impact the fellowship.
• Ensures that all fellows, obtain limited permits as needed or that Columbia maintains exempt status.
• Consults with the AVP and, as appropriate or necessary, with APA, NYSPA, the New York State Office of the Professions and the Columbia Office of General Counsel should legal or ethical issues arise.
• Completes all documentation required for fellows to obtain licensure upon completion of the fellowship, including certification of required supervision hours  .
• Responds to requests for letters of reference or for documentation regarding privileging in settings in which graduates of the fellowship may seek employment

Performs other duties as assigned (5%)

Minimum Qualifications

• Ph.D. or Psy.D. in Clinical or Counseling Psychology
• Current NYS licensure or, if licensed out of state, eligible for licensure in NY.
• Minimum of 8 years of relevant clinical experience including competence in psychodynamic psychotherapy
• At least 5 years of progressively responsible experience supervising clinical work
• Excellent organizational, communication, conflict resolution, and interpersonal skills
• Demonstrable cultural competency
• Advanced diagnostic and clinical skills, particularly in working with serious psychopathology, trauma, suicidality, and self-harm.
• Availability to assist in postvention activities after a campus tragedy or events adversely impacting the campus community and to respond to weekend and afterhours crisis calls from fellows and supervisors in need of urgent consultation/clinical guidance.  Flexibility in work routines

Preferred Qualifications

• College mental health experience or equivalent experience with late adolescent and young adult populations
• Advanced training in psychodynamic psychotherapy
• Additional years of clinical and supervisory experience
• Teaching experience
• Demonstrated experience with publications, presentations, research

Other Requirements

• This is an essential on-site role

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.