Program Intern, Brave Buddies

Summary:

The Child Mind Institute (CMI) is seeking highly skilled and motivated individuals with an interest in children’s mental health to join our team as interns for our Brave Buddies Program.

Brave Buddies is an intensive group behavioral treatment program designed to help children with selective mutism (SM) speak in school and other public places. SM is an anxiety disorder characterized by a child’s inability to speak in some social situations despite being able to speak fluently when comfortable. Brave Buddies is an innovative program that helps children with SM overcome their symptoms using state of the art evidence-based behavioral interventions.

CMI is seeking individuals interested in being trained in this evidence-based treatment program and who can commit to the full duration of the Brave Buddies program. Interns will be trained in behavioral therapy tools/skills to work with children with SM by participating in various activities with them, supporting them to engage behaviorally, and prompting them to use verbal responses and speak spontaneously as they play with other children and adults. Brave Buddies Program Interns will be trained in the skills from Parent-Child Interaction Therapy for Selective Mutism (PCIT-SM), an evidence-based treatment for SM, and are taught and coached to facilitate speech across various settings and activities.

Brave Buddies is offered as a multi-day session twice a year and as a one-day session multiple times throughout the year. The next Brave Buddies Program will be held February 15th- 18th, 2025.

Interns must be available for the preparation and training sessions, as well as the entirety of the program to be considered (exceptions will be made for religious observance).   

Training and preparation sessions will be held at our Midtown office location; the Brave Buddies Program will be held offsite in Manhattan.

Two additional hours of online trainings will be required to complete at home prior to Brave Buddies. 

Program interns must be available in person at the following dates and times:  

Thursday January 30th 9:30AM-2:30PM: Selective Mutism/Brave Buddies Intern Training Part I

Thursday February 6th 9:30AM-2:30PM: Selective Mutism/Brave Buddies Intern Training Part II

Thursday February 13th 11AM-6PM: Brave Buddies Prep Sessions Part I

Friday February 14th 11AM-4PM: Brave Buddies Prep Sessions Part II

Saturday February 15th–Tuesday February 18th 8AM-3PM: Brave Buddies

Reporting directly to the Director of the Selective Mutism Service, Anxiety Disorders Center, this is a highly competitive unpaid, part-time internship position located at our NYC headquarters. We strongly encourage applicants to investigate stipend programs through their college placement offices and to pursue independent college study credits for this experience. We can provide any requested documentation to assist students in getting stipends and college credit.

We’re dedicated to transforming the lives of children and families struggling with mental health and learning disorders by giving them the help they need. We’ve become the leading independent nonprofit in children’s mental health by providing gold-standard evidence-based care, delivering educational resources to millions of families each year, training educators in underserved communities, and developing tomorrow’s breakthrough treatments. 

The Child Mind Institute is proud to be named a Great Place to Work-Certified company! 

Child Mind Institute is committed to creating an inclusive culture where all employees feel welcomed and valued.    

Learning Opportunities:

• The Brave Buddies program provides a learning and training opportunity for individuals interested in children’s mental health, specifically in the field of selective mutism. They will gain experience by working directly with children with selective mutism. Program participants will be trained in the skills from Parent Child Interaction Therapy for Selective Mutism (PCIT-SM), an evidence-based treatment for SM, and are taught and coached to facilitate s