Child Life Internship Program at Levine Children’s Hospital

Thank you for your interest in our Child Life Internship Program at Levine Children's Hospital. Our Child Life Internship Program is a 15-week, 600-hour placement accredited and recognized by the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP) on their professional website. The program has met the minimum standards for a clinical internship program set forth by the ACLP.

The Child Life Internship provides a supervised, guided learning experience with children. It has been designed to meet your unique needs and allow you to acquire professional child life skills.

Child Life Internships are offered in the winter/spring and summer to students attending a university. They are organized to meet the requirements of the ACLP to address your specific interests and comply with your academic institution's requirements.

The internship lasts 15 weeks with students working 40 hours per week. It is a full-time, unpaid position that is divided into two, six-week rotations. Each rotation includes orientation and a site visit, with shadow weeks in between the rotations. With the guidance of the Child Life Internship Coordinator, interns will choose one of the clinical areas they want to complete a rotation. The other clinical area is assigned.

Child Life Internship Program Application Information

Important Application Dates

Due to an overwhelming number of applications, we are unable to confirm if your application packet was received.

Admission Requirements

To be considered for the Child Life Internship, the following criteria is required:

• You must be enrolled at a university during the internship.  A student affiliation agreement (PDF) with Atrium Health must be in place to be considered eligible for the internship program.
• If you are an independent student, please do not submit an application, as no exceptions can be made by our hospital.
• Applicants must have varied experiences with children, with at least one experience with children in a health care setting and at least one experience with children outside of a health care setting. There is no minimum number of hours required with these experiences.
• Applicants must have successfully completed an ACLP Eligibility Assessment showing all 10 required courses by ACLP accepted. Required courses can be in progress at the time of the internship application but must be completed by the start of the internship.
• Applicant must be available for interview either in person or virtually.
• When requested, applicant must provide immunization records. Applicant must participate in a drug screening, TB test and background check provided through his or her college or university.

How to Apply

Complete the ACLP Internship Readiness Common Application

Complete the ACLP Internship Readiness Common Application, which can be found on the Application Portal. Detailed instructions on how to complete the application can be found in the guide.

You will need to include the following application components:

• The completed application.
• Unofficial university transcripts from all universities.
• The completed ACLP Eligibility Assessment.

Submit the downloaded application via email

Once all parts of the online application have been completed, applicants can download the application and submit it by emailing it to childlifeinternship@atriumhealth.org. (Note: the email subject line should state the internship session (winter/spring or summer, and the year.) The PDF downloaded as part of the ACLP Internship Readiness Common Application is the only component that will be reviewed. No additional documentation will be required or reviewed for a candidate’s initial submission (no letters of recommendation, cover letters or resumes).

Please note that at this time, we are unable to enter into new affiliation agreements.

Child Life Internship Program Details

Child Life Internship Objectives

• To gain a broader understanding and perspective of the child life profession
• To develop professional attitude, maturity and judgment within the realm of providing child life services
• To gain basic knowledge of the organization and administration of a child life department
• To become independent and self-sufficient as a child life specialist
• To develop an understanding of a team effort in effecting positive experiences for hospitalized children and their families
• To develop an understanding of other disciplines and function as a member of a multidisciplinary healthcare team
• To be able to assess the needs of hospitalized children and their families and recognize creative and flexible interventions
• To develop effective communication skills
• To learn how to prepare patients and families for procedures and surgical interventions in child-friendly terms; to provide education in a non-threatening manner
• To be able to plan, organize, coordinate, implement, and evaluate activities, special visitors, and group functions
• To understand the concept of family-centered care and the role child life plays in its implementation
• To have a strong working knowledge of medical terminology
• To increase the hospital staff and public's knowledge of the philosophy, goals and programs of the child life department
• To be confident and gain experience in patient advocacy
• To bridge the gap between theory and practice within the realm of providing child life services

Child Life General Information

Child Life has been a part of Atrium Health's Carolinas Medical Center since 1977, and at Levine Children's since its opening in 2007. The Child Life Department has more than 30 staff members, including:

• Child life manager
• Two child life lead positions
• Child life specialists/child life education specialists
• Child life assistants

The areas in which we provide services are as follows:

• Children's emergency department
• One-day surgery
• Levine Children's Specialty Center
• Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Outpatient Clinic
• Radiology
• Rehabilitation unit
• Pre-operative/post-anesthesia care unit (surgery)
• Pediatric intensive care unit/cardiovascular intensive care unit
• Neonatal intensive care/progressive care nurseries
• Progressive/renal care unit
• Neurology clinic
• Adult intensive care units
• Child life education specialists – assists with school re-entry and educational plans

Housing

Housing is not provided by the hospital to the child life interns. The Child Life Department can make recommendations on housing in the Charlotte area, if needed.

Uniforms

Black scrub top and bottoms. A white or black long sleeve shirt can be worn under scrub top. Shoes must be closed-toe and have a covered heel.

Required Reading

Interns are required to read the following book prior to beginning their internship. As an intern, you will be required to have access to this book. It may be purchased through the Association of Child Life Professionals online store.

The Handbook of Child Life - By R. Thompson (2009)

For questions, please contact Internship Coordinator, at childlifeinternship@atriumhealth.org.