Child Life Clinical Internship

A Child Life Clinical Internship is one of the final steps in the Student’s journey to becoming a Child Life Specialist. UH Rainbow’s comprehensive Child Life Clinical Internship experience provides the Student with the opportunity to learn from practicing Certified Child Life Specialists during a 16-week semester. UH Rainbow Child Life Clinical Internship positions are full-time, 40 hours per week, for a total experience of 600 hours. The Student typically has two long clinical rotations (an inpatient unit and an outpatient unit) and a few shorter rotations to offer a well-rounded experience. During each rotation, the unit-based Child Life Specialist serves as the Student’s preceptor and mentor. The Student is also assigned a Child Life Supervisor who facilitates weekly supervision meetings. These weekly meetings provide the Student with additional support, discussion, and processing related to their clinical experiences and assignments. Additionally, the Student has in-services on topics relevant to the Child Life profession and completes required assignments including readings, a case study, and a project. The hands-on UH Rainbow Child Life Clinical Internship experience aligns with the Student’s academic curriculum, builds upon the academic coursework, and focuses on a Student’s further development of skills in assessment, planning, implementing, and evaluating Child Life interventions.

Child Life Clinical Internship Prerequisites

Qualified Student applicants must meet the following criteria:

1. Be currently enrolled in a Bachelor’s, Master’s or Child Life Certificate program at an affiliated College/University during your Child Life Clinical Internship experience (i.e. currently enrolled and receiving credit specifically toward the completion of a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree or Child Life Certificate). (Independent Students are not accepted due to hospital policies)
   • If enrolled in a Bachelor’s or Master’s program, a Child Life major (or concentration in Child Life) or a major in a related field to Child Life is required (e.g. Child Development, Education, Family Studies, etc.).
   • If enrolled in a Child Life Certificate program, a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree must be completed in a related field to Child Life (e.g. Child Development, Education, Family Studies, etc.).
   • Please Note: An Educational Affiliation Agreement between your College/University and UH Rainbow is required but can be initiated after an official offer is accepted. The Student will be considered “pending” until the Affiliation Agreement is in place. The Affiliation Agreement process can take several months and the Student cannot begin their experience until the Affiliation is secured.
2. Have successfully completed the 10 approved Child Life courses in the six (6) applied areas of study as required by the ACLP.
3. Have completed an in-person Child Life Practicum (100 hours) in a pediatric hospital under the direct supervision of a Certified Child Life Specialist(s). (The Practicum experience must be completed in-person ; Virtual Practicum experiences are not accepted).
   • Please Note: A Student is encouraged to complete their Child Life Practicum experience before applying for a Child Life Clinical Internship. The UH Rainbow Child Life Student Committee has observed that Students who have completed their Practicum are better prepared for the selection process than Students interviewing during their first few weeks of their Practicum experience.
4. Have acquired Relevant Experience Hours involving children Within a Healthcare Setting and Outside of a Healthcare Setting as stipulated by the ACLP.

Child Life Clinical Internship Application Process

Please contact the UH Rainbow Child Life Student Coordinator to: 1) inquire about the status of our Student Programming for the specific session in which you are interested, 2) to request the detailed outline of the UH Rainbow Child Life Clinical Internship prerequisites and application process, and 3) to request the current UH Rainbow Child Life Clinical Internship Application. There are no fees for the application process or the UH Rainbow Child Life Clinical Internship experience.

Prospective Students must complete both the UH Rainbow Child Life Clinical Internship Application AND the online ACLP Child Life Internship Readiness Common Application (found at https://aclp.smapply.io/ ). ALL Application documents must be submitted together in one (1) email to ChildLifeStudents@UHhospitals.org.

The UH Rainbow Child Life Clinical Student Program follows the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP) application guidelines, deadlines, and offer dates. Your UH Rainbow Child Life Clinical Internship Application must be emailed by the ACLP’s deadline date for the specific session to which you are applying.

Please Note: A UH Rainbow Child Life Clinical Internship Application submission with incomplete Applications, missing documents, or emailed after the ACLP’s deadline date will not be considered.

Child Life Clinical Internship Selection Process

Students will receive an email confirmation when their UH Rainbow Child Life Clinical Internship Application submission has been received and correspondence will continue during each step of the selection process. All Applications will be reviewed by the UH Rainbow Child Life Student Committee. However, the review of a Student’s Application does not guarantee the Student’s advancement to interview.

The UH Rainbow Child Life Student Committee will conduct two rounds of interviews. From the pool of Student applicants, a select number of Students will be contacted and offered a phone interview. Once all phone interviews are complete, a select number of Students will be contacted and offered advancement to a second interview. Second interviews will be conducted via Zoom. The final selection of a Student(s) for a Child Life Clinical Internship experience at UH Rainbow is based on the Student’s completed Applications, written responses, personal interviews, and references. If selected, a formal offer will be made to the Student consistent with the ACLP’s offer date and process guidelines.

Soon after the Student accepts the formal offer for a Child Life Clinical Internship experience at UH Rainbow, the UH Rainbow Child Life Student Coordinator will work with the Student to begin the coordination of their Educational Affiliation Agreement (if needed), UH Rainbow on-boarding, and will be the point person for future communication, scheduling, and orientation. The Student must complete the UH Rainbow on-boarding process prior to the start date of their clinical experience.

Contact Us

To inquire about the status of our Child Life Clinical Internship experience for a specific session, to request the detailed outline of the UH Rainbow Child Life Clinical Internship prerequisites and application process, to request the current UH Rainbow Child Life Clinical Internship Application, or for any further questions, please contact:

Lissy Zaremba, MA, CCLS
Clinical Educator | Child Life Student Coordinator
Phone: (216) 844-1353
Email: Lissy.Zaremba@UHhospitals.org