Linking Employment to Academic Development (LEAD)

Picture of Mt Ida Buildings, Brick exterior and some trees

Linking Employment to Academic Development (LEAD) 
Training the next generation of leaders!

PBS is excited to offer a new program: LEAD at Mt Ida. This program is designed to enrich the training of our majors.

Students in the program will spend a semester at the Mt Ida Campus working at exciting locations in the Newton and Metro-west Boston area and complete courses relevant to the psychology major. 

One of the pillars of undergraduate student success involves preparing our students for post undergraduate careers; internships provide students the opportunity to explore the breadth of positions available, to apply their academic skills to various careers, and to develop professional goals. Students with internship experience are more likely to secure employment after graduation.  The University of Massachusetts Mt Ida campus presents a unique opportunity for student to secure internships in the Metro West Boston area, an area well known as an epicenter for employment opportunities in mental health, medicine, science and research, all key areas of interest to our psychology majors. 

Program Details.  The program will provide a minimum of 13-credits; 6+-credits of internship and 7-credits of academic courses to be taught on the Mt. Ida campus. Housing will also be available to students at the Mt. Ida campus.

  • 6-credits, 18-hours/week, of work through facilitated placement including transportation to sites or mass transit
  • 4-credits in Junior Writing in Psychology, a general education requirement and major requirement
  • 3-credits in a Psych 391 seminar, a psychology major requirement
  • Options to take additional courses through UWW

Internships.  Students will work in competitive internship placement sites including mental health direct care positions, hospitals, neuroscience research, research assistantships, disability studies, and more!  Students will be placed at internship sites based on career interests.  Credit for internships is typically 6-credit and 18 hours per week, but can be customized based on student needs and goals. 
Note: Students in the Developmental Disabilities and Human Services specialization can apply this internship toward the DDHS experience requirement. 

Transportation. Worried about transportation?  Mt Ida provides transportation to the green line via Uber.

Learn more about the Mt Ida campus here.

Apply to join LEAD; positions will be filled on a rolling basis so apply early to secure your place! 

Need additional information? Review the slides from the info session. 

Still have questions, contact Prof. Metevier at stina@umass.edu