Internships in Addiction Treatment

Internships can be a worthwhile endeavor to pursue as you prepare to become an addiction counselor or consider enhancing your career. Internships are not only for those in high school or college. Instead, they can benefit those who want to break into the industry but have not yet had an opportunity.

• First, an internship essentially offers the management of a treatment center the ability to evaluate your skills with less risk than hiring a full-time employee. This can be very compelling for smaller treatment centers that may not have the risk tolerance to make mistakes in human resources.

• Second, internships offer a way to shine brighter than other candidates and may even tell management that you’re willing to sacrifice in the short term for your longer-term career goals. How you perform during your internship may secure a position in the treatment center and put you on the fast track to a better job.

• Third, internships can accumulate work experience hours toward your certification. Whether you want to become a Behavioral Tech or a Certified Counselor, each certification requires several hands-on work experience hours. Many prospective students looking to become addiction counselors have not yet met this requirement. One of the ways to do so is to apply for an internship while taking certification classes at our facility.

• Internships can also be very valuable in learning more about the industry. Internships can tell a candidate if the industry and the facility they are interning are the right fit for them. Addiction counseling can be an enriching career path, but it is certainly not for everyone. Similarly, each recovery facility is very different in style and management. Understanding these differences and knowing what to expect can help you decide whether to work full-time for that particular facility.

Ultimately, depending on your goals, an internship can be beneficial. We hope you use our Career Center to learn more about addiction treatment internship opportunities in South Florida and beyond.