We welcome your interest in an internship placement with the Child Life Department of University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital. Please read all links associated with our internship program before filling out and submitting your application. We encourage you to pay special attention to all of our prerequisites and be sure that you meet each of our requirements before applying.

To qualify for an application for our internship, please make sure the following criteria will be completed by the beginning of your internship:

  1. You have a minimum of 50 hours of volunteer or work experience with children in a pediatric hospital.
  2. You have had the following required courses: The Hospitalized Child, Child Development, Child Psychology, Medical Terminology, and Anatomy and Physiology.
  3. Coursework that you have taken titled Death and Dying/Bereavement, Family Studies, and Cultural Diversity are highly recommended.
  4. You have declared your major to be Child Life, Child and Family Studies or Child Development or you have a concentration in Child Life related coursework.
  5. You are currently, and will continue to be enrolled in a university/college which has a current affiliation contract with University Hospitals Case Medical Center.

Please confirm with your university that it has a current affiliation contract with UH Case Medical Center. You will need to provide proof of your current personal medical coverage.

In order to foster progressive development of the student, our internship requires a commitment of 16 consecutive weeks (640 hours). No deviation from this schedule will be considered. UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Child Life Student Clinical Program exceeds the number of hours required by the Child Life Council for eligibility to sit for the Child Life Certification Examination. Our extended internship supports the essential transition from student to professional. The interests and previous experiences of the accepted internship applicant, along with staff availability, determine the clinical rotations. A Certified Child Life Specialist acts as preceptor for each rotation. A supervisor is assigned to the student for the entire internship to facilitate weekly meetings with the intern for discussion relating to clinical assignments. Our student evaluation is based on competencies established by the Child Life Council.

The Department of Family and Child Life is a multidisciplinary team that offers comprehensive opportunities in our culturally diverse, university affiliated pediatric hospital. Upon receipt of a completed UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital application, including the CLC Common Internship application, an essay, letters of reference and transcript(s), students are considered for an interview. Selection of interns for the clinical experience is based on college major and grades in required courses, letters of recommendation, personal interview, application essay and prioritization exercise. Once a placement opportunity is accepted by the student, a fee of $150 is due. This fee helps to defray administrative costs and to provide information including current and comprehensive current resources for interns. All arrangements for transportation and housing are the responsibility of the student.

UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital Student Program follows the timetable suggested by the Child Life Council. Please see childlife.org for further details.

Thank you for your interest in our program. Catherine Cashin, Student Program Coordinator can be contacted with further questions at: Catherine.Cashin@UHhospitals.org.