Child Life Internship Interview
1. Tell us about yourself. -
a. I graduated from the University of Nebraska Lincoln with a major in Child, Youth,
and family studies and a minor in Leadership and Communications. I have worked as a
special education paraeducator at an elementary school for the past year and have learned a
lot about working with children in stressful situations. I've been interested in Child Life since
I was a child, and I'm really excited to be pursuing a child life internship to learn more about
working with and advocating for children and families in a hospital setting.
What three words would you choose to describe yourself? -
a. Determined
b. Compassionate
c. Open-minded
What are three of your strengths -
a. Communication (with coworkers, children, and parents)
b. Relationship building
c. Empathy (seeing things from the perspective of child and family)
What are three of your weaknesses -
a. Assertive decision-making (am knowledgeable but not always confident when it
comes to decision-making)
b. Addressing conflict
c. Asking questions, don't want to bother people.
What makes you different that other candidates we are interviewing? -
My internship at StudentsCare allowed me a unique opportunity to learn about various
long-term conditions and think about how to support children that are in the hospital for these
particular conditions. I also have had personal experience with child life when I was a cancer
patient. I think this has allowed me to see child life from a whole new perspective. I know
how important procedural preparation is because I saw how much it helped me to not be
afraid when I was in the hospital. I know how important therapeutic play is because it
allowed me to express my feelings and frustrations. I think experiencing it firsthand is such a
powerful experience.
1. Expectations for internship? -
a. Immerse myself into child life enough to observe and learn from people who are
knowledgeable in the field and become comfortable using child life skills independently.
b. I expect that practicum coordinators will help me to set goals that will allow me to grow as
a person and child life student
c. I also expect them to evaluate my growth and offer constructive criticism.
Goals for internship? -
a. Become comfortable applying the psychosocial theories I have learned about in
class. Assess a child and be able to understand how theory applies to them.
b. Learn more about medical play in general because I have not had the opportunity to learn
much about this in my classes
1|Page
, c. Learn more ways to help siblings cope. I understand the effect a sibling being in the
hospital can have on children.
d. Become more comfortable advocating for the role of a child life specialist.
e. It may seem simple but I want to be able to bring a smile to a child's face every day, but
sometimes that may be just what they need.
Why do you want an internship with us? -
I am interested in Kansas City Mercy's Child Life Program because I know it will
provide me with a diverse experience that will allow me to learn and prepare myself for a
wide range of roles in child life.
Do you have any questions for us? -
How does Child Life collaborate with the multidisciplinary team?
I saw that you had child life activity coordinators. Does the practicum involve observing
them too or is it mostly the child life specialists?
Any professional development or community event related opportunities?
What are three ways in which a CLS can improve a child's experience in the hospital? -
1. Increase normalization through therapeutic play
2. Preparing children for procedures to decrease stress and anxiety about the unknown
3. Advocating for children and working with the multidisciplinary team to help the child and
family be more comfortable during his/her hospital stay
There is a three year-old boy who doesn't want to eat or drink? How would you encourage
him to do so? -
Since a three-year-old boy is in Piaget's Preoperational Stage of Development I
understand he would have very egocentric thinking. Because of this I would encourage him
to choose what he wants to eat and drink. This will let him have the chance to participate in
his nutrition. I would also display the food in a creative way because children at this stage
have a rich imagination. I would also cater it to his interests.
Bowlby's Stages of Attachment -
1. Secure
2. Avoidant
3. Resistant
4. Disorganized/Disoriented
Activities to go with trust vs. mistrust (0-12) -
rattles
mirrors
peek-a-boo toys
Activities to go with Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt (1-2 years) -
play dough
big blocks
pretend phone
Activities to go with Initiative vs. Guilt (2-7 years) -
dress-up items for pretend play
legos
2|Page
1. Tell us about yourself. -
a. I graduated from the University of Nebraska Lincoln with a major in Child, Youth,
and family studies and a minor in Leadership and Communications. I have worked as a
special education paraeducator at an elementary school for the past year and have learned a
lot about working with children in stressful situations. I've been interested in Child Life since
I was a child, and I'm really excited to be pursuing a child life internship to learn more about
working with and advocating for children and families in a hospital setting.
What three words would you choose to describe yourself? -
a. Determined
b. Compassionate
c. Open-minded
What are three of your strengths -
a. Communication (with coworkers, children, and parents)
b. Relationship building
c. Empathy (seeing things from the perspective of child and family)
What are three of your weaknesses -
a. Assertive decision-making (am knowledgeable but not always confident when it
comes to decision-making)
b. Addressing conflict
c. Asking questions, don't want to bother people.
What makes you different that other candidates we are interviewing? -
My internship at StudentsCare allowed me a unique opportunity to learn about various
long-term conditions and think about how to support children that are in the hospital for these
particular conditions. I also have had personal experience with child life when I was a cancer
patient. I think this has allowed me to see child life from a whole new perspective. I know
how important procedural preparation is because I saw how much it helped me to not be
afraid when I was in the hospital. I know how important therapeutic play is because it
allowed me to express my feelings and frustrations. I think experiencing it firsthand is such a
powerful experience.
1. Expectations for internship? -
a. Immerse myself into child life enough to observe and learn from people who are
knowledgeable in the field and become comfortable using child life skills independently.
b. I expect that practicum coordinators will help me to set goals that will allow me to grow as
a person and child life student
c. I also expect them to evaluate my growth and offer constructive criticism.
Goals for internship? -
a. Become comfortable applying the psychosocial theories I have learned about in
class. Assess a child and be able to understand how theory applies to them.
b. Learn more about medical play in general because I have not had the opportunity to learn
much about this in my classes
1|Page
, c. Learn more ways to help siblings cope. I understand the effect a sibling being in the
hospital can have on children.
d. Become more comfortable advocating for the role of a child life specialist.
e. It may seem simple but I want to be able to bring a smile to a child's face every day, but
sometimes that may be just what they need.
Why do you want an internship with us? -
I am interested in Kansas City Mercy's Child Life Program because I know it will
provide me with a diverse experience that will allow me to learn and prepare myself for a
wide range of roles in child life.
Do you have any questions for us? -
How does Child Life collaborate with the multidisciplinary team?
I saw that you had child life activity coordinators. Does the practicum involve observing
them too or is it mostly the child life specialists?
Any professional development or community event related opportunities?
What are three ways in which a CLS can improve a child's experience in the hospital? -
1. Increase normalization through therapeutic play
2. Preparing children for procedures to decrease stress and anxiety about the unknown
3. Advocating for children and working with the multidisciplinary team to help the child and
family be more comfortable during his/her hospital stay
There is a three year-old boy who doesn't want to eat or drink? How would you encourage
him to do so? -
Since a three-year-old boy is in Piaget's Preoperational Stage of Development I
understand he would have very egocentric thinking. Because of this I would encourage him
to choose what he wants to eat and drink. This will let him have the chance to participate in
his nutrition. I would also display the food in a creative way because children at this stage
have a rich imagination. I would also cater it to his interests.
Bowlby's Stages of Attachment -
1. Secure
2. Avoidant
3. Resistant
4. Disorganized/Disoriented
Activities to go with trust vs. mistrust (0-12) -
rattles
mirrors
peek-a-boo toys
Activities to go with Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt (1-2 years) -
play dough
big blocks
pretend phone
Activities to go with Initiative vs. Guilt (2-7 years) -
dress-up items for pretend play
legos
2|Page
