A vital part of Lancaster Bible College’s academic experience is internships, which effectively insert students into their chosen professional field. Micah Freeman (’25), a Clinical Mental Health Counseling major, is spending the Spring 2024 semester interning at Pennsylvania Counseling Services’ (PCS) psychiatric office in York, Pa. At LBC, he’s enrolled in the college’s unique 4+1 program, which equips students to earn a bachelor’s and master’s degree in five years total.
LBC student Micah Freeman has gained valuable experience through a counseling internship.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, Micah serves as an Outpatient Therapist Intern working with a co-occurring group for substance abuse and mental health. He co-facilitates the group alongside another therapist and also takes part in treatment team meetings, where therapists consult one another when dealing with difficult client situations.
Another impactful opportunity is on the horizon for Micah through his internship: practicing with a group of clients with sexual offense history.
Through this internship, Micah has enjoyed practicing the skills he’s been learning for many months while at LBC. “The Counseling & Social Work Department teaches you so much,” he explained. “I am excited that I can start using this with real clients. Though it can be nerve-wracking at times, I truly appreciate the helpful community that PCS has given me to practice safely for me and my clients and to learn from direct clinical experience.”
Micah said that the concepts and practices he’s learning in his classes at LBC, as well as the interpersonal skills he’s developing, are directly related to his role at PCS. He reflected on the very first group counseling session he participated in at PCS and noted how it was essentially a combination of many different classes he’s had at LBC, but in a practical setting.
“This session included discussion of major grief, death, suicide, anxiety, major addiction and cyclical emotions,” Micah explained. “My classes prepared me to speak on these issues ethically and effectively.”
The interpersonal skills he’s learned and developed in his classes come into play when engaging with his clients. “These skills are not always easy to think through,” Micah said, “so having the ability to practice this as well has been extremely helpful. So many of the experiences that my clients have had are so deep and troublesome. Having a strong relationship with your clients allows for them to be able to share honestly and gives you as the therapist the opportunity to work effectively.”
Another big takeaway Micah has gained from this experience is how important self-care is for those in this line of work. “Counseling is a very high burnout career, thus it is important to take care of yourself in the process,” he said. “One can’t fill others’ cups when your own cup is empty.”
After graduating from LBC, Micah’s plan is to continue his education in a doctoral program – either neuropsychology or clinical psychology – while also working on his License for Professional Counseling (LPC). “Being an educated Christian practitioner is important to me,” he expressed. He would like to become a licensed psychologist and help the populations that are underserved within the counseling field.
With those goals in mind, this real-world experience has proved to be very beneficial for Micah. He appreciates the opportunity to experience the practical application of the internship while remaining connected to his fellow students and LBC resources should he need help.
As he works toward becoming an educated Christian practitioner, Micah explains how he approaches this internship experience from a biblical worldview, even though the setting isn’t always conducive to sharing his faith.
“[It] involves remaining faithful to what God commands to us while working in an area where discussion of personal faith is not allowed,” he said. “This has been difficult at times. I am not ethically allowed to speak about my personal faith with clients, even though there are times I most definitely want to. Approaching this with a biblical worldview involves a further trust that God will move within your client indirectly as you trust Him fully in that process.”