BOONE, N.C. — Appalachian State University’s Doctor of Psychology in Clinical Psychology (PsyD) program is celebrating a major accomplishment: Every student who applied for an internship this year has been matched to a training site by the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC).
The APPIC Match pairs psychology doctoral students with training sites across the country using a standardized process also used in other health professions, including medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, and optometry. According to APPIC, Match “provides an orderly process to help applicants obtain positions in psychology internship programs of their choice, and to help internship programs obtain applicants of their choice.”
The following PsyD students will begin their internships this summer or fall:
Anna Edson-Heussi — Central Regional Hospital (Butner, NC)
Josef Kaplan — Appalachian State University Counseling Center (Boone, NC)
Esther Killius — Wichita Collaborative Psychology (Wichita, KS)
Jennifer Nelson — Vanderbilt University Counseling Center (Nashville, TN)
Gabriel Simerly — VA Tennessee Valley Healthcare System (Nashville, TN)
Marissa Weimer — Centra / Behavioral Health (Lynchburg, VA)
This year’s 100% match rate is especially meaningful for the program, which as a newer program (established in 2019) is currently accredited on contingency by the American Psychological Association’s Commission on Accreditation. Programs with this status must provide data on students who have completed all program requirements — including internships — to be considered for full accreditation. According to Department of Psychology Professor and Chair Dr. Rose Mary Webb, the PsyD program plans to pursue full accreditation later this year.
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About the Doctor of Psychology in Clinical Psychology Program
Appalachian State University’s Doctor of Psychology in Clinical Psychology (PsyD) program was approved by the University of North Carolina Board of Governors in 2018 and welcomed its first cohort in 2019. The PsyD program's goal is to develop psychologists who are well-rounded practitioners trained in and committed to evidence-based professional practice. The program specifically aims to train students to serve rural and other underserved populations. Learn more at clinicalpsychpsyd.appstate.edu.
About the Dr. Wiley F. Smith Department of Psychology
Appalachian State University’s Dr. Wiley F. Smith Department of Psychology serves more than 1,400 undergraduate majors seeking the Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree in psychology, as well as 90 graduate students across four graduate programs: psychological science (MA), industrial-organizational psychology and human resource management (MA), school psychology (MA/SSP), and clinical psychology (MA/PsyD). Learn more at psych.appstate.edu.
By Lauren Gibbs
March 11, 2026
BOONE, N.C.
Appalachian State University's block "A" logo in white and gold on top of two lines of text. The top line reads "College of Arts and Sciences" in white and the bottom line reads "Psychology" in gold. The background of the image is black.
The Department of Psychology is housed in the College of Arts and Sciences at Appalachian State University.