The Organizational Skills and Executive Function Treatment Program and the Selective Mutism Service at the Child Study Center seek doctoral students to complete a yearlong combined externship in conducting assessments and delivering evidence-based treatments for children and adolescents with functional impairment due to either neurodevelopmental disorders—such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)—or selective mutism (SM). This unique training program has been successful for over 15 years in preparing externs to understand and treat two challenging conditions that hinder children’s development and adjustment: ADHD, whose deficits in executive functioning impair responses to home and school demands, and SM, which impedes social adjustment and verbal communication. 

Because many of our patients present with co-occurring disorders, externs will also gain experience with childhood anxiety disorders, learning disorders, and various other conditions. The foundations of the organizational skills training (OST) and SM programs have been developed at the Child Study Center, affording externs an opportunity to learn from program developers. Our clinical efforts are informed by empirically developed and tested methods, such as OST, parent management training, parent–child interaction therapy for selective mutism, and cognitive behavioral therapy for SM. Both programs incorporate school consultation and interdisciplinary collaboration with other providers, including child and adolescent psychiatrists.

Externs train under the primary supervision of Richard Gallagher, PhD, director of the Organizational Skills and Executive Function Treatment Program, and Rachel A. Kupferberg, PsyD, director of the Selective Mutism Service.

Additional details regarding this externship offering can be found within the Externship Site Directory for the Northeastern Regional Externship Match. Learn more on our site listing for the 2026–27 training year.