The Developmental Evaluation Clinic offers a year-long, APPIC-member postdoctoral fellowship focused on diagnostic assessment of infants, toddlers, and preschool-age children with neurodevelopmental, behavioral and early mental health concerns.
Applications for the 2025-2026 training year are currently being accepted. The expected start date is September 2, 2025. The position is for 1 year. Applications can be found on the job board of our Rady Children’s Hospital website: https://jobs.rchsd.org/ ” Search “Postdoctoral Fellow – Developmental Services – Developmental Evaluation Clinic.
In addition to submitting a formal application through Rady Children’s Hospital, applicants will be asked to submit the following reference materials:
- Cover letter indicating interest and a brief description of your training goals
- Two letters of recommendation from previous/current supervisors
- Curriculum vitae
- One redacted sample report
These supporting documents along with any questions can be emailed to the Training Director:
Meghan Lukasik, Ph.D.
mlukasik@rchsd.org
– DEC Fellowship Training Manual (2025-2026)
Overview of DEC’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Training Program
The Postdoctoral Fellowship Training Program at DEC serves families and children under the close supervision of a licensed psychologist within an outpatient clinic setting affiliated with a pediatric hospital. The primary focus of this training program is the development of excellence in diagnostic assessment of our youngest and most vulnerable children ages birth through 5 years. Specific areas of training include infant assessment, trauma-informed approaches to assessment, competency on gold standard tools used with infants and children under the age of 6 years, collaboration with other areas of developmental and medical specialty, and exposure to complex differential diagnostic questions related to neurodevelopmental disorders, medical issues and early indications of mental health concerns.
Postdoctoral fellows will spend the first four to eight weeks observing licensed psychologists conduct diagnostic interviews with parents/caregivers, both in person and via telehealth; selecting and administering a psychological testing battery; scoring and interpreting test results; preparing an evaluation report that includes differential diagnosis and recommendations; and conducting feedback sessions with parents/caregivers, both in person and via telehealth. Fellows will spend the subsequent 10-12 weeks performing these tasks under the direct supervision of a licensed psychologist. Once the fellow demonstrates competence in each area, as measured by their primary supervisor and/or the clinical director, the fellow will work directly with children and their families, independently performing all parts of a comprehensive developmental evaluation for the duration of the fellowship. Each step of training will proceed with consideration given to the fellow’s previous experience, comfort level, and level of demonstrated proficiency.