Universal Psychology Postdoctoral Directory Entry

Central State Hospital - Post-doctoral Fellowship in Forensic Psychology

Central State Hospital
Petersburg, Virginia

Starts on Thursday, September 10, 2026

Applications due Friday, January 2, 2026

This training experience is not an APPIC Member program and is not APA Accredited. Applicants should be aware that this training experience has not undergone a formal external quality review process.

Elements of quality clinically focused postdoctoral training

This training experience is a planned and programmed sequence of training that aims to ensure preparation for advanced practice rather than one that is focused on providing supervised hours for licensure. Yes

This training experience ensures that training takes precedence over service delivery regarding the nature, content, volume, and quality of the postdoc’s activities. Yes

This training experience ensures that postdocs receive at least two hours of individual supervision per week for the duration of the experience. Yes

This training experience is administered by a doctoral-level licensed psychologist who directs and organizes the training experience and its resources, is responsible for the selection of postdocs, and monitors and evaluates the goals and activities of the experience. Yes

This training experience has two or more doctoral-level licensed psychologists who have sufficient time to provide quality supervision and training.   Yes

This training experience includes regularly scheduled structured educational activities that help postdocs its defined goals. These activities may include didactics, seminars, case conferences, and/or research activities. Yes

This training experience has written Due Process and Grievance procedures. Yes

This training experience has the stable and necessary financial (e.g., stipend) and physical resources (e.g., computers, physical space) needed for effective training. Yes

Central State Hospital (CSH) offers a one-year post-doctoral Fellowship in forensic psychology, with an emphasis on forensic evaluation. The primary goal of our Fellowship program is to prepare the Fellow for independent practice of forensic psychology with a severely and persistently mentally ill population. CSH provides services to male and female adults with severe and persistent mental illness, many of whom also have diagnoses of substance use disorders, Intellectual Disability, and other mental disorders. Our patient population includes pre- and post-trial forensic patients receiving court-ordered evaluation and treatment, patients who have been adjudicated Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity (NGRI) who are receiving evaluation and/or treatment, and non-forensic patients receiving treatment under civil commitment orders. The main focus of this Fellowship is to provide the Fellow with advanced training in criminal forensic evaluations, primarily Competency to Stand Trial (both pre- and post-restoration) and Mental Status at the Time of Offense(s). Due to the psycho-legal context of our work, there will also be an emphasis on assessment of malingering/feigning. The Fellow will also have the opportunity to complete the Initial Analysis of Risk Reports for NGRI acquittees.

The training year begins on September 10th and lasts for 12 months. The Fellow spends the first week of the training year engaged in formal orientation and training activities provided by the CSH Training Department. In September or October of the training year, the Fellow attends the Basic Forensic Evaluation training offered by the Institute of Law, Psychiatry, and Public Policy (ILPPP) at the University of Virginia, an intensive workshop covering the basic principles of forensic evaluation. The cost of this program is covered by the hospital. Throughout the year, the Fellow receives a minimum of two hours of individual, face-to-face supervision per week with a licensed clinical psychologist, and he or she will have at least two different supervisors during the training year. A weekly case law seminar is provided at Central State Hospital, in which the Fellow plays an integral organizational role and presents regularly. CSH also regularly hosts seminars on special topics in clinical and forensic practice. The Fellow is required to attend and occasionally present at these sessions. In addition to Basic Forensic Evaluation Training at ILPPP, the Fellow may attend a number of other training seminars offered by the ILPPP throughout the training year.

This Fellowship program was originally designed to meet all supervision requirements for licensure as a Clinical Psychologist in the state of Virginia. Our training program is also one of the few forensic psychology Fellowship/residency programs in the country that has been officially determined to meet the requirements for the ABFP Experience Waiver. This means that should the Fellow wish to pursue board certification in forensic psychology, they would be able to do so without first being in licensed practice for a period of five years. Our waiver is effective until 2028.

https://https://dbhds.virginia.gov/facilities/csh/psychology-internship-and-fellowship-programs/

Additional Information

Agency Type: State Hospital
APPIC Membership: No
APA Accredited: No
Recognized Specialty: Forensic Psychology
Emphasis or focus area: Assessment
Other Emphasis: Serious Mental Illness
Research Time: Less than 25%
Training Director: Helen Greenbacker, Psy.D.
Contact Email: helen.greenbacker@dbhds.virginia.gov
Contact Phone: (804) 524-7087
Virtual Interviews: Strongly Preferred
Duration in Months: 12
Hours Per Week: 40
# of Licensed Supervisors: 4
Number of Positions: 1
Applications recieved last year: 12
Accepts Int'l Students
Stipend: $89,500
Will follow APPIC Selection Standards: Yes
Estimated offer date: Tuesday, February 3 2026
Created Date: Thursday, September 6 2018
Fringe Benefits: Health Insurance; Life Insurance; Vacation and Sick Leave; Liability Insurance provided by the hospital
Research opportunities: While research is currently not a main focus area for this Fellowship program, the Forensic Evaluation Team recognizes the importance of research in the context of an effective and best-practices focused training program. To that end, the Fellow is encouraged to seek out various opportunities to become a more informed consumer of research. Fellows have opportunities to engage in a number of research-based activities during the course of the training year, that may be tailored to their interests.
Additional Comments: Applicants must have completed all requirements for a doctoral degree in clinical or counseling psychology program (APA-accreditation of the academic program and pre-doctoral internship is preferred, but not required). Individuals applying prior to completion of their graduate degree must provide a letter from the Training Directors of their academic and internship programs indicating that they will have completed all requirements for the doctoral degree prior to the start of the postdoctoral year.
Application Instructions: Applicants will need to submit an electronic Virginia State application at https://www.jobs.virginia.gov/home In addition to completing the electronic application, candidates must submit the following supplemental materials: - A current curriculum vitae - Graduate school transcript(s) - One letter of recommendation from a past supervisor, preferably a supervisor familiar with applicant’s past forensic and/or assessment experience. - A letter of interest outlining your professional and research interests, career goals, and the reasons for your interest in the Fellowship. -A sample report, ideally with a forensic focus. Supplemental materials should be submitted to Dr. Helen Greenbacker via email: helen.greenbacker@dbhds.virginia.gov. Hard copies of these documents may also be mailed in a single packet to: Dr. Helen Greenbacker Central State Hospital Building 39 P.O. Box 4030 Petersburg, VA 23803

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