Call or text 988 any time, day or night, for the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (U.S.).
Or text HOME to 741741 to reach the Crisis Text Line.
Start Here: Protect Your Record
Before you file anything, make your case easy to believe.
- Write it down the same day. Date, time, who was there, and what was said, in quotes where you can.
- Save copies outside school and site systems. Emails, texts, evaluations, hour logs, schedules, and your training agreement. You may lose access later.
- Put concerns in writing. A short email to your training director or program confirming a conversation creates a dated record.
- Ask for your program's grievance and due process policy in writing. Accredited programs are expected to have one.
- Watch the deadlines. Several of the offices below have filing windows, some as short as 180 days.
Your Internship or Training Program
APPIC Informal Problem Consultation
For applicants, current interns, and recent interns at APPIC member internships and postdocs. Staff give confidential, outside guidance on a dispute with a program. If that doesn't resolve it, APPIC's Standards and Review Committee handles formal complaints, which generally require going through the informal step first.
APA Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation
Accepts written complaints that an APA-accredited doctoral program, internship, or residency isn't meeting accreditation standards. Students and interns have 18 months after leaving a program to file. It can't change a grade or reinstate you, but it can require a program to answer for its practices.
Your university
The ombuds office, dean of students, Title IX office, and graduate school all have formal processes. Ask each one, in writing, what the process is and what the timeline will be.
APAGS (American Psychological Association of Graduate Students)
Guidance, advocacy, and community for psychology graduate students, including on internship and training concerns.
Your Supervisor's License
Your state psychology licensing board
If a licensed supervisor's conduct may violate board rules, you can file a complaint with the board in the state where they're licensed. The Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards (ASPPB) keeps a directory of every U.S. and Canadian board. Counselors, social workers, and marriage and family therapists have their own state boards.
Discrimination and Civil Rights
U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights
Handles complaints of discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, disability, or age at schools that receive federal funding, including retaliation for raising those concerns. Complaints are generally due within 180 days of the incident.
If You Weren't Paid
U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet #71
Explains the "primary beneficiary" test for whether an intern is legally an employee who must be paid. The more the site benefits from your work, the more this matters.
Your state labor department
Most states take unpaid-wage claims through their own labor agency, and deadlines vary by state. The Department of Labor keeps a list of state contacts. You can also contact the federal Wage and Hour Division at 1-866-487-9243.
Legal Help
LawHelp.org
Find free civil legal aid and self-help guides in your state.
Your state bar's lawyer referral service
Most state bar associations run a referral service that connects you with a lawyer for a low-cost first consultation. Search "[your state] bar lawyer referral."
In Texas
Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC)
The licensing agency for psychologists, professional counselors, marriage and family therapists, and social workers in Texas. Complaint line: 1-800-821-3205.
Texas Workforce Commission wage claim
File online or on paper if you believe you are owed wages. Claims are generally due within 180 days of when the wages were due.
State Bar of Texas Lawyer Referral and Information Service
A first consultation of up to 30 minutes for $20 or less. Call 1-800-252-9690. For free self-help, see TexasLawHelp.org.
Temple, Belton, Killeen, and Central Texas
Central Counties Services crisis line: 1-800-888-4036
24/7 crisis line from the local mental health authority for Bell, Coryell, Hamilton, Lampasas, and Milam counties. Main office: 304 S. 22nd St., Temple, TX 76501.
Lone Star Legal Aid, Belton office
Free civil legal help for eligible low-income residents of Bell, Coryell, Hamilton, Lampasas, and Milam counties.
You are not the problem, and you are not the only one. Read the story that started this page.
This page is general information, not legal, medical, or mental-health advice, and listing an organization is not an endorsement. Phone numbers, deadlines, and service areas change, so confirm with each office before you rely on them. Last checked October 2026. In crisis? Call or text 988 (US).