FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is VIC?

VIC — the Virtual Interactive Client — is an immersive, AI-driven psychology simulation that puts you in the seat of a psychologist. You converse with fully embodied virtual clients in clinical environments through natural, voice-to-voice interaction, as if you were talking to a real client.

Who is VIC for?

VIC is licensed to universities and training institutions. Psychology students use it to build simulated practice hours in a safe, repeatable environment; instructors use it to demonstrate worked examples in class, assign practice as homework, and support remediation.

Are the virtual clients scripted?

No. Clients are AI-driven with dynamic internal traits — cognitive biases, coping strategies, symptom severity, memories and rapport with the therapist. They roleplay cases based on formulations designed by clinical psychologists, and they learn, grow and adapt across sessions.

What training modes does VIC offer?

Three: Open Roleplay, a sandbox where you configure session properties and experiment freely; Simulated Roleplay, a full therapeutic journey from intake through formulation, treatment planning, intervention and termination, where clients keep memories and rapport across sessions; and One-Step Cases, focused standalone modules for specific scenarios such as risk assessment.

How is my performance assessed?

At the end of each session VIC generates automated feedback against a rubric developed by ISN academics and clinical staff, unique to each therapy stage. You also receive a performance score built from your completed objectives, client rapport and rubric feedback.

What tools support me during sessions?

An in-game workbook for tracking what you have uncovered about your client, frameworks for building case formulations, psychological assessments you can administer, and directed objectives that guide you through the milestones of each therapy stage.

How is VIC licensed?

VIC is licensed institution-wide to education providers. Contact us to request a demo and discuss licensing for your program.

Can our instructors create their own client cases?

Yes. The client creator lets instructors design their own cases and publish them so they are visible only to a chosen cohort — ideal for course-specific scenarios and assessments.

Can we track student progress?

Yes. Institutional licenses include tenant-wide roles (student, instructor, admin) and cohorts. Instructors can monitor completed sessions and clients, time spent per client, transcripts, feedback and performance.

How do I get access as a student?

Access is provided through your institution. Once your account is set up, sign in on this site and choose Play VIC to start a session directly in your browser.

What do I need to run VIC?

VIC streams to your browser from the cloud, so there is nothing to install — you need a modern browser, a stable internet connection and a microphone for voice interaction.