2015-2016 APPIC Internship Interview Questions

[toutpasse15]

The purpose of this thread is to compile a list of questions from the 2015-2016 APPIC internship interview cycle.

Please send a message to me directly (toutpasse15) that includes a description about the type of site (e.g., UCC- university counseling center, VA- veteran affairs, CMH- community mental health center, AHC- academic health center, CONS- consortium, etc.) as well as the populations served (e.g., child and family focus, adult focus, lifespan). The specific site name is not required.

Also, please feel free to share any surprising interview questions/activities or any additional information that would be helpful for other interviewees/applicants.

Thank you in advance! Wishing everyone the best of luck!

University Counseling Centers (UCCs)

Population served: college students

• Why our site?
• If you weren't in psychology, what profession would you be in?
• What is your philosophy on change and what is the therapist's role in change?
• Tell me about a diversity issue you encountered.
• What is a mistake that you made?
• Tell me about a difficult client you had.
• What are your strengths and growth edges?
• What is your experience with groups?
• What are your growth areas for group counseling?
• What are your goals for internship?
• What diversity-related issues have you struggled with in counseling, and how did you address these?
• What training issues and needs do you see practicum students as bringing to supervision with you and how would you approach in addressing these issues/needs?
• What else would you like us to know about you?
• Tell me about a time, either in your clinical work or a time with a colleague, where you experienced a boundary issue?
• What do you do for self-care?
• How have you developed your cultural identity?
• We utilize a brief therapy model at our site. Tell us about how you may approach a case knowing you have limited sessions.
• Tell us about a bad supervision experience and how you handled this?

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[hamsterpants]

The purpose of this thread is to compile a list of questions from the 2015-2016 APPIC internship interview cycle.

Please include a description about the type of site (e.g., UCC- university counseling center, VA- veteran affairs, CMH- community mental health center, AHC- academic health center, CONT- consortium, etc.) as well as the populations served (e.g., child and family focus, adult focus, lifespan). The specific site name is not required.

Also, please feel free to share any surprising interview questions/activities or any additional information that would be helpful for other interviewees/applicants.

Thank you in advance!

Wishing everyone the best of luck!

Thanks for starting this!

 

[toutpasse15]

I have found the following resources to be quite helpful for interview preparation:

http://www.apa.org/apags/resources/internship-webisodes.aspx

http://www.apa.org/gradpsych/2011/01/answer.aspx

http://time2track.com/your-go-to-guide-for-surviving-appic-internship-interviews

 

[toutpasse15]

Thanks for starting this!

Absolutely- it is my pleasure!

 

[hawaii0307]

Has anyone who is interviewing at American Lake (Tacoma) VA heard anything about the schedule of the day? Interview is on 1/6 and I haven't heard anything since being offered an interview.

 

[SLB-CO]

The purpose of this thread is to compile a list of questions from the 2015-2016 APPIC internship interview cycle.

Please send a message to me directly (toutpasse15) that includes a description about the type of site (e.g., UCC- university counseling center, VA- veteran affairs, CMH- community mental health center, AHC- academic health center, CONS- consortium, etc.) as well as the populations served (e.g., child and family focus, adult focus, lifespan). The specific site name is not required.

Also, please feel free to share any surprising interview questions/activities or any additional information that would be helpful for other interviewees/applicants.

Thank you in advance!

Wishing everyone the best of luck!

I think this is a nice idea, but perhaps ethically questionable. 2 of the 3 interviews I have been at so far have explicitly requested that their interview questions not be shared with other applicants. Is that odd or expected?

 

[erg923]

I think this is a nice idea, but perhaps ethically questionable. 2 of the 3 interviews I have been at so far have explicitly requested that their interview questions not be shared with other applicants. Is that odd or expected?

I am an Assistant TD and think this is bit ridiculous that someone would request that they not share interview questions they received at their site. No one has copyright on interview questions. I can understand asking applicants to not share clinical vignettes and or the nature/content clinical case examples that may have been used as part of the interview/assessment process, however.

 

[WisNeuro]

I think this is a nice idea, but perhaps ethically questionable. 2 of the 3 interviews I have been at so far have explicitly requested that their interview questions not be shared with other applicants. Is that odd or expected?

Nope, not unexpected at all, especially if they are utilizing vignette based questions, or performance based interview questions. For the most part, I am not a fan of sharing questions regardless. You should really be able to answer any reasonable question thrown your way at this point.

 

[toutpasse15]

I have appreciated learning the different perspectives about this thread. I would like to clarify that my goal for starting it was to provide an additional resource to applicants (having noticed similar SDN threads from previous years/other forums). I consider the internship application process to be very important and do not intend to undermine it in any way.

 

[SLB-CO]

I have appreciated learning the different perspectives about this thread. I would like to clarify that my goal for starting it was to provide an additional resource to applicants (having noticed similar SDN threads from previous years/other forums). I consider the internship application process to be very important and do not intend to undermine it in any way.

Oh no, I didn't mean anything about your character or intentions. I thought it was kind. I was just honestly seeking feedback about the ethics of it given the experiences I had at interviews so far. Good luck with all of your interviews!!!

 

[SLB-CO]

I am an Assistant TD and think this is bit ridiculous that someone would request that they not share interview questions they received at their site. No one has copyright on interview questions. I can understand asking applicants to not share clinical vignettes and or the nature/content clinical case examples that may have been used as part of the interview/assessment process, however.

Interesting. Yes, those that requested questions not to be shared did have more vignettes than the one that didn't mention it. One also had some questions that were just a bit odd and unexpected that I don't think they wanted applicants to 'prepare' for - they wanted immediate, gut responses.

 

[erg923]

Interesting. Yes, those that requested questions not to be shared did have more vignettes than the one that didn't mention it. One also had some questions that were just a bit odd and unexpected that I don't think they wanted applicants to 'prepare' for - they wanted immediate, gut responses.

Yes. Those are always very cute. Do they have any predictive validity?

 

[SLB-CO]

Yes. Those are always very cute. Do they have any predictive validity?

Ha - who knows. If anything, they were pretty amusing and I think they did help me show my personality if not my training/skills. They also gave me insight into what working at that site would be like.

 

[toutpasse15]

Oh no, I didn't mean anything about your character or intentions. I thought it was kind. I was just honestly seeking feedback about the ethics of it given the experiences I had at interviews so far. Good luck with all of your interviews!!!

Wishing you good luck for your interviews as well!

 

[ClinicalTears]

For the question:

What population have you found it most difficult to work with?

Do you answer this honestly?

Or do you answer in a way such that the internship site will help train you to work with the populations.

 

[hamsterpants]

For the question:

What population have you found it most difficult to work with?

Do you answer this honestly?

Or do you answer in a way such that the internship site will help train you to work with the populations.

My first interview is tomorrow but I plan to go for the honesty option if asked.

 

[sms06h]

For the question:

What population have you found it most difficult to work with?

Do you answer this honestly?

Or do you answer in a way such that the internship site will help train you to work with the populations.

When I've answered this question so far, I talked about it in an open and honest way. I explained why it was challenging for me, how I knew it was difficult (e.g., felt anxious, wasn't always looking forward to sessions with the client) and what I did (e.g., seek supervision, watch tape in supervision).

 

[NY-Psych-Dream]

I've been asked what population I would no longer want to work with as well as some cute, quirky questions. I didn't feel prepared but the conversation that followed was nice.

My school sent us lists of typical questions that I prepared for, but the questions that are unexpected, you can't really prepare for.

One piece of advice I was given that really helped in interviewing is to be genuine and honest. I felt that I shared some information that I felt was honest and showed some vulnerability. I was worried about how this might make me look but when I asked the TD what she was looking for in an intern she mentioned someone who is honest and willing to share things even when difficult. In some respects I feel confident about my answers but in other respects I feel scared that maybe I was a little too honest. Given that this is my first choice, I'm a little worried.

 

[GoPokes]

Was asked this last interview:

"What are some reasons you would not be a good fit for our site?"

"If you weren't your current theoretical orientation, which one would you be?" (???)

 

[MB8]

• What is your approach to therapy?
• What is helpful and what is not helpful for you in supervision?
• What are your findings so far regarding your dissertation?
• Tell me about an assessment case.
• What would you want to do in psychology, and outside of psychology?
• Tell me about a case that did not go well.
• Tell me about a time you have had an issue with a supervisor or coworker, and how you resolved it.
• Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
• How do you work within a system?
• How would you approach treatment with someone who is resistant to treatment?
• What is your perception of working in public mental health?
• What could be a disappointment for you if you came here?
• What 3 books would you recommend to a first year graduate student in clinical psychology?
• Tell me about your program (school).
• What are your boundaries, and how do you enforce these with your clients?

 

[empathiosis]

Was asked this last interview:

"What are some reasons you would not be a good fit for our site?"

"If you weren't your current theoretical orientation, which one would you be?" (???)

I would have said: because I am not at all amused by those questions. Asking why an applicant is NOT a good fit seems sadistic to me. I wonder what genius thought that would be an appropriate question.

 

[erg923]

I would have said: because I am not at all amused by those questions. Asking why an applicant is NOT a good fit seems sadistic to me. I wonder what genius thought that would be an appropriate question.

Agree. Seems like a sadistic twist on "what are some of your weaknesses"? A legitimate question, but too often personalized by both sides.

 

[GoPokes]

Thanks for ya'lls validation on this. The kicker is, they had already asked me what my weaknesses were. So this was just additional reasons why I suck.

 

[jadezomb]

Hi everyone! I am wondering about what interviewers might be looking for when they ask this question: "What do you think it would be like to work on XYZ rotation?"

I was personally unsure of how to respond when I was asked, because I had literally just asked about what that rotation was like to the interviewer...but I think I managed to scrounge up an acceptable response without repeating what they had said the rotation involved.

 

[WisNeuro]

They are gauging your expectations for the rotation. Perhaps to see if you've given some thought to what working at that site would actually be like.

 

[himala]

To respond to the question about: "What do you think it would be like to work on XYZ rotation?"

- "Well based on what you have told me and what I have learned about the rotation thus far, I think it would be really similar to my ___ experience in that ______. I can then use my previous experiences to continue doing ____."
- AT THE SAME TIME, it would be different from my previous experiences because of ______. But I am excited to learn more about ____ and think I can grow quite a bit from this rotation"

Something like that.