Impact of Researching Programs on Interviews/Acceptance Rates?

[clip.clop]

To preface, I realize there are plenty of"duh"-esque obvious/common sense answers to this question. It's still been piquing my interest lately. That is, I wonder what impact researching a program and potential faculty mentors really has on one's success/acceptance rate.

Of course I'm speaking about the point at which you've already received an interview invite and therefore have already done the basic amount of research necessary to make that informed decision to apply.

The thread on sample interview questions really got me wondering, mostly; chiefly the more recent post about being asked the question "What are you NOT looking for in a program" and similar variants. I've read entire program manuals and felt very prepared, and I've also seen other applicants so poorly prepared that they're awkwardly citing article titles verbatim and trying to make it seem like casual conversation.

I'm also thinking, from the devil's advocate standpoint, that perhaps this practice of researching programs and faculty members to a point that's well beyond what's necessary to make an informed application decision and almost borders on stalking (kidding...at least I hope) actually doesn't matter. That is, as long as you know the basics, have common sense, and don't act like a spaz or make an otherwise poor/"odd person" impression, the rest is all but a chance occurrence.

So, without confusing everyone further, I'm wondering if we can do a sort of informal poll/establish some sort of basis of understanding.

• What sort of research have you done about programs and/or faculty (e.g., reading program manuals, program statistics of various sorts--if so, what kinds?, reading faculty/grad student articles, reading grant literature, etc.) or what sort of research have you been told to do, and why?
• How has your research helped or hindered your process as an applicant? How do you know this (mainly I just mean please clarify if someone directly told you it made a difference)?
• What sort of background research and the like do you wish you'd done, and why?
• As potential interviewers, what do you expect applicants to know on these fronts?
• Other thoughts?

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[smalltownpsych]

I'm thinking that if you look like your avatar, then you will definitely make an impression. I hardly remember my one interview other than I was so anxious that I could feel the sweat dripping so I won't comment but they took me so that's what counts. Good luck and try not to do anything overly spazzy!

 

[clip.clop]

I only wish I looked like my avatar.

I'm not worried about it, really. I've been through the rodeo before (on both sides) and think I've just gotten to an age where I don't get as worked up anymore.

I was just thinking about it and figured a broad range of perspectives would be interesting. Chiefly because I look back and think, "Man, I wasted a lot of time practicing interview questions and reading up on program details."

 

[FLpsychstudent]

I think it's important to be able to state why you are interested in that program and what you could contribute especially in terms of research to your lab. But yeah reading articles and poring over program manuals is generally pointless as they give you a ton of information when you get there before interviews start anyway, and no one is going to expect you to have memorized every article...as long as you have an idea about what part of their research is interesting to you and how you would be involved in it

 

[EekVonBlergh]

What I have been trying to do (and this has been successful once so far) is to:
a) obviously read and be familiar with some of POI's major/latest work and to be able to clearly articulate how my research interests complement and/or build upon said research ( I don't think it is effective to just try to randomly state facts about what you've read in hopes to impress them) and to b)be able to explain specifically why x particular program is a genuine fit for my future goals. Obviously we all probably applied to at least a couple of programs because they were convenient/sounded good and there was a decent fit, but there are probably also many schools that people applied to because the program model/style/whatever was directly in line with past and hopeful future experiences. I think it can be a huge benefit to the applicant to be excited not only about the POI but about the program in general (maybe a *duh* statement, but might be helpful for some people). So, with that said, I definitely did skim program manuals.

...plus I staked out all of my POIs houses and have a list of facts about them- favorite cereal, what time they wake up and how many times they hit snooze, trashy tv shows they watch, etc, juuuuust in case.

 

[smalltownpsych]

Also, if you look like your avatar, I'm thinking your chances might be better than clip.clops.
She just looks so studious. Who wouldn't want a committed student like that in their program?

 

[EekVonBlergh]

Bahahhaha, that legitimately made me lol

 

[clip.clop]

You're all just a bunch 'a hunks anyway...

 

[SharkBait13]

I worked three jobs last year in order to take this entire year off for the purpose of researching and applying to programs, while working unpaid in three labs (and also getting married).

With that, I've definitely put in a lot of time (potentially more than others) researching programs as well as the whole admissions process. I started in June with the Insiders Guide to compare typical admissions, outcomes, and other data across all schools. I focused exclusively on fully funded, APA accredited programs with high internship rates. From there, I evaluated if there were professors at each school that I shared research interests with, and emailed them to ensure they were taking on students.

After that, I weighed my perceived "fit" against their average admissions data (GPA, GRE scores, % accepted with only a BA, and % of applicants who get an interview). This was the most vague part of the process, and I doubt I can explain it to you all in explicit detail. Generally, I looked to meet their average GPA/GRE, looked for greater than 30% of current students entering with only a BA, and looked for schools with 5-10% acceptance rates. I mainly based this on my own perceived competitiveness, given my background (GPA/scores and 3 co-authorships, but none published yet).

From there, I would ask my POI's some general questions about the program, as well as reading their program website. I never really read program handbooks in depth, and only read a few of my POI's articles, though I did glance at most of their abstracts. I guess I was a little afraid of reading many of my POI's articles and getting too excited about their work, only to later be rejected.

I eventually ended up with a list of 20 schools; two funded PsyD's, about 8 clinical programs, and the rest counseling psychology. Of those, I have gotten two PsyD interviews, two Clinical interviews, and five counseling interviews, which comes out to an almost 50% interview rate (WOO HOO!). Given the number of programs I applied to, I though I would receive way less than that.

Once I received an interview invite from a program, I would then look at my POI's research in depth and take notes from the program website/handbook.

However, I wish I would have applied to some more competitive programs, as I now realize I couldn't accurately predict which programs I would get interviews at. My top two choices (and schools I felt I had the best chance at) ended up rejecting me, even though I had a solid fit with 3-4 professors there and the program wasn't that competitive. Yet some schools that were competitive (by my definition) where I only had research interests with one POI ended up inviting me out for an interview.

All in all, I think I got many interviews partially as a result of all the work I put in. Yet even with all the research I did, there were still quite a few surprises based on chance.

 

[PsyOpt]

.

 

[EekVonBlergh]

@SharkBait13 and @PsyOpt I admire your tenacity!! Best of luck throughout the rest of the admission season

 

[SharkBait13]

Thanks! I only hope I don't have to repeat the process...