2013-2014 APPIC (internship) interview thread

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NeuroNerd253 said:
Just got a phone call from the DOT at the Ann Arbor VA to tell me that my application is being "heavily considered"!!!
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Would you mind saying if you had previously signed up to attend the OH? I'm just wondering since they said they'd "remind" really strong candidates about the OH, but I'm not sure if they'd remind people who are already signed up to attend.
 
drann747 said:
Congratulations to everyone who received invites and good luck on your interviews! Unfortunately I did not receive ANY invites. Im feeling quite devastated. Anyone else in the same situation? Would love to hear recommendations on what the next step should befor me and what you plan to do.
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I'm very, very sorry to hear that. First, try not to look at it as a reflection of yourself (which I know is hard to do). I'm not in your situation, however, I didn't match last year after applying to a grand total of 40ish sites (both rounds combined), so I do understand a bit of what you're going through.

I want you to know that there will still be very good sites in Phase II. There have been every year. And last year, APPIC didn't charge for sending out applications in Phase II (hence why I applied to 40). I can't tell you 100% that they won't charge this year, but that would be very crappy and insensitive if they did.

Ok, now onto what you really want to hear. In Phase II, I would strongly suggest that you restructure your cover letters. Despite what many people tell you, the cover letter and CV are the two most important things in landing an interview. I would be more than willing to offer you further advice as to how to structure your cover letters, but I would need to know the types of sites you're applying to as well as see the Phase II list. There are some sites that care more about the amount of experience you have within their type of setting, and there are some that focus heavily on how closely you match to their training model. For example, one of the sites that I'm interviewing at in January is very focused on the training model. I don't have a ton of experience with the type of population they serve, and they get nearly 200 applications a year. But, approximately a third of their internship manual focused on their training model. As such, about 80% of my cover letter focused on how I was a good match to their training model.

Feel free to pm me whenever. Hope this helps.
 
Mass rejection from Davis received at 11:40 pm. I had applied to the general and sport psych tracks.
 
ClinPsy87 said:
I'm very, very sorry to hear that. First, try not to look at it as a reflection of yourself (which I know is hard to do). I'm not in your situation, however, I didn't match last year after applying to a grand total of 40ish sites (both rounds combined), so I do understand a bit of what you're going through.

I want you to know that there will still be very good sites in Phase II. There have been every year. And last year, APPIC didn't charge for sending out applications in Phase II (hence why I applied to 40). I can't tell you 100% that they won't charge this year, but that would be very crappy and insensitive if they did.

Ok, now onto what you really want to hear. In Phase II, I would strongly suggest that you restructure your cover letters. Despite what many people tell you, the cover letter and CV are the two most important things in landing an interview. I would be more than willing to offer you further advice as to how to structure your cover letters, but I would need to know the types of sites you're applying to as well as see the Phase II list. There are some sites that care more about the amount of experience you have within their type of setting, and there are some that focus heavily on how closely you match to their training model. For example, one of the sites that I'm interviewing at in January is very focused on the training model. I don't have a ton of experience with the type of population they serve, and they get nearly 200 applications a year. But, approximately a third of their internship manual focused on their training model. As such, about 80% of my cover letter focused on how I was a good match to their training model.

Feel free to pm me whenever. Hope this helps.
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I'd very much agree with these recommendations--plan on participating in Phase II (the APPIC website should say if they're going to charge to participate this year, although like ClinPsy, I'd be shocked if they made you pay extra) and work on re-writing/re-structuring your cover letter and perhaps CV in preparation for that. I believe it's not expected that you tailor your cover letter to each individual site in Phase II, so that should allow you to really focus on crafting the one you eventually send out. Also, if phone/skype interviews make you more nervous than the in-person variety, maybe practice a couple run-throughs to help you prep for that. Like ClinPsy said, there will be some great sites in Phase II; it happens every year.

Worst-case scenario, if it's not in the cards that you match during Phase II, just start planning out what you'll be doing over the next year. You can get in touch with sites to which you applied to ask how you might strengthen your application, and can then adjust your training experiences accordingly. And spending another year with one or more of your supervisors may end up strengthening their rec letters even more.
 
Is there a reason that sites interview so many applicants? It seems like most sites average 7 applicants to 1 spot at least. Don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled to interview, but kind of wish that the odds were better. Or is interviewing so many people a necessity to get a top applicant because of the Match algorithm?
 
cara susanna said:
Is there a reason that sites interview so many applicants? It seems like most sites average 7 applicants to 1 spot at least. Don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled to interview, but kind of wish that the odds were better. Or is interviewing so many people a necessity to get a top applicant because of the Match algorithm?
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they don't want to go into phase w
 
That's what I was wondering. So sites wouldn't be able to fill all of their spots if they interviewed less than 7-10 people per spot?
 
Heard back from my last two sites yesterday afternoon:

The Guidance Center (Kansas)
e-mail invite: Fridays in January
full day interview process

Park Avenue Center
e-mail invite: call for dates (flexible)
very open to Skype
half-day interview
 
CoralMint said:
Has anyone received a confirmation of interview date for Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial VA? I need to schedule some other interviews and haven't heard a peep from them since the interview invite.
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Has anyone heard from them yet? I thought for sure we'd hear yesterday since their original email said respond by the 20th. I really need to schedule my travel plans. 🙂
 
I am hoping to find someone that would be willing to switch skype interview slots for U of Washington Counseling Center or University of San Diego Counseling Center. I am shooting for a time earlier in the week, but any options at this point would be helpful. It turns out that I have several interviews/open houses that week and it is getting pretty tough to coordinate flights/interview times. Thanks!!!!!!!
My interview times are:
UofW 9:45pm (pacific time)
UofSD 3pm (pacific time)
 
cara susanna said:
Would you mind saying if you had previously signed up to attend the OH? I'm just wondering since they said they'd "remind" really strong candidates about the OH, but I'm not sure if they'd remind people who are already signed up to attend.
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I had not signed up previously. The DOT said he was calling applicants who were considered good matches with the program as well as those who were no longer being considered. I'm not able to attend the OH bc it conflicts with other interviews so he referred me to supervisors I should speak to if I had any questions. He also made it clear that the OH has absolutely no impact on rankings.
 
DrMindful said:
Personalized interview invite to UT Health and Science Center San Antonio - Dates: 1/21, 1/23, 1/27, 1/30
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What times do they offer for interviews and are there alternatives available such as skype/phone? Thanks and congrats 🙂
 
Anyone here going to the open house at the Children's Institute, Los Angeles on January 9th for the bilingual track?
 
Allie1234 said:
What times do they offer for interviews and are there alternatives available such as skype/phone? Thanks and congrats 🙂
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+1 for an invite. No times specified, just dates for in-person interviews only. They do sound like they may have an interview waitlist.

I had applied in late November, before they decided to extend their deadline.
 
NeuroNerd253 said:
I had not signed up previously. The DOT said he was calling applicants who were considered good matches with the program as well as those who were no longer being considered. I'm not able to attend the OH bc it conflicts with other interviews so he referred me to supervisors I should speak to if I had any questions. He also made it clear that the OH has absolutely no impact on rankings.
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Thanks for the info!
 
cara susanna said:
That's what I was wondering. So sites wouldn't be able to fill all of their spots if they interviewed less than 7-10 people per spot?
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Interviewing that number of folks per slot increases the chances that they'll fill everything without having to go into Phase II. On their end, sites are having to try and strike a balance between interviewing appropriate numbers of applicants per spot and having the resources actually available to interview the number of people they invite.
 
cara susanna said:
That's what I was wondering. So sites wouldn't be able to fill all of their spots if they interviewed less than 7-10 people per spot?
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At an ABCT talk on internship Some high muckety-muck from APPIC said sites have to rank 2.5 times more people than they have spots to fill their spots. So at site with 6 spots they have to rank 15 people to fill all their spots. S0 7-10 per spot seems a bit high for interviews. Although I suppose they probably want to catch the people who look good on paper, but who aren't people with whom they'd want to work.
 
Anyone going to the American Lake VA open house, which ends at 5:30pm on 1/8, to the Portland open house on 1/9? If so, do you mind sharing how you are getting there? Is transportation (shuttle) available from Lakewook, VA to Sea-Tac airport? Thanks!
 
kestrelcry said:
At an ABCT talk on internship Some high muckety-muck from APPIC said sites have to rank 2.5 times more people than they have spots to fill their spots. So at site with 6 spots they have to rank 15 people to fill all their spots. S0 7-10 per spot seems a bit high for interviews. Although I suppose they probably want to catch the people who look good on paper, but who aren't people with whom they'd want to work.
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But we also don't know if sites rank everyone they interview. Maybe after the interview the pool becomes smaller. Therefore, it does't really end up as 7-10 per spot.
 
grenas said:
But we also don't know if sites rank everyone they interview. Maybe after the interview the pool becomes smaller. Therefore, it does't really end up as 7-10 per spot.
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I've had one site so far that emailed me after the interview saying I would be placed on their rank list. I know at least 1-2 other sites said something about letting applicants know if they were going to be ranked or not. I'm sure if one is *not* ranked, the site would let the applicant know.
 
stayingmindful said:
I initially had the same thought, but I believe someone on here received a rejection from them last week.

It also sounds like several people have contacted the TD with no response. Odds are that someone on this forum would have received an invite had they gone out. At this point, while I'd love to interview at Mt Sinai, I need to focus on prepping for the amazing sites who already offered me interviews. Though this frustrates me to no end, as well!
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I also joined just to weigh in on this!

My training director said that since Mt Sinai adolescent health just received apa accreditation this year, he was expecting them to be late with notifying--he said this before the 15th, so that's relieved some stress to know that what he said would happen played out. Also, I am from a NYC area child program where lots of people applied, and no one has heard yet. So I would still hold out hope if you haven't heard... I will!
 
cara susanna said:
Thanks for the info!
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I could be wrong about this, but my sense is that the Ann Arbor VA makes very few of these notifications. It's *great* news if you get such a notification (you're likely a shoe-in for being matched there if you want to be, especially considering they have an inflated number of slots relative to applicants in the first place). But don't read much into it if you don't; there's still a strong chance that you could match.
 
Regarding interviews and number of applicants, the sense I get is that most sites rank nearly all of those who are invited to interviews. Unless they tell you otherwise, I would assume you are being ranked; it's simply a matter of where.
 
I'm still waiting on two sites (one of which is a week late) and with 11 interviews my travel expenses have far exceeded what I had anticipated. I'm thinking of turning down any potential future invitations. Have any of you turned down invites or cancelled scheduled interviews?
 
slroden said:
I'm still waiting on two sites (one of which is a week late) and with 11 interviews my travel expenses have far exceeded what I had anticipated. I'm thinking of turning down any potential future invitations. Have any of you turned down invites or cancelled scheduled interviews?
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I have. I tried to work it out with the site-asked about phone interview, if I could come on a different date that wasn't an interview date but they weren't flexible at all. Thankfully they weren't a top site for me. So I cancelled because there was no way I could make the interview and get to the other side of the country by the next morning for an interview that was scheduled weeks prior. If you really like the site I'd try to work it out. But if it's a "safe" site or something, consider not going. Think about if you see yourself as a good fit! I have 11 now after canceling/rejecting some too and if I'm offered my last one, I might go since it's only an hour away. Hope this helps you sort it out!!! AND write out pros and cons before making final decisions!!
 
If I had 11 interviews (which I don't, admittedly), I think at some point I would have to consider self care. Travelling and interviewing is exhausting, and I think eventually even the best applicant will start to show fatigue during the long haul in January. How on top of your game are you really going to be if you attend so many interviews?
 
cara susanna said:
If I had 11 interviews (which I don't, admittedly), I think at some point I would have to consider self care. Travelling and interviewing is exhausting, and I think eventually even the best applicant will start to show fatigue during the long haul in January. How on top of your game are you really going to be if you attend so many interviews?
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I attended 15 interviews. It was exhausting. Toward the end, I started to "not care." I stopped preparing and just went with the flow. All of my interviews were out of state. I spent close to $4000 for flights, rental cars, hotel rooms, etc. Interestingly enough, I matched to the last site I interviewed with. Go figure 🙂
 
KRCM said:
I attended 15 interviews. It was exhausting. Toward the end, I started to "not care." I stopped preparing and just went with the flow. All of my interviews were out of state. I spent close to $4000 for flights, rental cars, hotel rooms, etc. Interestingly enough, I matched to the last site I interviewed with. Go figure 🙂
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WOW, KRCM, you're a interviewee beast. You are awesome.
 
Maybe some people interview better at the point where they stop preparing so much and just go with the flow? 🙂
 
cara susanna said:
Maybe some people interview better at the point where they stop preparing so much and just go with the flow? 🙂
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Perhaps. I think it was a good idea to prepare to a certain extent, especially with certain questions.
 
CBTFTW said:
I'm pretty sure their Appic profile lists their notification date as 1/3, actually.
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I can't seem to access *any* of the APPIC profiles - is that the same for everyone? For some reason I had 12/21 written down for them. You saw it was 1/3?
 
KRCM said:
I attended 15 interviews. It was exhausting. Toward the end, I started to "not care." I stopped preparing and just went with the flow. All of my interviews were out of state. I spent close to $4000 for flights, rental cars, hotel rooms, etc. Interestingly enough, I matched to the last site I interviewed with. Go figure 🙂
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It was your last interview but did you rank them high though? Just curious.
 
grenas said:
I am able to access it. Maybe it is your browser?
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Hmm... not sure what the problem is then. I've tried Safari, Firefox, and Chrome. All worked when I was applying, but don't anymore, on my macbook or my iPad.
 
This is the message I get...
 

Attachments

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That responsibility of those sites who never said a beep

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
 
highwayninja said:
Ah DUH. Figured it out. I hadn't realized there was a new site up! 😀 D'oh! January 3rd it is. 🙂
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Yeah, I think because of the link changes, nothing was working for a while. I think Hawaii changed their submission deadline sometime during the process and then pushed up their notification deadline, as well. It's a little annoying, but at least they don't have in-person interviews!
 
CBTFTW said:
Yeah, I think because of the link changes, nothing was working for a while. I think Hawaii changed their submission deadline sometime during the process and then pushed up their notification deadline, as well. It's a little annoying, but at least they don't have in-person interviews!
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Yeah there is no way I could make it out there at this point... although I wish I had have thought of just stopping by the center when I was there for APA.
 
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