2020-2021 APPIC Match

[deleted1003601]

Anyone else feeling incredibly anxious as the impending due dates loom closer?

Anxious yes, but not too much. I am more excited than anything else. At the end of the day, any issues in my applications (i.e., grammar, left out something, etc.) is too late to fix, so no use in worrying over that. In the midst of preparing for this, I think we should give ourselves a break. I think there is bound to be something that is not 100% perfect that may or may not jeopardize our standing in the application procedure. If it does...oh well, a mistake was made. Considering most of us are applying to several sites, have school responsibilities, externship responsibilities, family stuff, maybe even work, I think it's fair to say that something might fall through the cracks. I say all of this because I know many of my classmates worry about this stuff...and frankly, I am just glad to be done, and, we are human. Now it's time to pivot and focus on data collection for my dissertation so that I can analyze and write up my last two chapters.

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[TennRunner]

Anxious yes, but not too much. I am more excited than anything else. At the end of the day, any issues in my applications (i.e., grammar, left out something, etc.) is too late to fix, so no use in worrying over that. In the midst of preparing for this, I think we should give ourselves a break. I think there is bound to be something that is not 100% perfect that may or may not jeopardize our standing in the application procedure. If it does...oh well, a mistake was made. Considering most of us are applying to several sites, have school responsibilities, externship responsibilities, family stuff, maybe even work, I think it's fair to say that something might fall through the cracks. I say all of this because I know many of my classmates worry about this stuff...and frankly, I am just glad to be done, and, we are human. Now it's time to pivot and focus on data collection for my dissertation so that I can analyze and write up my last two chapters.

This was said perfectly! Thanks for the re-direction in perspective.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[psychlife19]

Anyone else feeling incredibly anxious as the impending due dates loom closer?

Yes!
I realized as soon as I submitted one application, I did not attach the supplemental report. I emailed the training director right away to ask if I could email them the report, and I hope they respond.

Another site, for some reason I thought I would be able to submit a cover letter for each track, but once I submitted, I realized it was not so. So I applied for two different tracks but my cover letter says "Hi I am very interested in XX track" with no mention of YY track...

I am not sure if I should email the training director about this to clarify?

 

[modestmousktr]

Thanks @Spookerella and @NeuroJaguar ! I definitely did not include my undergrad on there, as I had confused the transcript issue with just not including any undergraduate info. Just fixed it. Super appreciate this!

 

[modestmousktr]

How I feel when I set the stipend to > 50,000 while searching for last minute sites:

 

[psychedaboutpsych123]

Just submitted!!! This feels surreal after all these years. Anyone else feel that way?

 

[NeuroJaguar]

Thanks @Spookerella and @NeuroJaguar ! I definitely did not include my undergrad on there, as I had confused the transcript issue with just not including any undergraduate info. Just fixed it. Super appreciate this!

Glad we could help and that you got it worked out!

 

[sg1645]

Anyone else feeling incredibly anxious as the impending due dates loom closer?

Yes, I keep re-reading my cover letters and can't help but pick them apart and second guess myself thinking other applicants are probably way more appealing!

 

[WisNeuro]

Yes, I keep re-reading my cover letters and can't help but pick them apart and second guess myself thinking other applicants are probably way more appealing!

I really wouldn't worry too much about cover letters, one of the least important parts of the applications. Many of us just quickly skim through to make sure you actually identified us correctly and mentioned rotations we actually offer.

 

[deleted989913]

I really wouldn't worry too much about cover letters, one of the least important parts of the applications. Many of us just quickly skim through to make sure you actually identified us correctly and mentioned rotations we actually offer.

Huh, my program's TD told us cover letters were the most important part so that's really interesting to hear!

 

[psychlife19]

Yesterday I go to apply to sites, and one of my top sites was not showing up on my AAPI portal. I contact AAPI and they tell me that
the site controls whether or not they show up on the application. If they closed their site from new applications, they will not show up anymore.

What?? Deadline for the site is not until mid November (as it says on their directory profile). There is nothing on their profile saying they are no longer accepting interns...I emailed the training director and I'm hoping with all my heart this was a mistake (very dramatic, I know, but it was one of my dream sites since beginning of graduate school!)

 

[deleted989913]

Yesterday I go to apply to sites, and one of my top sites was not showing up on my AAPI portal. I contact AAPI and they tell me that
the site controls whether or not they show up on the application. If they closed their site from new applications, they will not show up anymore.

What?? Deadline for the site is not until mid November (as it says on their directory profile). There is nothing on their profile saying they are no longer accepting interns...I emailed the training director and I'm hoping with all my heart this was a mistake (very dramatic, I know, but it was one of my dream sites since beginning of graduate school!)

Hope you hear back soon and that it was a mistake! Have you checked the list of participating sites to see if the site is on there?

APPIC Match | Participating Internships

natmatch.com

 

[WisNeuro]

Huh, my program's TD told us cover letters were the most important part so that's really interesting to hear!

Many of us are personally reviewing 30+ applications, generally on our own time. We may allot 15-20 minutes reviewing each application. So, in a 45-60 page application with all materials, we will gloss over the stuff that has little relevance and go for the meaty parts. This is generally CV review and reading the letters of rec. Others may have differing views, but in almost a decade of reviewing, I have never heard a cover letter being brought up in a ranking/decision meeting.

 

[deleted989913]

Many of us are personally reviewing 30+ applications, generally on our own time. We may allot 15-20 minutes reviewing each application. So, in a 45-60 page application with all materials, we will gloss over the stuff that has little relevance and go for the meaty parts. This is generally CV review and reading the letters of rec. Others may have differing views, but in almost a decade of reviewing, I have never heard a cover letter being brought up in a ranking/decision meeting.

This is really informative and makes a lot of sense, thank you for sharing!

 

[WisNeuro]

This is really informative and makes a lot of sense, thank you for sharing!

Of course, by all means, ask other faculty/TDs for their points of view if you wish, there are a ton of us on here and we all probably have our own idiosyncrasies. But, we all probably do share that we have very finite time to review applications while maintaining our current clinical loads.

 

[sg1645]

Many of us are personally reviewing 30+ applications, generally on our own time. We may allot 15-20 minutes reviewing each application. So, in a 45-60 page application with all materials, we will gloss over the stuff that has little relevance and go for the meaty parts. This is generally CV review and reading the letters of rec. Others may have differing views, but in almost a decade of reviewing, I have never heard a cover letter being brought up in a ranking/decision meeting.

Hmm, so generally the CV and the letters are the more important parts of the application. What about transcripts? I had posted this a few days ago and only got one response but my registrar lost my initial request so I had to send a last minute request and now APPIC won't get my transcripts soon enough to upload them for this Friday.

Do you think emailing the sites an unofficial copy along with an explanation there was an issues with my registrar would look better than not addressing it? And also explain to them the official ones will arrive soon. I'm sure some sites will be lenient and others will not, but doing something is better than hoping they get uploaded in time right?

 

[WisNeuro]

Hmm, so generally the CV and the letters are the more important parts of the application. What about transcripts? I had posted this a few days ago and only got one response but my registrar lost my initial request so I had to send a last minute request and now APPIC won't get my transcripts soon enough to upload them for this Friday.

Do you think emailing the sites an unofficial copy along with an explanation there was an issues with my registrar would look better than not addressing it? And also explain to them the official ones will arrive soon. I'm sure some sites will be lenient and others will not, but doing something is better than hoping they get uploaded in time right?

Transcripts are really only to look for red flags as the grade range is so restricted. I think e-mailing the contact person and offering pdfs in the meantime would be just fine at most places.

 

[sg1645]

Transcripts are really only to look for red flags as the grade range is so restricted. I think e-mailing the contact person and offering pdfs in the meantime would be just fine at most places.

Ok thank you! I've been worrying about this all week, losing sleep over it and stress eating too much. I will take your advice, again thank you!

 

[FreudisMyHomie11]

Anxious yes, but not too much. I am more excited than anything else. At the end of the day, any issues in my applications (i.e., grammar, left out something, etc.) is too late to fix, so no use in worrying over that. In the midst of preparing for this, I think we should give ourselves a break. I think there is bound to be something that is not 100% perfect that may or may not jeopardize our standing in the application procedure. If it does...oh well, a mistake was made. Considering most of us are applying to several sites, have school responsibilities, externship responsibilities, family stuff, maybe even work, I think it's fair to say that something might fall through the cracks. I say all of this because I know many of my classmates worry about this stuff...and frankly, I am just glad to be done, and, we are human. Now it's time to pivot and focus on data collection for my dissertation so that I can analyze and write up my last two chapters.

AGREEEEED! We got this!

 

[psychlife19]

Hope you hear back soon and that it was a mistake! Have you checked the list of participating sites to see if the site is on there?

APPIC Match | Participating Internships

natmatch.com

I had no idea this was also a directory, I was using this APPIC

I looked and that site is not on there. Thank you so much for letting me know about the link!

 

[mypointlesspov]

Many of us are personally reviewing 30+ applications, generally on our own time. We may allot 15-20 minutes reviewing each application. So, in a 45-60 page application with all materials, we will gloss over the stuff that has little relevance and go for the meaty parts. This is generally CV review and reading the letters of rec. Others may have differing views, but in almost a decade of reviewing, I have never heard a cover letter being brought up in a ranking/decision meeting.

My TD straight up told us she didn't read our cover letters. I can't remember if she read them after interviews or at all.

 

[WisNeuro]

My TD straight up told us she didn't read our cover letters. I can't remember if she read them after interviews or at all.

Yeah, no reason to read after interviews, There are just much better sources of information than a cover letter. Why waste that time?

 

[GradStudent2020]

Huh, my program's TD told us cover letters were the most important part so that's really interesting to hear!

I was able to observe a lot of the internship process from the APA site end during one of my practicums. The training directors talked a lot about the cover letters, and the essays. During my own interviews I was asked questions that reflected a review of those portions of my application. Those materials are absolutely reviewed at some sites.

 

[deleted656923]

I was able to observe a lot of the internship process from the APA site end during one of my practicums. The training directors talked a lot about the cover letters, and the essays. During my own interviews I was asked questions that reflected a review of those portions of my application. Those materials are absolutely reviewed at some sites.

I guess you really do need to have a perfect application then.

 

[ExecutiveDysfunction]

I guess you really do need to have a perfect application then.

Please, for your emotional sake, let yourselves off the hook on this one. There is no way of knowing what sites will emphasize over other pieces of your application, and it will vary from site to site. Give yourself a break and just give it your best shot. Trust me, you can be far from perfect and still match successfully.

 

[GradStudent2020]

I guess you really do need to have a perfect application then.

Yikes, not at all what I’m saying.

My point is anonymous “training directors” on web forums saying “x, y, z” don’t matter should be taken with a grain of salt. Posters may/may not be applying to sites with that approach.

Honestly, my practicum experiences at sites with APA internships helped develop my approach to internship applications. It was a super stressful few months and I am definitely not trying to add to anyone’s stress at this time. Or discount the effort they’ve already put in ALL parts of the application.

 

[GradStudent2020]

Please, for your emotional sake, let yourselves off the hook on this one. There is no way of knowing what sites will emphasize over other pieces of your application, and it will vary from site to site. Give yourself a break and just give it your best shot. Trust me, you can be far from perfect and still match successfully.

100% agree!

 

[deleted1003601]

I guess you really do need to have a perfect application then.

No. And please move away from thinking like that. You can't control this process. You did what was in your control (i.e., the application itself). Other than that, the evaluators will evaluate you based on both objective and also subjective criteria. That's how it was when we all applied to doctoral programs too. For example, there are some folks who like students from certain programs...doesn't matter if you have anything else that bolsters your application, just the mere fact you went to program X over Y already might ding you. That's sad, but it's also reality. There are many things out of our control in this process. Hopefully, you will be selected for an interview where you can complete the picture of who you are, and get the spot! Relax. We all have things that will be considered "pros" and "cons" to our applications. As long as human beings are involved...that's how that tune will carry on.

 

[psyche27]

Of course, by all means, ask other faculty/TDs for their points of view if you wish, there are a ton of us on here and we all probably have our own idiosyncrasies. But, we all probably do share that we have very finite time to review applications while maintaining our current clinical loads.

I skim them in the preliminary review just to see if they express an interest in our site or if they seem like they just like our geographical location. Then I don’t really look at them again until right before the interview to jog my memory.

Definitely in the limited time bucket.

 

[deleted989913]

No. And please move away from thinking like that. You can't control this process. You did what was in your control (i.e., the application itself). Other than that, the evaluators will evaluate you based on both objective and also subjective criteria. That's how it was when we all applied to doctoral programs too. For example, there are some folks who like students from certain programs...doesn't matter if you have anything else that bolsters your application, just the mere fact you went to program X over Y already might ding you. That's sad, but it's also reality. There are many things out of our control in this process. Hopefully, you will be selected for an interview where you can complete the picture of who you are, and get the spot! Relax. We all have things that will be considered "pros" and "cons" to our applications. As long as human beings are involved...that's how that tune will carry on.

Absolutely agree, and it's been surprisingly reassuring (for me, at least) to read that there are different app review approaches and to realize how limited the time is for those reviewing!

 

[BuckeyeLove]

Please, for your emotional sake, let yourselves off the hook on this one. There is no way of knowing what sites will emphasize over other pieces of your application, and it will vary from site to site. Give yourself a break and just give it your best shot. Trust me, you can be far from perfect and still match successfully.

This ^^^^^^^ 100%

 

[WisNeuro]

This ^^^^^^^ 100%

Shh, don't give up the secrets. We want applicants to stress for hours over things like the page margins and font size of their CV. I'm checking that **** with rulers, may even break out my protractor.

 

[deleted1003601]

Shh, don't give up the secrets. We want applicants to stress for hours over things like the page margins and font size of their CV. I'm checking that **** with rulers, may even break out my protractor.

Being a neuropsychologist, I'd expect nothing less. Giving it the ol' Rey-O touch.

 

[sg1645]

Update on the transcript situation in case anyone else is having the same issue:

I emailed all 10 of my sites that would be effected by my transcripts not being uploaded in time, and every single one of the sites said they would either use the unofficial transcript I emailed or they would just wait until the official ones were uploaded to APPIC. None of them wanted them overnighted to them, they were all very kind and understanding.

 

[EffectSize]

What is everyone using for a treatment related document? Some sites don’t specify what they want and besides it should be different than a psychoedu report.

 

[psytudent]

Just a friendly PSA:

An Examination of Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria in the Predoctoral
Internship Selection Process
Ross W. Ginkel, Shawn E. Davis, and Paul G. Michael
Pacific University​

A number of studies have examined factors that influence an individual being accepted into a predoctoral internship position such as practicum experience, the interview, the type of doctoral program attended, and letters of recommendation. Rodolfa et al. (1999), for example, detailed 36 inclusion and exclusion
criteria used in the internship selection process. The current study revisits this research in order to identify changes in these criteria from the time of the original study. While a number of traditional factors remained influential to the selection process, such as the fit between applicant goals and site opportunities and supervised clinical experience, a greater emphasis on personality characteristics of the applicant was found in the current study. The top three inclusion criteria found in the present study were fit between applicant goals and site opportunities, the interview, and professional demeanor of applicant. Interview, fit, and letters of recommendation were the top exclusion criteria.

Ginkel, R. W., Davis, S. E., & Michael, P. G. (2010). An examination of inclusion and exclusion criteria in the predoctoral internship selection process. Training and Education in Professional Psychology, 4(4), 213.

 

[psychlife19]

I submitted my applications yesterday and now I'm like "ummmm it's been a day, where are my interview invites or at least rejection emails? like hello?"

I know I won't hear anything for awhile, but I really hate this part! Actually everything about this process. It's worse than when I applied to graduate school.

 

[str63]

I really wouldn't worry too much about cover letters, one of the least important parts of the applications. Many of us just quickly skim through to make sure you actually identified us correctly and mentioned rotations we actually offer.

I completely disagree. For me, the cover letter is the most important. I look at this first and this is what determines whether I'll be looking at the rest of the application. I think this is where you can communicate your fit for the site (which is often said to be the most important thing for faculty when ranking). I agree with WisNeuro that we don't bring up specific things in the cover letter in a ranking meeting; however, we constantly talk about fit and a cover letter can really help sell why you are a good fit for a site. This is the case now at my current site and was also the case with faculty I've worked with at other places too. So, this will vary depending on who is looking at your application. That being said, I agree with others - don't stress too much. You likely won't get weeded out for something small. I've even overlooked misspelling of my name and having the wrong program name in the cover letter. We're all human!

 

[WisNeuro]

I completely disagree. For me, the cover letter is the most important. I look at this first and this is what determines whether I'll be looking at the rest of the application. I think this is where you can communicate your fit for the site (which is often said to be the most important thing for faculty when ranking). I agree with WisNeuro that we don't bring up specific things in the cover letter in a ranking meeting; however, we constantly talk about fit and a cover letter can really help sell why you are a good fit for a site. This is the case now at my current site and was also the case with faculty I've worked with at other places too. So, this will vary depending on who is looking at your application. That being said, I agree with others - don't stress too much. You likely won't get weeded out for something small. I've even overlooked misspelling of my name and having the wrong program name in the cover letter. We're all human!

Different strokes for different folks, Fit should be told through the CV and their trajectory, not how well someone can snow you in one single-spaced page. I've just never run across anyone who really pays any attention to cover letter outside of skimming. The most important part, though? That seems a huge stretch. As for whether I'm actually going to spend a great deal of time reading through the entire application, the program someone comes from is the first gatekeeper for us. We can generally eliminate 20-30% off the top based on poor programs that we wont take applicants from. Then the hard part is figuring out the middle group that we're going to invite where everyone is jumbled around.

 

[WisNeuro]

Had a no show this week, so started to look at apps early. Just a word of advice to applicants, why are some of you writing cover letters that are longer than 5 pages? Don't do that.

 

[deleted1003601]

Had a no show this week, so started to look at apps early. Just a word of advice to applicants, why are some of you writing cover letters that are longer than 5 pages? Don't do that.

Mine are two pages exactly. I hope that is okay?

 

[healthyu]

What is everyone using for a treatment related document? Some sites don’t specify what they want and besides it should be different than a psychoedu report.

I did a treatment plan with progress monitoring data.

 

[BuckeyeLove]

but wanted more information about her experience with the Rorschach.

So....she should probably run from this site.

 

[WisNeuro]

Mine are two pages exactly. I hope that is okay?

Two is fine, I prefer one, but I see a fair mix of 1 page and 2 page letters. Just don't go beyond that, or I go from skimming your cover letter to skipping over it completely.

 

[WisNeuro]

Actually...I would say the opposite. The reason why the supervisor asked is that my classmate had TA experience with the Rorschach. Our program has a dedicated course just for the Rorschach and a separate course for projective techniques. I was also a TA for the Rorschach class myself. The supervisor had stated "I saw you mention you TA'd but didn't provide much detail. Can you tell me your overall experience because we really do like people with Rorschach experience." I had told her that if she wasn't interested in her, she probably wouldn't have emailed her at 9:20PM asking for her to expand on her experience, she could have just as easily tossed her application and moved onto another applicant. At least that's how I chose to frame the situation.

Forgot to mention, the supervisor ended up emailing her back 40 minutes later thanking her for her prompt response and stated she would be in touch again following the application deadline.

Buckeye was saying that tongue in cheek. Mostly because outside the coasts and some pockets here and there, no one over the age of 90 uses it clinically any more.

 

[Heylookasquirl]

One of my references spelled her own name wrong which is now the latest thing for me to perseverate over

 

[deleted1003601]

Buckeye was saying that tongue in cheek. Mostly because outside the coasts and some pockets here and there, no one over the age of 90 uses it clinically any more.

Very true. I don't use it. At one of my sites my supervisor rarely used it, but he did when he felt he needed to, but he was very conservative in its use.

 

[Heylookasquirl]

Same thing happened to me. When I designated my reference in the APPI, it was spelled correctly, however, when my reference submitted his letter, he told me it changed his first name to "Padron" lol. However, if the committee opens his letter, they will see his name is spelled correctly on the physical letter, but when he uploaded it on his end to the APPI, it shows "Padron." I wouldn't worry about it. I think the committee is aware you can't control what your reference writes or misspells. Therefore, it shouldn't be reflective of you.

Thanks, this made me feel better! I know I spelled it correctly when I designated the reference, but now it is spelled incorrectly (basically looks like a typo) and has a middle initial added which I did not include.

 

[deleted1003601]

Thanks, this made me feel better! I know I spelled it correctly when I designated the reference, but now it is spelled incorrectly (basically looks like a typo) and has a middle initial added which I did not include.

You will be fine. As I had mentioned in one of my earlier posts, committees realize this is a very complex, drawn-out process. They understand there are a lot of moving parts involved. There is bound for something to slip through. If you can't tell...I love CBT

 

[WisNeuro]

Very true. I don't use it. At one of my sites my supervisor rarely used it, but he did when he felt he needed to, but he was very conservative in its use.

Yeah, we've had entire threads here dedicated to projectives, so we won't derail into that one here