2022-2023 APPIC Internship Interview Invitation Thread

[surviving2021]

Depends on the site. Our rankings were always pretty set before the interview based on the application. The interviews pretty much only got people moved down or into the do not rank category.

If someone does average on an interview …. Would it impact rank?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[WisNeuro]

If someone does average on an interview …. Would it impact rank?

At my former sites, no.

 

[roryportman]

Depends on the site. Our rankings were always pretty set before the interview based on the application. The interviews pretty much only got people moved down or into the do not rank category.

to clarify - if someone interviews well (knowledge-wise and social/interpersonally), could they be bumped up higher? A few spots or maybe more so? Or would this overall not make too much of a difference?

 

[surviving2021]

At my former sites,

to clarify - if someone interviews well (knowledge-wise and social/interpersonally), could they be bumped up higher? A few spots or maybe more so? Or would this overall not make too much of a difference?

I think this would. I am no expert but if they “click” with your personality they might want to move you ahead of someone that appears knowledgeable but lacks personality.

 

[WisNeuro]

to clarify - if someone interviews well (knowledge-wise and social/interpersonally), could they be bumped up higher? A few spots or maybe more so? Or would this overall not make too much of a difference?

We rarely moved anyone up much. Best chance they had to move up was if someone else fell. The interview day is more for the interns to get a feel of things than for us to decide ranks.

 

[PsychPhDone]

If someone does average on an interview …. Would it impact rank?

Depends on site. Our site scores interviews, factors into rankings.

 

[hopespringseternal]

We rarely moved anyone up much. Best chance they had to move up was if someone else fell. The interview day is more for the interns to get a feel of things than for us to decide ranks.

This statement seems very specific to your site. I will say at my site that an interview can definitely make or break you. If we have extended you an invite, there is something about your application that genuinely resonated with us and we now want to test the fit -- very similar to graduate school applications. When we sit down to finalize our rankings we generally go through each interviewee and weigh everything including their prior experiences and performance during the interview.

 

[hopespringseternal]

anyone get a rejection from a place they are currently doing practicum at?… ALL the feels.

They should have at least given you an interview out of courtesy (my site does this). I'm sorry this happened to you but it is just one less site to worry about.

 

[hopespringseternal]

Does anyone feel as though they are babbling during interviews? I am struggling to be concise while also sharing everything I want to answer the questions thoroughly. I timed myself during an interview and most of my responses were 90 seconds in length on average. Do you think that is too long? What are yalls thoughts? I did 4 interviews so far and have 11 more and am NOT feeling confident with this at all.

You will feel more comfortable as you move through more interviews. As others have said, I would focus on answering the question, bring in personal experiences as much as possible to demonstrate the skills they are asking about (if there are skills you think you are lacking based on the question, discuss how those are skills you hope to attain as part of the rotations/experiences you will have their specific internship site), and ultimately, just be the person that people in your life normally gravitate toward. I would personally err on the side of sharing more and letting the interviewer let me know when they are ready to move onto the next question. Don't share for the sake of sharing...make sure everything is flowing like a conversation would. Lastly, don't be surprised if you interview at sites that leave a bad taste in your mouth. I remember doing my first interview years ago thinking that I absolutely bombed it and it turned out that no interns matched at the site that year (meaning, every person who interviewed ranked it very low), so that reflects more on the site than it does on you.

 

[WisNeuro]

This statement seems very specific to your site. I will say at my site that an interview can definitely make or break you. If we have extended you an invite, there is something about your application that genuinely resonated with us and we now want to test the fit -- very similar to graduate school applications. When we sit down to finalize our rankings we generally go through each interviewee and weigh everything including their prior experiences and performance during the interview.

Sites. I've been involved in interview and ranking process at 5 different sites in and out of the VA. May be more geared towards neuro vs. general as I hear similar things from colleagues elsewhere. Not universal, but fairly common.

 

[twistytie1]

Sites. I've been involved in interview and ranking process at 5 different sites in and out of the VA. May be more geared towards neuro vs. general as I hear similar things from colleagues elsewhere. Not universal, but fairly common.

I would not be surprised if most sites did exactly what you said. Pre-rank and then move people down based on poor performance on interview. I have interviewed at 6 sites so far and it seems that interviewees are interviewed by different faculty members (e.g., not every faculty member interviews every interviewee). It would be very difficult to fairly rank someone based on interview if this is the case.

 

[WisNeuro]

I would not be surprised if most sites did exactly what you said. Pre-rank and then move people down based on poor performance on interview. I have interviewed at 6 sites so far and it seems that interviewees are interviewed by different faculty members (e.g., not every faculty member interviews every interviewee). It would be very difficult to fairly rank someone based on interview if this is the case.

A good portion probably do. But, I imagine another good portion ranks interviews highly for some reason. If I/O tells us anything, it's that most interviews are terrible predictors or job performance unless they actually include samples of the on site job skills in question. Honestly, the only useful part of the interview for me is the clinical vignette.

 

[jdawg2017]

A good portion probably do. But, I imagine another good portion ranks interviews highly for some reason. If I/O tells us anything, it's that most interviews are terrible predictors or job performance unless they actually include samples of the on site job skills in question. Honestly, the only useful part of the interview for me is the clinical vignette.

As someone who had a clinical vignette recently at a site for an interview (1 out of 7 places I have interviewed so far), I actually really appreciated the desire to test my skills. It seems kind of pointless to ask me questions that are clear in my application, and even more so personal questions, but I get that sites really want to double-check that the applicants are not bat-**** loco. Hopefully the LOR would serve a good gatekeeping role in those cases.

 

[twistytie1]

As someone who had a clinical vignette recently at a site for an interview (1 out of 7 places I have interviewed so far), I actually really appreciated the desire to test my skills. It seems kind of pointless to ask me questions that are clear in my application, and even more so personal questions, but I get that sites really want to double-check that the applicants are not bat-**** loco. Hopefully the LOR would serve a good gatekeeping role in those cases.

Same! I think I was given a clinical vignette one time so far. It does seem that most questions could be answered by looking at the application. I guess they are just trying to catch red flags... I wonder how successful they are at that.

 

[WisNeuro]

Same! I think I was given a clinical vignette one time so far. It does seem that most questions could be answered by looking at the application. I guess they are just trying to catch red flags... I wonder how successful they are at that.

Our clinical vignettes were pretty straightforward, there was never any "gotcha" type stuff. It was mostly just to see if applicants could pick on basic background stuff, come up with reasonable differentials, talk about what other info they'd want from clinical interview and eval, and whatnot. People just have to be in the ballpark.

 

[surviving2021]

I just wonder if sites have their top picks and they invite extra applicants as a buffer in case their top picks don’t select them or display some sort of red flags why do they continue to invite 35 applicants for 2 positions

 

[WisNeuro]

I just wonder if sites have their top picks and they invite extra applicants as a buffer in case their top picks don’t select them or display some sort of red flags why do they continue to invite 35 applicants for 2 positions

Top sites will probably be in their top tier for matching, but not always. There are years when even very good sites will be in Phase II. A few years back, one of the top VA sites was in Phase II for their generalist program. 35 invitees for 2 positions is probably reasonable assuming a few of those become unranked by the site.

 

[surviving2021]

Top sites will probably be in their top tier for matching, but not always. There are years when even very good sites will be in Phase II. A few years back, one of the top VA sites was in Phase II for their generalist program. 35 invitees for 2 positions is probably reasonable assuming a few of those become unranked by the site.

It just surprises me so many people for one spot. I wish there was a way to read how they are considering us. I had an interview with staff but didn’t meet the training director and later in the group session heard he interviewed other applicants. I am trying to not it get to me that maybe that meant something.

 

[surviving2021]

Also, anyone have any information on AK-PIC

 

[WisNeuro]

It just surprises me so many people for one spot. I wish there was a way to read how they are considering us. I had an interview with staff but didn’t meet the training director and later in the group session heard he interviewed other applicants. I am trying to not it get to me that maybe that meant something.

Limited staff. Remember that most of these people do not get clinical offsets. Interview season is on top of their other duties. This is volunteered time. Often times applicants are interviewed by whomever happens to have an open time slot.

 

[PedsPhD23]

Did we break the google doc? Whenever I check in it's always unable to edit!

 

[HarleyKing]

I know some people ( maybe many people) tend to feel more and more confident and comfortable as they go through more interviews, they may have less anxiety and may perform much better than the first interview.
I wonder, for those sites that conduct the interview at the beginning of this interview season, will they consider this factor when they rank the applicants?

I'm also curious about the purpose of unique questions that every site has. I realized myself babbling a lot on those questions and feel least confident about my answers! What do y'all think?

 

[hopespringseternal]

I know some people ( maybe many people) tend to feel more and more confident and comfortable as they go through more interviews, they may have less anxiety and may perform much better than the first interview.
I wonder, for those sites that conduct the interview at the beginning of this interview season, will they consider this factor when they rank the applicants?

I'm also curious about the purpose of unique questions that every site has. I realized myself babbling a lot on those questions and feel least confident about my answers! What do y'all think?

If there was someone I was interviewing who was terrific on paper but maybe gave a less than stellar interview due to nerves (but content-wise, was still on point), that is understandable. The interview is just one piece, but I need to know that person is showing up on day one with the requisite skills to hit the ground running. As my colleague pointed out earlier, some sites are just looking for a track record of very specific skills (it could be assessment, it could be research, it could be program development, it could be running groups, it could be working with college age populations, etc.). Try to convey your match (they call it The Match for a reason) as much as possible when you are answering every question. I remember during one interview, the interviewer had literally just pulled up my CV on his laptop for the first time and was reading my experiences back to me. I responded each time by saying something along the lines of, "Yes, that was a very important training experience to me...and I think it aligns with (or has prepared me for) your internship program because it helped me finesse this specific skill or gain this specific experience that is included within your program's rotation." The key is to be strategic with the very little time you have. Show them you did your homework on the site and that this is the perfect place for you. Jitteriness and nervousness can be overlooked in that type of situation.

As far as confidence, in this case I will say that practice (outside of doing more interviews) is important for you. I found it remarkably helpful as an applicant years ago to practice with current interns who still had the questions they were asked fresh in their memories. We did mock interviews and, not only did I learn what not to say, we developed easy frameworks to help structure my responses. I think the given advantage of doing interviews virtually is you can have a list of points pulled up on your screen to help jog your memory and prevent you from babbling. At the very least, be ready to give succinct, yet thoughtful responses to the basic questions (e.g., why this site, case example, theoretical orientation, multicultural awareness, what experiences you have with said population, discuss a challenge you have you experienced during supervision and how you resolved it, etc.) so that if they throw you a curveball it's okay to mess up on that one question. Go through your CV and ask yourself what skills and experiences you are most proud of because talking about these things during your interview will make you shine (you won't need to rely on a framework or list of points). Lastly, enter that interview knowing that you are the expert on your life and your talents. No one knows you and your professional experiences better than you. You just need to convince us how wonderful you are.

 

[roryportman]

@hopespringseternal well, I wish I had known some of your wonderful suggestions at the beginning of my interview season . but I guess it will help for my final interviews this week and next hah. and, I did find myself naturally doing some of what you said in my later interviews.

@HarleyKing definitely found myself babbling a bit for questions I hadn't rehearsed! I think (hope) this is normal and that it's not make or break if there's one question we're stumbling around

 

[thisisjustatest]

Some good VAs make the training really flexible. They have the resources to provide 13 or 14 rotation options. You can even make your own. If you have experience in adult population you would likely fit. I think this is good news for applicants but how would they rank us if “match” seems so broad? Luck plays a big role in “match” here.

 

[hopespringseternal]

@hopespringseternal well, I wish I had known some of your wonderful suggestions at the beginning of my interview season . but I guess it will help for my final interviews this week and next hah. and, I did find myself naturally doing some of what you said in my later interviews.

@HarleyKing definitely found myself babbling a bit for questions I hadn't rehearsed! I think (hope) this is normal and that it's not make or break if there's one question we're stumbling around

No problem I am a little late to the game but several applicants last year and this year mentioned this was a great resource to them so I thought I would contribute my two cents where I can. Feel free to message me with any q's!

 

[PSYCHED2021]

Anyone out there here from WVU/Charleston?

I’m just curious

I received an email from the training director before the holidays.

 

[HarleyKing]

If there was someone I was interviewing who was terrific on paper but maybe gave a less than stellar interview due to nerves (but content-wise, was still on point), that is understandable. The interview is just one piece, but I need to know that person is showing up on day one with the requisite skills to hit the ground running. As my colleague pointed out earlier, some sites are just looking for a track record of very specific skills (it could be assessment, it could be research, it could be program development, it could be running groups, it could be working with college age populations, etc.). Try to convey your match (they call it The Match for a reason) as much as possible when you are answering every question. I remember during one interview, the interviewer had literally just pulled up my CV on his laptop for the first time and was reading my experiences back to me. I responded each time by saying something along the lines of, "Yes, that was a very important training experience to me...and I think it aligns with (or has prepared me for) your internship program because it helped me finesse this specific skill or gain this specific experience that is included within your program's rotation." The key is to be strategic with the very little time you have. Show them you did your homework on the site and that this is the perfect place for you. Jitteriness and nervousness can be overlooked in that type of situation.

As far as confidence, in this case I will say that practice (outside of doing more interviews) is important for you. I found it remarkably helpful as an applicant years ago to practice with current interns who still had the questions they were asked fresh in their memories. We did mock interviews and, not only did I learn what not to say, we developed easy frameworks to help structure my responses. I think the given advantage of doing interviews virtually is you can have a list of points pulled up on your screen to help jog your memory and prevent you from babbling. At the very least, be ready to give succinct, yet thoughtful responses to the basic questions (e.g., why this site, case example, theoretical orientation, multicultural awareness, what experiences you have with said population, discuss a challenge you have you experienced during supervision and how you resolved it, etc.) so that if they throw you a curveball it's okay to mess up on that one question. Go through your CV and ask yourself what skills and experiences you are most proud of because talking about these things during your interview will make you shine (you won't need to rely on a framework or list of points). Lastly, enter that interview knowing that you are the expert on your life and your talents. No one knows you and your professional experiences better than you. You just need to convince us how wonderful you are.

Thank you, your reply is definitely helpful and supportive. Yes, I do feel it was so hard to make myself shine in the first interview due to my nervousness and strategic issue. I did hit the basic questions and tried to show my thinking about some unexpected questions. However, the interviewers seemed very serious at that moment, which made me more nervous.

 

[HarleyKing]

@hopespringseternal well, I wish I had known some of your wonderful suggestions at the beginning of my interview season . but I guess it will help for my final interviews this week and next hah. and, I did find myself naturally doing some of what you said in my later interviews.

@HarleyKing definitely found myself babbling a bit for questions I hadn't rehearsed! I think (hope) this is normal and that it's not make or break if there's one question we're stumbling around

English is not my native language, so I babbled a lot when I was very nervous. I know it is very hard to normalize this situation because we don't know whether other people do the same thing in the interviews. I really appreciate some interviewers who gave me the validations with their facial expressions though I was babbling.

 

[surviving2021]

I received an email from the training director before the holidays.

Do you have an interview scheduled or are you attending open house?

 

[PSYCHED2021]

Do you have an interview scheduled or are you attending open house?

I interviewed with them last week!

 

[matchedandconfused]

Anyone who interviewed with Ancora, how did you feel about it after all of the disorganization of deadline interview invitations and such?

 

[thisisjustatest]

Submitted my rank order list! Can’t wait to get the result! Why does the computer matching takes so long? Their computer is from the 60s? Anyone else here can’t wait???

 

[hopespringseternal]

Submitted my rank order list! Can’t wait to get the result! Why does the computer matching takes so long? Their computer is from the 60s? Anyone else here can’t wait???

Some sites are still doing interviews, plus they want to give people as much time as possible to think through their choices. This is a big decision.

 

[jdawg2017]

Some sites are still doing interviews, plus they want to give people as much time as possible to think through their choices. This is a big decision.

They also have the humans at APPIC double-check the computer to make sure it actually works the way it is supposed to!

 

[iheartbacon]

Anyone having trouble ranking? I am having a really hard time deciding the order for my top three! Not trying to game the system or anything - they just all have a lot to offer and the teams for the tracks seem pretty equally wonderful. I think I am having more anxiety and losing sleep now than I ever did before any of my interviews!

 

[summerbabe]

Anyone having trouble ranking? I am having a really hard time deciding the order for my top three! Not trying to game the system or anything - they just all have a lot to offer and the teams for the tracks seem pretty equally wonderful. I think I am having more anxiety and losing sleep now than I ever did before any of my interviews!

Totally normal and I went through that experience during my year.

If you would be genuinely excited to match at any of these 3, I'd look towards personal factors like geography, cost of living, and impact on relationships (e.g., if you have a partner, will they be going with you and so, will they have job opportunities? If you're apart, how long would travel take?) and see if those add any clarification. Good luck!

 

[iheartbacon]

Totally normal and I went through that experience during my year.

If you would be genuinely excited to match at any of these 3, I'd look towards personal factors like geography, cost of living, and impact on relationships (e.g., if you have a partner, will they be going with you and so, will they have job opportunities? If you're apart, how long would travel take?) and see if those add any clarification. Good luck!

Thank you!

 

[HarleyKing]

I wonder, how possible it is to get a postdoc in specialty training with a generalist background?
All the sites that interviewed me are generalist training. The internship site that I'm considering provides generalist clinical child training (seeing clinically diverse clients), with no rotations in some specialty areas. My career goal is to have some expertise in a child-related specialty area. If I get matched to this site, I'm thinking about getting a postdoc after the internship. The thing is, I don't know if it is feasible to get a postdoc in a specialty area with limited experience, compared to the people who have specialist training in the internship.

 

[intern21]

Do sites adjust ranking base on interview? I went to a interview. Initially there were 32 applicants and site says they don’t keep attendance. By the end of the day there were only 24 applicants left. Would this 24 be adjusted to a higher ranking if anyone was lower than the people left without saying anything?

My internship site finished interviews and they are taken into consideration for ranking. Not only interviews, but every interaction you have with anyone at that site.

 

[summerbabe]

I wonder, how possible it is to get a postdoc in specialty training with a generalist background?
All the sites that interviewed me are generalist training. The internship site that I'm considering provides generalist clinical child training (seeing clinically diverse clients), with no rotations in some specialty areas. My career goal is to have some expertise in a child-related specialty area. If I get matched to this site, I'm thinking about getting a postdoc after the internship. The thing is, I don't know if it is feasible to get a postdoc in a specialty area with limited experience, compared to the people who have specialist training in the internship.

Definitely possible. Some of it will be due to supply and demand since many people do not need or choose this route so a lot of postdocs will only receive a literal handful of applications, some of whom will choose other options or be totally unqualified.

You may be limited for the most competitive of postdocs but you certainly would not be out of the running if you have some decent generalist experience. Tangentially related specialty experiences and lack of geographic restriction should help as well.

 

[WisNeuro]

Definitely possible. Some of it will be due to supply and demand since many people do not need or choose this route so a lot of postdocs will only receive a literal handful of applications, some of whom will choose other options or be totally unqualified.

You may be limited for the most competitive of postdocs but you certainly would not be out of the running if you have some decent generalist experience. Tangentially related specialty experiences and lack of geographic restriction should help as well.

Probably depends on the specialty training area. Neuro has been increasing in competitiveness over the years, so someone with a pretty generalist background would likely be a bottom tier applicant at many of the quality sites. Can't speak to other specialty areas.

 

[thisisjustatest]

My internship site finished interviews and they are taken into consideration for ranking. Not only interviews, but every interaction you have with anyone at that site.

I wonder how the interactions will be looked at if someone stayed mostly hidden(not asking questions and sometimes camera off)? No interaction doesnt reveal flaws either?

 

[intern21]

I wonder how the interactions will be looked at if someone stayed mostly hidden(not asking questions and sometimes camera off)? No interaction doesnt reveal flaws either?

No interaction, no questions, can be indicative of lack of interest. If an applicant is not interested in learning more abt training opportunities at that site, that’s a red flag. If they are not interested in interacting with others, how will that person do as part of a team?

 

[thisisjustatest]

No interaction, no questions, can be indicative of lack of interest. If an applicant is not interested in learning more abt training opportunities at that site, that’s a red flag. If they are not interested in interacting with others, how will that person do as part of a team?

Good! Saw my competitions being quiet at my top site's open house. But, that site also only gave a 20min individual interview so they might have their rankings done before the interview and not change it much.

 

[intern21]

Good! Saw my competitions being quiet at my top site's open house. But, that site also only gave a 20min individual interview so they might have their rankings done before the interview and not change it much.

Did you guys have q&a with current interns and staff?

 

[thisisjustatest]

Did you guys have q&a with current interns and staff?

Yeah, I made sure I asked some questions but not dominating either.

 

[EAD8]

What are thoughts on CHA?

 

[PsychedUp313]

Does prestige matter? Should I try and rank more prestigious site purely based on this?

 

[WisNeuro]

Does prestige matter? Should I try and rank more prestigious site purely based on this?

Nope, prestige of the institution does not always line up with prestige in their training programs. There are a handful of places people would kill to go to for undergrad as the degree opens doors, but that have merely average or below average internship programs. Go to the place that has the training opportunities that you want.