APPIC thread?

[hopefulclinicalpsych]

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So I know we're all going to do our best to impress our interviewers... but what are some of the strategies y'all are going to use to vet sites for ranking time? What are some of the dos and don'ts to look for during interviews/open houses/time with current interns? I want to make sure that I don't let my enthusiasm for a site blind me to any red or yellow flags 😛

I think this is such a good question. I’m a current intern and we’re trying so hard to keep applicants engaged throughout the day and get a feel of the place. I would say make sure to talk to the interns and it would be a red flag if they’re not available. For my rankings, I weighed staff interacted with interns and interpersonal comfort heavily. I think during the online interviews you can still get some of that. I also think asking about how training has been adjusted during COVID and how they’ve kept the interns safe are some big questions. More than happy to chat in PMs if you want! Good luck with the process.

 

[missplum]

I think this is such a good question. I’m a current intern and we’re trying so hard to keep applicants engaged throughout the day and get a feel of the place. I would say make sure to talk to the interns and it would be a red flag if they’re not available. For my rankings, I weighed staff interacted with interns and interpersonal comfort heavily. I think during the online interviews you can still get some of that. I also think asking about how training has been adjusted during COVID and how they’ve kept the interns safe are some big questions. More than happy to chat in PMs if you want! Good luck with the process.

Thanks! I tried sending you a message, but couldn't. Maybe you could PM me first? 🙂

 

[summerbabe]

what are some of the strategies y'all are going to use to vet sites for ranking time?

Off the top of my head:
- Ask current interns about the level of support for postdoc apps/first-job prep and other non-clinical things (e.g., career development didactics, EPPP prep or support).
- Ask current interns how rotation selections are handled and what happens if multiple people want to do a rotation and there isn't space/time to accommodate everybody.
- Ask if any of the listed rotations/clinical options were not available this year and what the plan is for next year.
- Do you get dedicated time to work on dissertation? Are you allowed to or encouraged to do so if you have down time at work?
- Some sites have opportunities for research so if you're interested, ask about eligibility (I believe that you had to have defended your dissertation at my internship to do the research rotation).
- Some sites are very encouraging and supportive about allowing interns/staff to use leave while others may make it more restrictive since they may rely more on interns to provide clinical services.

 

[Noor0183]

Okay, so I'm one of the few that have received all rejections so far. Waiting to hear back from four sites but I want to think ahead regarding phase II if/when things don't work out. Since we only have about 6 days(after match day) to submit our applications for phase II I wonder if we have to send out a request to our recommenders all over again like we did in phase II or if there is a way to re-submit and/or choose from the old ones we already have....does anyone have any info about this?

 

[Spydra]

Okay, so I'm one of the few that have received all rejections so far. Waiting to hear back from four sites but I want to think ahead regarding phase II if/when things don't work out. Since we only have about 6 days(after match day) to submit our applications for phase II I wonder if we have to send out a request to our recommenders all over again like we did in phase II or if there is a way to re-submit and/or choose from the old ones we already have....does anyone have any info about this?

According to the APPIC info you can use the same LORs and the same essays. I'm guessing there will be an option to just attach these because it would make zero sense to have letter writers resubmit the same letter. There are no supplementals which is nice, but new cover letters are a must.

Hopefully you have a good DCT to guide you through Phase II, if not look at the APAGs workbook which has tips for this process and find out who else in your department or at practicums you can reach out to for guidance.

 

[summerbabe]

Okay, so I'm one of the few that have received all rejections so far. Waiting to hear back from four sites but I want to think ahead regarding phase II if/when things don't work out.

Sorry to hear that but glad to see you be proactive.

If you haven't done it already, I'd really recommend working closely with your DCT and advisor to 'autopsy' why you didn't receive invites, especially if you feel in the dark about how your application is being viewed. This could also be a good time to solicit brief feedback from a few select sites, especially if you felt like you were a great fit for them. A Aot of training DCTs are very busy now but they most likely got into their roles due to wanting to help and mentor future psychologists.

And for LORs, I like to see both congruence between what an applicant says and what their writers say, as well as getting more details on objective facts (like how you approach the assessment process to complement your hours/instruments).

If you decide to solicit new recs, you could share your AAPPI and ask your original writers if they can amend their letters by adding their perspectives on things you're highlighting about yourself (if they did not speak to some of those elements originally).

Good luck!

 

[Noor0183]

According to the APPIC info you can use the same LORs and the same essays. I'm guessing there will be an option to just attach these because it would make zero sense to have letter writers resubmit the same letter. There are no supplementals which is nice, but new cover letters are a must.

Hopefully you have a good DCT to guide you through Phase II, if not look at the APAGs workbook which has tips for this process and find out who else in your department or at practicums you can reach out to for guidance.

Thank you this is helpful!

 

[Noor0183]

Sorry to hear that but glad to see you be proactive.

If you haven't done it already, I'd really recommend working closely with your DCT and advisor to 'autopsy' why you didn't receive invites, especially if you feel in the dark about how your application is being viewed. This could also be a good time to solicit brief feedback from a few select sites, especially if you felt like you were a great fit for them. A Aot of training DCTs are very busy now but they most likely got into their roles due to wanting to help and mentor future psychologists.

And for LORs, I like to see both congruence between what an applicant says and what their writers say, as well as getting more details on objective facts (like how you approach the assessment process to complement your hours/instruments).

If you decide to solicit new recs, you could share your AAPPI and ask your original writers if they can amend their letters by adding their perspectives on things you're highlighting about yourself (if they did not speak to some of those elements originally).

Good luck!

These are some really good points. I reached out to some sites to ask for feedback regarding my application, so I hope they have the time to contact me as I think that would be so helpful.
Appreciate the advice!

 

[nicolascagephd]

I'm a bit confused about ranking. I applied to only one track at a site that I was offered an interview for. However, when I attended the Q&A about the track, the director encouraged us to rank another track with it, and to let them know which tracks we are going to rank at the time of interview. I am confused about how this works. Could I still rank a track that I did not officially apply for? Also, how much am I allowed to disclose about rank with the site?

 

[bcliff]

I'm a bit confused about ranking. I applied to only one track at a site that I was offered an interview for. However, when I attended the Q&A about the track, the director encouraged us to rank another track with it, and to let them know which tracks we are going to rank at the time of interview. I am confused about how this works. Could I still rank a track that I did not officially apply for? Also, how much am I allowed to disclose about rank with the site?

Many times separate tracks will have their own match IDs, meaning that applicants rank individual tracks rather than an entire site. So, there's no need to indicate your preference to the site, because everything would just happen during the match process. Applicants can technically rank any site or track, even ones they never applied to; however, (obviously) those sites would not rank the applicant.

 

[ccpsych16]

I'm a bit confused about ranking. I applied to only one track at a site that I was offered an interview for. However, when I attended the Q&A about the track, the director encouraged us to rank another track with it, and to let them know which tracks we are going to rank at the time of interview. I am confused about how this works. Could I still rank a track that I did not officially apply for? Also, how much am I allowed to disclose about rank with the site?

Depends on the program. If the TD said you can rank multiple then let them know if you will so they can consider you and possibly rank you for those too. This happened to me at an interview as well. The tracks were simply different locations and we were told we could apply for the other 2 locations if we wanted, after hearing more about them on interview day. Essentially, it didn’t matter what we wrote in our cover letter or checked in the AAPI.

Often different tracks are different programs entirely, making it less likely that you can be ranked for others you didn’t apply to.

 

[nicolascagephd]

Depends on the program. If the TD said you can rank multiple then let them know if you will so they can consider you and possibly rank you for those too. This happened to me at an interview as well. The tracks were simply different locations and we were told we could apply for the other 2 locations if we wanted, after hearing more about them on interview day. Essentially, it didn’t matter what we wrote in our cover letter or checked in the AAPI.

Often different tracks are different programs entirely, making it less likely that you can be ranked for others you didn’t apply to.

Thank you for this response. This is similar to how the situation was presented in the Q&A. Basically, there are similar tracks in different locations and they were encouraging us to consider ranking the other location in addition to the one we were at the meeting for. So, I'm assuming that (as long as we are both aware of me applying to the additional track) I can rank more than the track I am currently interviewing for.