Applying to clinical psych PhD with recently convicted DWI

[psychnerd76]

So late last year (2016) I was charged and ultimately convicted of a misdemeanor DWI. It shook my life up like I could've never imagined. Couldn't believe what I had done. I made the decision to go to a 30-day rehab and get sober.

I plan to apply to clinical PhD programs this coming fall to start in the fall of 2018. A little about me to put context in how my application would be viewed: I graduated undergrad with a BA in psych from a top public university in 2015, where I volunteered in two clinical labs since sophomore year, and did an honors thesis. I graduated with highest honors in psychology with a 3.81. Since then I've worked full time in two (a year in one and currently a year in another) clinical labs furthering my research experience. I am published on posters and a paper. I've known since sophomore year of college 6 years ago that I wanted to go to get a PhD in clinical psych and I have been dedicating my academic and career life to making myself a top applicant.

Obviously this DWI may completely change that, and I am prepared for the consequences. Can anyone tell me how I should plan to navigate this in the application process? Thank you so much.

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[smalltownpsych]

Congrats on getting sober. The legal history and history of substance abuse could cause problems for you down the road and some programs might be hesitant to take a chance on you in this very competitive process, but the reality is that some may see someone willing to address their difficulty in a positive way as a strength. I would advise being honest and straightforward when necessary or indicated without making excuses or rationalizations. You did a good job of that in the post. Short and sweet and clear. This is what I did and this is what I am doing now.

 

[AlmostaPhD]

I'm a faculty member and we had an applicant come through with a very similar scenario last year, though I think even more recently. S/he did not mention it at any point and it only came up in the background check after s/he was admitted. We discussed it in a faculty meeting and determined fairly quickly that a misdemeanor would not disqualify the student from placements or licensure in our state, so it was a non-issue. A felony would have been different. The student presumably knows that it may have come up during the background check and the advisor (who is not me) may choose to do discuss it or to monitor the student and see if it seems like an ongoing issue. Or the advisor may more or less forget about it.

So, in your case I think it is admirable that you've turned things around and that does suggest a certain kind of personal strength that could be attractive to a program. However, I also think it is not something you NEED to disclose. I tend to advise students to lean away from sharing personal info in their applications, but I also can see why you might share this particular thing because it's likely to come out in a background check. You should also look into whether it could affect internship/state licensing wherever you want to end up, but at the misdemeanor level I wouldn't think so. Good luck!

 

[psychnerd76]

I'm a faculty member and we had an applicant come through with a very similar scenario last year, though I think even more recently. S/he did not mention it at any point and it only came up in the background check after s/he was admitted. We discussed it in a faculty meeting and determined fairly quickly that a misdemeanor would not disqualify the student from placements or licensure in our state, so it was a non-issue. A felony would have been different. The student presumably knows that it may have come up during the background check and the advisor (who is not me) may choose to do discuss it or to monitor the student and see if it seems like an ongoing issue. Or the advisor may more or less forget about it.

So, in your case I think it is admirable that you've turned things around and that does suggest a certain kind of personal strength that could be attractive to a program. However, I also think it is not something you NEED to disclose. I tend to advise students to lean away from sharing personal info in their applications, but I also can see why you might share this particular thing because it's likely to come out in a background check. You should also look into whether it could affect internship/state licensing wherever you want to end up, but at the misdemeanor level I wouldn't think so. Good luck!

Thank you for this. Interesting about that applicant... you say it came up after she was admitted. Is there anywhere in the application process where this would come up, though? Do they not ask about prior convictions on the application, or is each school different?

Also I just can't help but think there's faculty out there who would think differently of the matter, especially if it is during the application process, and if they had two applicants otherwise being the same but one has a DUI... who knows.

Yeah, that is the tough thing about disclosing it because obviously I don't want to if I don't have to, but I would hate for them to find out without me telling and then not have a chance to explain myself.

 

[MCParent]

What do applications ask people to disclose? I thought they only had to disclose felonies (but I haven't done a grad school application in years). Programs don't do background checks on every applicant.

 

[temppsych123]

I don't recall having to answer questions related to background check type stuff when I applied, but all students in the program had to agree to a background check during our first year so that we could be cleared to do clinical rotations/placements. I'm not sure what would have happened if a student had been admitted and then something flagged afterwards...I imagine it would depend on the nature of the offense, what the student said about what they're doing to address it now, etc. You will also have to disclose this stuff when you apply to internship, and so even if it's not a problem at the grad school admissions level, something to consider for internship/licensure. I imagine different programs/advisors will view this differently, but honestly, if there's a program or advisor who would totally write you off on the basis of this, that to me is a sign that the advisor/program might not be a good fit. I know that I've struggled with all sorts of issues during grad school, and knowing that my advisor respected me as a human and was willing to help me even when I was struggling and/or made mistakes was really important for me to make it through. Just a thought!

 

[AlmostaPhD]

Thank you for this. Interesting about that applicant... you say it came up after she was admitted. Is there anywhere in the application process where this would come up, though? Do they not ask about prior convictions on the application, or is each school different?

Also I just can't help but think there's faculty out there who would think differently of the matter, especially if it is during the application process, and if they had two applicants otherwise being the same but one has a DUI... who knows.

Yeah, that is the tough thing about disclosing it because obviously I don't want to if I don't have to, but I would hate for them to find out without me telling and then not have a chance to explain myself.

There is a place to disclose a felony, though that does not apply to this student nor to your case as I understand it. So there was no formal place to indicate the legal history that was inaccurate or incomplete, I just meant that we found it a little surprising that the student had made no mention of it even after s/he was offered a position. I would not be dying to divulge it either, but it could be reasonably expected to show up in the background check that admitted students must consent to and I agree with you that it doesn't make the best impression if that is the first the program hears of it.

We do background checks after admission but prior to enrollment so that we can avoid the potentially problematic issue of an admitted student who is then ineligible for clinical placements/internship/licensure. Not every program does, YMMV.

In a hypercompetitive field like this it is true that any blemish on your record can cost you. Because it is in your past (albeit recent past) and you have taken steps to address the issue, I think you aren't necessarily obligated to address it up front (in the application/interview). If you get an offer and there is a required background check, then you might want to think about mentioning it. You can say something brief like what you said here. If they don't do a pre-matriculation background check then I might suggest keeping it quiet until you've built up a rapport with your advisor after the first semester or year. It will likely come out one way or another, but there's definitely better and worse ways to have that happen.

Finally, I want to make sure we have accurate information about the impact of a criminal conviction on your career. I don't know the laws of every state or rules at every externship/internship, and I know that you might face some limitations, but here are three states in which a prior conviction (misdemeanor or felony) is considered as part of your application package rather than an automatic disqualifier:

Florida Board of Psychology » Applicant FAQs
Criminal Convictions - California Board of Behavioral Sciences
Determination of Good Moral Character...

Yes, we have a duty to protect the public from an incompetent or otherwise seriously problematic psychologist. And I'm sure some programs would be skittish about admitting someone with a DUI, but I would hope that many would have an open mind and a belief that one data point doesn't define a whole person. You sound like a strong candidate overall, best of luck!

 

[BuckeyeLove]

Not every program does, YMMV.

One of my best friends who I went to school with, who on paper and interpersonally was a stellar applicant, ended up getting completely screwed because of this very thing. Our program at the time was only doing background checks on an every-other-year basis (I have no idea as to why). He had three misdemeanors, all from when he was around 19 (some of which were pretty serious), and none of the really great practicum placements would take him because of their own in-house background checks. This carried over to internship as well, and he ultimately (after 5 years of his life), chose to quit graduate school because of not matching. Moreover, even if he had matched, my state is incredibly tough on applicants with even minor criminal records, and I doubt he would have been able to get licensed even if he graduated. Point of the story, had our program completed the background check on him, it would have saved him 5 years of time, money, and stress (albeit, I wouldn't have met him then too though, so no best friend).

 

[psychRA]

It's been about 10 years since I applied, but at that time many (if not all) applications asked about convictions of any kind. I remember because a peer was concerned about the impact of disclosing a misdemeanor conviction for being a minor in possession of alcohol. Things may have changed since then, but at that point it was clear that she would have to disclose her conviction. There was a space on the application to address any convictions, so I don't believe that she mentioned it in her essays or anything but she did write a brief paragraph on the section that asked about convictions.

If applications do ask about this now, I'd recommend addressing it in the same way that you did in this forum. Be upfront about what you've done to address the issue. You can't control what meaning programs will make of that, but at least you'll have done your best to deal with it.

 

[EmotRegulation]

Also a faculty member here, and we have started doing background checks on any applicant invited to interview (so we have the information at interview and can discuss as needed). I don't think something like a DWI would prevent admission or practicum placements, but honestly it's going to vary by state. Some of our practicum placements only do a state search, so if an offense occurred in the state it would prevent them from doing that placement, but not if the offense occurred in a different state. You should also look into getting your DWI expunged from your criminal record if that's possible, even if not in time for applying to school but for applying to internship. States vary on this too, and you might not be able to get it off your driving record, but the criminal record is what will count for background checks at practicum and internship sites.