Choosing internship placements

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Hi All,
I figured I'd start a new thread about something that I (and many of my classmates) have struggled with. I would post it in the other thread; however I feel that thread is more appropriate for interview invitations specifically.

So here goes:
Is there any way (other than looking at how many applicants typically apply and how many applicants they take) to know how competitive internships placements are/ the caliber of the placements? If anyone has any other ideas as to how to decide between the hundreds of placements (other than research/clinical interest match, location, etc) please let me know!

 

[DrGero]

Hi All,
I figured I'd start a new thread about something that I (and many of my classmates) have struggled with. I would post it in the other thread; however I feel that thread is more appropriate for interview invitations specifically.

So here goes:
Is there any way (other than looking at how many applicants typically apply and how many applicants they take) to know how competitive internships placements are/ the caliber of the placements? If anyone has any other ideas as to how to decide between the hundreds of placements (other than research/clinical interest match, location, etc) please let me know!

The ones that offer more of a stipend are also probably more competitive (because they have significant funding to back them up). Just a thought.

 

[erg923]

The ones that offer more of a stipend are also probably more competitive (because they have significant funding to back them up). Just a thought.

No too sure about that. When picking my sites this year, I noticed no correlation between stipend and (perceived) competitiveness. In fact, if anything, it was a somewhat negative correlation. When adjusted for cost of living in the areas Yale, Harvard affiliates, Vanderbilt consortium, WPIC, Bellevue, MUSC, Florida, etc all had middle-of-the-road stipends at best (ie., lower 20s).

On the other hand, I noticed several anomalies such as WVU Health Science, Charleston offering a stipend of over 28k...well above the median. Also, Fed prisons pay very well. They be can be considered competitive i suppose, but the number are often much lower than other sites. Similarly, the military offers amazing pay...but we alll know what you have to give Uncle Sam for that...😉

 

[psychmama]

The ones that offer more of a stipend are also probably more competitive (because they have significant funding to back them up). Just a thought.

In my experience this isn't always the case. Prisons and state hospitals come to mind as typically paying more than private hospitals, but (at least in NYC) more people want the general hospitals like Bellevue or Beth Israel even though Bronx Psychiatric Center and Manhattan Psych Center pay a much bigger stipend. I guess it all depends on training goals and other priorities.

edit: I just realized Erg923 already answered this point. Sorry for the redundancy, but I didn't read the top of the thread before posting.

 

[DrGero]

In my experience this isn't always the case. Prisons and state hospitals come to mind as typically paying more than private hospitals, but (at least in NYC) more people want the general hospitals like Bellevue or Beth Israel even though Bronx Psychiatric Center and Manhattan Psych Center pay a much bigger stipend. I guess it all depends on training goals and other priorities.

edit: I just realized Erg923 already answered this point. Sorry for the redundancy, but I didn't read the top of the thread before posting.

I guess I was always thinking that hospital and university based programs with active, funded training programs can afford bigger stipends while more spit-and-baling wire programs (and worse, non APPIC programs) don't have the funding. Of course, prisons and prison-hospitals kind of skew that I guess.

 

[psychmama]

I guess I was always thinking that hospital and university based programs with active, funded training programs can afford bigger stipends while more spit-and-baling wire programs (and worse, non APPIC programs) don't have the funding. Of course, prisons and prison-hospitals kind of skew that I guess.

This is a valid point. I've seen some internships that pay under 20k in NYC area -- that's not a living wage, even for training.🙁

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

The stats APPIC provides on each site is a great place to start. They will give you a rough idea of the competition and who previously matched, BUT there are a lot of other variables that can't be quantified like that. For some subjective info, I talked with my mentors and asked them some places they thought would be a good fit. While I didn't get many specific site names, I did get a much better idea of what types of sites I should explore based on my goals.

 

[deleted176373]

Similarly, the military offers amazing pay...but we alll know what you have to give Uncle Sam for that...😉

And I'd do it again... Also the facilities are pretty good too in general.

Mark