Drug Possession and Getting into a Clinical Program

[mmjdondante]

So I have a question about the possibility/limitations of having possession a of controlled substance felony and getting into a clinical psych PhD. program.
in November of 2013 I was convicted for a possession of a controlled substance-felony. Most schools have asked on their application whether or not I have been convicted of a felony and I have no problem disclosing my past record.
Since the conviction, I served my time, and have gone from a homeless shelter to graduating college with honors in three years. I have also spent almost three years in long term recovery, meaning I haven't had a drink or drug since February of 2014. I have worked at a University Recovery Center for over 2 years as a student worker and am taking on a Program Coordinator position in January. I have worked at a sober living home as a recovery advocate for two years as well. During these three years I have also volunteered weekly at an inpatient rehab for teenagers as well as once a week at a recovery high school in my area. My GPA, GRE scores are competitive. I have spent 2 years in one research lab and am going to be a paid RA after I graduate in December. I have also created my own study with a different mentor examining college students Stigma of substance users.
One school's judicial review committee has already rejected my application for the fall of 2017. I include the information about my conviction in my personal statement( as well as on my application) because the legal process really impacted my research interest of stigma, motivation, and treatment of individuals with substance use disorders.

Current Graduate Students/current professors, have you heard of individuals getting in with a background such as my own? Would you deny someone admission or the chance of an interview due to a drug charge?

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[erg923]

So I have a question about the possibility/limitations of having possession a of controlled substance felony and getting into a clinical psych PhD. program.
in November of 2013 I was convicted for a possession of a controlled substance-felony. Most schools have asked on their application whether or not I have been convicted of a felony and I have no problem disclosing my past record.
Since the conviction, I served my time, and have gone from a homeless shelter to graduating college with honors in three years. I have also spent almost three years in long term recovery, meaning I haven't had a drink or drug since February of 2014. I have worked at a University Recovery Center for over 2 years as a student worker and am taking on a Program Coordinator position in January. I have worked at a sober living home as a recovery advocate for two years as well. During these three years I have also volunteered weekly at an inpatient rehab for teenagers as well as once a week at a recovery high school in my area. My GPA, GRE scores are competitive. I have spent 2 years in one research lab and am going to be a paid RA after I graduate in December. I have also created my own study with a different mentor examining college students Stigma of substance users.
One school's judicial review committee has already rejected my application for the fall of 2017. I include the information about my conviction in my personal statement( as well as on my application) because the legal process really impacted my research interest of stigma, motivation, and treatment of individuals with substance use disorders.

Current Graduate Students/current professors, have you heard of individuals getting in with a background such as my own? Would you deny someone admission or the chance of an interview due to a substance use disorder?

Felony convictions often bar one from being licensed as a healthcare provider, psychologists included.

 

[mmjdondante]

Felony convictions often bar one from being licensed as a healthcare provider, psychologists included.

I understand it truly makes things more difficult to obtain a license and is almost an immediate withdraw of a license if it happened while practicing. Yet, I also know of many therapist and counselors who have had drug possession charges in the past and that have also spent time in prison (which thankfully I didn't have to do). I know the two are somewhat related but I am asking on the admissions process for a PhD. in Clinical psych, have to get there first before obtaining a license.

 

[erg923]

I understand it truly makes things more difficult to obtain a license and is almost an immediate withdraw of a license if it happened while practicing. Yet, I also know of many therapist and counselors who have had drug possession charges in the past and that have also spent time in prison (which thankfully I didn't have to do). I know the two are somewhat related but I am asking on the admissions process for a PhD. in Clinical psych, have to get there first before obtaining a license.

It will be a barrier at all stages: admission, practicum, employment and licensing.

Email your state psychology licensing board and those you feel you may eventually practice in to inquire if any felonies will bar licensure, or maybe only violent felonies and those that suggest violation of the public trust/integrity.

 

[EmotRegulation]

Erg is right that the licensure question is actually really relevant to admission to graduate programs. We don't want to admit people who can't be successful, and sometimes "can't" isn't about the person's capacities but the system around them. A felony charge could cause problems for ANY clinical placement, not just licensure or internship--we've had students rejected from practicum sites for far less. Remember that "therapist" and "counselor" includes a lot of fields, and you're specifically asking about training toward becoming a psychologist.

Agreed with the recommendations to check with several licensing boards. May also be worth checking with the VA, as they are one of the largest employers of psychologists (and psychology interns). If you can provide documentation that this conviction won't be an impediment to you being able to get the practicum placements you need, get an internship and get licensed, I suspect faculty would feel more comfortable admitting you.

 

[mmjdondante]

Erg is right that the licensure question is actually really relevant to admission to graduate programs. We don't want to admit people who can't be successful, and sometimes "can't" isn't about the person's capacities but the system around them. A felony charge could cause problems for ANY clinical placement, not just licensure or internship--we've had students rejected from practicum sites for far less. Remember that "therapist" and "counselor" includes a lot of fields, and you're specifically asking about training toward becoming a psychologist.

Agreed with the recommendations to check with several licensing boards. May also be worth checking with the VA, as they are one of the largest employers of psychologists (and psychology interns). If you can provide documentation that this conviction won't be an impediment to you being able to get the practicum placements you need, get an internship and get licensed, I suspect faculty would feel more comfortable admitting you.

Thanks for the advice from both you and Erg. I have checked with the majority of the licensing boards websites in the states that I am applying. Some state background checks for history on crimes against individuals but most typically say it is a case by case basis depending on the individual applying for the license. I really like the idea of getting in touch with someone like the VA for those purposes before I go into an interview (if my application doesn't get automatically tossed everywhere) in the case that this information is brought up.

. I guess my question really doesn't have an "answer," considering that everything from admissions to licensing (with a criminal charge) seem to be on such a case by case basis. It is really out of my hands now, I just hate that such a large group of people in our country that were charged with a level of crime originally meant for murderers and rapist are cast aside.

 

[CheetahGirl]

OP, you said you knew of therapists, counselors with felonies who were practicing. Speak with them, too. Especially if they are in the same state you want to practice. At this point, you could use their type of mentorship. Good luck!

 

[PsyDr]

Would you deny someone admission or the chance of an interview due to a substance use disorder?

Yes. Most reputable programs accept between 1-10% of applicants. When you need to filter through many applications with similar hard stats, a red flag like a felony conviction would be an easy way to reduce the number of applications you would have to examine. Programs also have to report internship placement, and a student with a felony conviction would be harder to place and therefore may be considered a risk to their outcome data.

A regulatory agency charged with giving extra powers under the law has an obvious interest in ensuring that those people abide by the rules. A felony conviction is evidence contrary to that.

But you know all this.

 

[eremitestar]

I had a professor in graduate school who was a licensed psychologist and had a drug-related criminal record. He was able to get licensed, but had to write a statement for the licensing board. However, he went through training years ago, before getting an internship placement was quite as competitive as it is these days. If I were you, I think I'd call around to some of the programs you're interested in to see if it's a deal-breaker for them. If that doesn't work, many states have substance abuse counselor certifications. Many of the people who hold such certifications are in recovery themselves, and they generally don't require graduate training. That might be more of a compromise than you're willing to make, but it's an option.

 

[temppsych123]

OP, I am sorry you're in this predicament. From what you've said, it's clear that you've grown and changed since your conviction, and we as a society don't do enough to make it feasible for people who have made those kind of changes to succeed. I think what you're trying to do is admirable, and I'm sorry that the system is set up in such a way that it's hard to make it past the first cut so to speak because of this kind of a red flag.

I think all the comments from other posters are good, but another avenue to consider would be whether or not this kind of record could be expunged or pardoned or something to that effect? It would still likely impact your ability to do work in environments with higher than usual background checks, but it might at least permit you to get past that first line of screening that you're worried about for your grad program applications. Just a consideration.

 

[eremitestar]

Another option, if you're interested in the research side of things, is to study addiction from a public health perspective and side-step the whole licensure thing altogether.