Due to family/personal issues, I will have completed my internship but my dissertation won’t be completed until next graduation cycle. Advice/help?

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BlueLu

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Hey everyone. I had a difficult year as a family member was very Ill and required my assistance. The mental toll it took on me was also very difficult. I am almost finished with internship (VA placement) but will not have my degree. What jobs will I be qualified for to work? I plan to apply to a post doc next year but am really confused and lost on what to do for this year. Anyone have similar experiences/advice?

I am also putting out there that I do feel lots of shame for having not completed.

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Sorry about the rough year but congrats on finishing internship on schedule, which is a huge hurdle.

Do you anticipate graduating next December or June? And will your program require you to be enrolled full-time? Or just for a few dissertation credits and you're free to do whatever else you want?

Perhaps others with more info can chime in but I imagine you could work in paid a supervised role (like for a private practice) if you can find a suitable arrangement. I knew a few people in my program who established paid roles while still enrolled.
 
Congrats on internship and sorry about the family issues. I ran into a similar issue as you many moons ago. You can look into psychometrist, research, or program jobs. I ended up taking some time off to finish my dissertation and worked some temp gigs because it was a recession and no one wanted to hire someone that would leave when license eligible.
 
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This is more common than you'd think. You might be able to find someone in a private practice who would be cool supervising you until you're done. You could use this as an opportunity to seek a research fellowship or something.
 
This sounds like a difficult situation to be in - I start internship this fall, so I unfortunately cannot offer a ton of suggestions, but I have seen numerous teaching positions that are open to hiring candidates who are ABD. I saw you mentioned shame; I don't want to minimize your feelings but just say that it couldn't have been easy to help your family and put someone else's needs before yours (to complete your dissertation) and really respect that. I know you said it took a mental toll on you; I hope you get the time and space to recover from this too and wish you the best moving forward.
 
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I'm sure a university counseling center would take a person in this position and pay a staff salary. I knew of at least one person who did this.

I also knew someone who did a clinical post"doc" while ABD at a UCC for two years (they finished their dissertation at the end of the two years but left the field to co-run a weird niche business completely unrelated to psychology after that and so never pursued an actual postdoc or licensure).
 
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I'm sorry you went through this and are so worried about what to do next. I had a similar experience and the struggles were real. It very much depends on what you would like to do. For clinical positions, people I know who were ABD had more success at UCCs or private practice working as a therapist or psychometrist. For research positions, depending on the grants, PIs may be able to hire ABD students under a different title (you may be called a research associate/assistant/coordinator) other than a postdoc fellow. You can cast a wide net while explaining your situation and see what is available for you or if some positions have flexibility with qualification requirements.

Whatever you choose to do, it would be very helpful if your advisor was willing to help explain your situation (it doesn't have to be specific) and express confidence in your dissertation completion (with a timeline) in their letter of recommendation when you apply for postdoc next year. My advisor offered to do it for me so I didn't need to write about it (I still wrote when my anticipated date of defense would be in my cover letter though). Their rationale was that I didn't have to start my cover letter in a "negative" way and it was better to have someone else involved in the process to vouch for me and my abilities. I interviewed at most of the top AMC postdoc programs I applied to and received an offer from my top choice. The couple directors at prestigious AMCs I know who had a similar experience also shared with me that no one had ever asked about the ABD situation in their careers. I hope this is helpful and you will decide to apply to postdoc positions you are most interested in without being held back by the current shame you feel. Good luck!
 
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Hey everyone. I had a difficult year as a family member was very Ill and required my assistance. The mental toll it took on me was also very difficult. I am almost finished with internship (VA placement) but will not have my degree. What jobs will I be qualified for to work? I plan to apply to a post doc next year but am really confused and lost on what to do for this year. Anyone have similar experiences/advice?

I am also putting out there that I do feel lots of shame for having not completed.
I’m not as far along as you so I can’t offer any practical support. However, I want to validate your experience. First, good for you for bolding sharing your feelings! The entire process of pursuing a PhD is shame-inducing. You are not alone. I am a (very) non-traditional student and between my age and parenting status, I’ve needed a lot of “accommodations” for my thoroughly normal life experiences, including a year off. Nothing is more important than your health and wellness, and your loved ones. The arcane, anachronistic Academy (insert obnoxious throat clearing) needs to change. Caring for others is the foundation of civil society and a basic human right. Good for you for taking care of your family member and for doing your best to manage the associated challenges. You’ve come this far and have a ton of evidence to know that you WILL get through this next year. It is only one year and you can do it! Ask everyone who can help you to help you. You deserve it.
 
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I was a non-tenure track professor at a small R2 university in a suburban area for 3 years at a masters program while I finished my dissertation after my internship. There are often jobs in academia that might take you if you're willing to move to less desirable places to live & work at less prestigious universities.
 
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I taught classes at local community college and piled up a little more student debt while I finished my dissertation. It wasn’t a bad couple of years in retrospect and I am glad that I had relocated to a low cost of living rural area for my internship. The hardest part was the existential angst. Teaching did help with that and helped keep my knowledge sharp and led to me acing the eppp.
 
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You'll be fine! I took an unlicensed clinical research position after internship, and finished my dissertation 6-months later. And then, landed the best postdoc ever (where obtained hours for licensure and I stayed for 3 years!). Best wishes with your family and career. 🍀
 
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