"Fit" for pre-doctoral internship

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affectiveH3art

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So, as I am reviewing APPIC pre-doctoral internship sites I was wondering how "fit" is viewed from those who are reviewing applications. I am specifically looking to work in a medical setting (various specialities) and interested in burn injuries. I have been gaining experiences in medical settings over the summer but wondering if that is enough (with a medical related dissertation, medical background in GI nursing and anesthesia) to be a good fit to some of the Academic Health Center/Medical School internship sites. What do you consider when you review applications if you are located in a medical setting or what did you believe was most beneficial for your matching to a medical setting in regards to "fit." Any discussion of fit is welcome, I would love to hear what people look for when choosing internship applicants. Thanks!

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My understanding (recent applicant here) is that sites want to know a) what you bring to them that's useful and b) what they can train you in that helps you get to your goals. Since sites generally offer a diversity of training experiences, you can be both a good, solid clinician in one area and also benefit greatly from their training in other areas. If you already are an expert in everything the site does, they'll wonder, why on earth are you bothering to apply here? If you haven't had any experience related to their site whatsoever, the reverse is true - what skills would you bring to them and why would they want to train you from scratch on everything they do?

For me, some of the best fit sites were ones where I had a core base of experiences that meshed with their orientation, and that they had some interesting kinds of training or populations where I wanted to gain experience. For example, I've got a lot of good solid CBT experience, but wanted to get some more training in DBT, so I looked at sites that had at least a rotation with DBT training. Does that make sense?
 
It also varies by site a great deal, so what you think seems like a good fit may not in their eyes. Its the frustrating part of the application cycle. What he said above is a good basis, but keep in mind that there is a lot of non-systematic decisions that are part of how people get invited and then how they, ultimately, get ranked highly. Someone may be impressed by your advisor, interested in your dissertation that you didn't really mention otherwise, etc.
 
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Don't forget the interpersonal fit. My understanding is that it is just as important that supervisors and faculty can see themselves and their staff working with you for an entire year. I suppose this can be hard to change, as I think much of this is just based on personality and interpersonal style. I think that's why it is important to be as authentically you as possible (e.g., not coming across as overly serious when that's not who you are in your daily life).
 
I am really curious to what faculty/supervisors look for in future interns. Does anyone have any tips on how they created their list of internship sites to apply to? I am interested in working across various medical settings (burn care, pain, pre-transplant, etc.), with ethnically diverse populations and with a strong research component. But many of the sites I am interested seem so very competitive and intimidating. I also have the majority of my hours at a UCC but concerned that this will reflect negatively for a medical setting. This is such a daunting experience. I think it's good to note the interpersonal fit and other factors discussed in previous posts
 
Does anyone have any tips on how they created their list of internship sites to apply to? I am interested in working across various medical settings (burn care, pain, pre-transplant, etc.), with ethnically diverse populations and with a strong research component.
Not every site offers access to medical populations, especially specialty work like burn units, so you'll want to focus on these. Do you know any other folks who pursued this type of work? Where did they go? Where do they recommend? Faculty guidance can be great, but recent trainees have the most updated information.

But many of the sites I am interested seem so very competitive and intimidating.
Yes, especially the "researchy" sites. Don't let this stand in your way. Easy for me to say standing on the other side of the fence, but I came so close to not applying to a site because of fear of rejection. I matched there. Your "fit" is essential, and you need to make a good case.

I also have the majority of my hours at a UCC but concerned that this will reflect negatively for a medical setting.
Perhaps, but also a great opportunity to demonstrate enthusiasm for and fit with the site, given that you have a clear interest in medical populations and have focused your research here. You might have the theoretical knowledge and lack the practical, and this is what you can gain from the site. It is ok (and expected) that there are gaps in your training. But you have to be unapologetic about them, and instead highlight your determination in getting the training you want/need.
 
That's good to know! I'm already nervous and I apply next year.


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I am really curious to what faculty/supervisors look for in future interns

The biggest thing we looked for was interns from programs/mentors who had sent us successful interns previously. It's been awhile since I was an internship faculty, so things might have changed. This seemed to be a pretty good predictor of both preparedness and success as an intern in our program(s). It also gave us some confidence that prospective interns form these programs knew what to expect with and from us. As an added benefit, reviewing multiple letters of recommendation (all pretty positive) from the same faculty allowed us to pick up on the minute differences between candidates (e.g. "she was in the top 1% of students" vs. "top 5%"). While well-roundedness can be good, we did look for interns with a consistent history of doing the type of work that we needed them to do on internship (e.g. behavior analysis, behavioral assessment, and- for relevant rotations- CBT. Someone who came in with their previous clinical time split evenly between what they would be doing with us (e.g. behavioral work in educational and consultation settings) and something less applicable (e.g. non-CBT outpatient), were simply less prepared than applicants with more focused training. End result was that year after year we'd get students from the same programs, with a one or two new schools represented each year. BAsed on these consistent relationships with referring graduate faculty, we often knew or knew of candidates before the internship process, having been introduced at conferences, talked about by current interns ("she'll do great here"), etc.

In regards to the more general concept of "fit"- I was often bothered by how non-subjective and, often, retrospective the term was used. Someone with great and relevant experience, good recs, etc., who did not "interview as well", might be labeled as "not a good fit," though the predictive validity of assessment was questionable. People kind of got sick of me saying that 100% of the interns who did not do well were judged as being a good fit and offered a position in our program. Often, when someone did not do well, people might say "I suspected he might not be a good fit for our program").
 
ClinicalABA- I think that is why I am so curious about this because none of the students from my program go outside the realm of UCC's and that is not my interest so unfortunately I can not look as benefiting me. Maybe if I applied to competitive UCC's (Duke, Stanford, etc) but at this point I would not look like a good fit. That is helpful for some settings where I am doing a current practicum because I know they collaborate research projects with internship sites (and internship research faculty) . In other words I try to keep in touch with research faculty from a potential internship site through conference in such. But I can't depend on only one networking relationship. Geez, this is so stressful.
 
I look for applicants with similar clinical/research interests as me when reviewing applications.
 
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