Getting my PhD at Dalhousie in Canada (I'm American)?

[whereisit96]

Basically a really great research fit from Dalhousie has reached out to me. I wasn't planning on applying to grad school until 2019 (i'm a senior in undergrad); however, this is just too great of an opportunity to pass up. What roadblocks will I face after graduating if I get my PhD in Canada and want to practice in the U.S?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[temppsych123]

There is an agreement between APA and CPA that recognizes each other's accreditation as equivalent, called the First Street Accord (see here: CPA and APA Mutual Recognition: First Street Accord). While lots of US internship sites and job applications will list that they want applicants from "APA accredited" programs, they generally mean that to distinguish people who went to accredited programs from those who went to UNaccredited programs (e.g. diploma mills, not great training, etc), not to distinguish between APA and CPA. I'm American and did my studies in Canada, and the CPA issue hasn't been a problem (I'm back in the states now). Also, the VA (the largest source of internship spots in the US) now explicitly allows interns from both APA and CPA accredited programs. In short, being at an accredited Canadian program might mean you have a few extra hiccups along the way in terms of having to reach out to potential employers, match sites, etc. to explain what CPA is (grumble...) but it will honestly almost assuredly be fine. Also, being at a CPA program but being a US citizen means you're generally fine for almost all internship sites in the US (some of them restrict access to only US citizens or applicants who are already in the US on a student visa for example, leaving out Canadians studying at CPA programs who have no previous authorization to be in the US). Anyway, my 2c.

 

[Temperance]

Basically a really great research fit from Dalhousie has reached out to me. I wasn't planning on applying to grad school until 2019 (i'm a senior in undergrad); however, this is just too great of an opportunity to pass up. What roadblocks will I face after graduating if I get my PhD in Canada and want to practice in the U.S?

This is not so much a roadblock after graduating but before graduating. Were you able to discuss funding? Funding becomes a bit complicated when studying abroad, especially if the professor does not already have a grant for you.

As an American citizen, you will not qualify for most of the funding from the Tri-Council Agencies (Canada Institutes of Health Research, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council); the one exception is the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship, which is one of the most competitive and lucrative fellowship programs in Canada. The application process involves being nominated by the institution.

Furthermore, as an American citizen abroad, you will not be able to take many of the major predoctoral fellowship awards (Ford Foundation, NDSEG, NSF GRFP) to a Canadian institution. I have heard that one can use NRSA funding abroad if one can justify why one is seeking training outside of the United States, but I haven't yet run into someone who has done so successfully.

This is not to say that attending a Canadian school is impossible without funding, as the American graduate students who have been generous enough to let me ask have made it work. In particular, because most Canadian graduate students bring Tri-Council funding with them, the department may be able to fund you after a selection process and/or through assistantships (at least in the cases of the programs I investigated). However, it's something that I'd recommend checking with international students attending Dalhousie before applying.

Another thing worth noting is that your study permit will allow you to work only on campus. If you want to work off-campus, then you will need a study + work permit.

Good luck!

 

[temppsych123]

Seconding all of the things Temperance said. There are other pragmatic concerns about studying in Canada, but the CPA/APA/licensure type issues aren't major at this point. I would definitely recommend talking to the person who reached out to you about your eligibility for funding, what the typical funding package looks like for students at Dalhousie, and also seeing if you can speak to any current graduate students in the program who are American (or otherwise not-Canadian) to see how they feel about their experience. At my grad program, we had a good number of American students across areas (clinical psych, social psych, cognitive psych, etc.) and the American students were generally well-funded because of the same issue Temperance mentioned (Canadians have access to more external fellowships, leaving departmental or university fellowships more open to international students), but it of course will vary by institution, program, etc.