How was APA this year (D.C., 2011)?

[FadedC]

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Yeah I didn't realize how bad things generally were in terms of finding practica in NYC until I had read one of the threads on these boards. I literally just e-mailed a site, went in to meet the guy and got hired for the practicum on the spot. And this was in the heart of Manhattan. Most of my colleagues did the same thing, though sometimes they had to e-mail a few paces before they found one that was currently taking people.

But sometime soon I'm going to aim to do some field experience outside of the schools as well, and then I'm sure I'm going to experience all of the stuff that you are talking about. I'm very much not looking forward to it.

wow...that sounds like a dream. Each year, my cohort and I had to submit multiple applications for practica that included 3 LOR's, cover letters, CV, testing reports, and go through grueling interviews. People are told to apply to 15 (I never did that many). Some of the interviews give you a case formulation with trick questions. In more recent years, 1st and 2nd year students in NYC were not even landing unpaid practica. I have also heard of unpaid practicum that require essays! Its almost like internship.

 

[docjohng]

Two things --

1. I wish people would start their own new thread when talking about something completely unrelated to the original poster's topic. This was supposed to be a thread about APA 2011 convention in DC. Not accreditation.

2. Accreditation is completely voluntary; there's no law that says a program must be accredited by X body or organization. If you have a better way, organize a better accreditation system. House it under a nonprofit, and charge fees (like the APA does) for programs to be evaluated by your system. Make it a higher standard. Then your accreditation system will be the one everyone looks to, and APA's will become the bottom feeder standard.

Everyone complains about the problem, but few are willing to work on alternative solutions. APA isn't going to change their system or standards any time soon (there's a whole host of reasons for this, but a lot of it has to do with history and its bureaucracy).

I'd be one of the people willing to work on such an alternative system, so if you're so inclined, drop me a PM. If we can't fix what's broken within the existing framework, let's create a new one!

DocJohn