UNC School psych

[olive2]

Hi Everyone,

I am wondering if anyone knows anything about the reputation or outcomes of previous students from UNC's School Psych PhD. I am very interested in their program because I like the curriculum set up and there are a couple of professors in the program that I would really enjoy working with. However, I am concerned about their internship statistics - over the last 10 years the number of APA internships their students have received has declined. On average, out of 6 or 7 applicants only 1 receives an APA internship, whereas the others receive non APA internships (sometimes APPIC, sometimes not).

I know that you cannot work in a federal position without an APA internship, which isn't a problem for me. But I am also worried about the stigma that comes along with having an internship that isn't APA certified. Does anyone have experience with programs that have low APA internship rates?

thanks!

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[AcronymAllergy]

My understanding, which admittedly is fairly miniscule, is that APA internships (particularly those in hospitals and the like) are not a requirement--or necessarily even very typical--of many/most school psych programs.

Someone with more knowledge can of course feel free to correct me.

 

[snowcherries]

That's correct, AcronymAllergy--if you're looking at school psych programs and plan to complete an APA internship, the statistic you want to obtain is the success rate of students who choose to apply to APA internships. For example, in my school psych program not everyone applies to APA internships, but those who do apply have a 100% match rate. If folks are applying to APA internships and not matching, that would be a red flag considering your goals, OP.

 

[futureapppsy2]

That's correct, AcronymAllergy--if you're looking at school psych programs and plan to complete an APA internship, the statistic you want to obtain is the success rate of students who choose to apply to APA internships. For example, in my school psych program not everyone applies to APA internships, but those who do apply have a 100% match rate. If folks are applying to APA internships and not matching, that would be a red flag considering your goals, OP.

+1

However, I'd also suggest that a program where no one or close to no one ever applies for APPIC internships probably wouldn't be a great fit if you wanted to work outside of the schools (probably the most common reason why a school psych applicant would go through APPIC), as they may not have the resources or experience in dealing with that process and/or may not offer many non-school clinical placements (e.g., CMHCs, hospital/peds placements, etc). Also, if a lot of students are applying via APPIC but not matching to APA accredited sites that could be a red flag.