http://www.apa.org/gradpsych/2007/11/cover-gradprograms.aspx
APA website page University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill director of clinical psychology Mitch Prinstein, PhD, answered questions about how to stand out in the highly selective application process.
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What does your program evaluate in the first hurdle of the application process?
Primarily two things: Academic potential as measured by grade point average (GPA) and Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores and match to our program values and research.
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What reasons might keep an applicant from making it past the second hurdle, of deciding whether there’s a fit with the program’s values and training experiences?
That’s really going to pertain to whether the applicant matches the general emphasis of the program’s training, and has research interests that match an available mentor.
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Can you give an example of “thinking like a scientist”?
Some applicants indicate a lot of enthusiasm for an area of research, but not knowledge of how to conduct good research. For example, they might indicate that they’re very excited about working with children or adolescents, and that they think it’s important to study internalizing symptoms. This is fairly broad. That type of essay will not stand out as much as an applicant who expresses such enthusiasm, but also is knowledgeable about some of the current theories and methodological approaches that are used to study specific developmental psychopathology symptoms. Applicants who can think like scientists usually express ideas that begin to sound like a hypothesis, their ideas convey an appreciation of the way in which constructs might be associated with each other.
After analyzing this interview I concluded that in my digital Identity especially my ePortfolio I need to begin including research in the field of clinical psychology. I need to post links to different articles that I read regarding areas of clinical psychology that interest me. My digital identity needs to show that I understand how to think like a psychologist, as well as indicate the particular interest I have. If I am able to include different studies as well as some of my own research that I will be conducting in the next few years my chances of getting into a high qualified graduate program will increase.
- What are potential turnoffs during the interview process?
We’re very committed to maintaining a very collegial, respectful and very comfortable environment here, so, we’re very much on the lookout for arrogance, egos and competitiveness. Those are the kinds of qualities we’re very much steering away from.
I found this question and answer very interesting. My peer evaluating my digital idendity mentioned that one of my positive qualities was being an easy going family person who was able to get along with others. Over the past few weeks I have been doing alot of research regarding graduate school. Two days ago I spoke with Col. Sullivan about what I need to be doing in order to get into a good clinical program. One of the things he mentioned was that when it comes down to the last couple candidates a university will end up picking the student that they believe they will enjoy working with. Personality is actually a very important factor in getting into graduate programs. Currently my social digital identity portrays this persona according to my peer.
Another interesting thing that I noted while research different clinical psychologists that I know was that they do not have social media sites that are easily accessible. Clinical and forensic psychology, the field I hope to get involved in, requires a large amount of testimony for courtroom situations. Meaning in many situations there are going to be people who do not like you. For example, Dr. Edward Connor a clinical psychologist with a practice in Erlanger Kentucky has some clients writing poor reviews and threatening things online about him. He has to keep a very secure online identity in order to prevent people like this from getting his personal information. As a clinical psychologist the people you are constantly evaluating and helping have mental disorders and are often times not stable. This being said there is a lot of privacy that is involved in clinical psychology both for the patients as well as the clinicians. They do not want inappropriate connections to be made, because it would be harmful to their well-being. This would be something to consider for the future. Currently I am still an undergraduate and graduate programs will look for a digital presence. Especially when searching for interest and experience.
