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Why High Quality Internships Are Important for Students – and How We Can Create More of Them

Why High Quality Internships Are Important for Students – and How We Can Create More of Them. APPIC Conference 2014 Candice Crowell, Matthew FitzGerald, Eddy Ameen. What is APAGS?. Mission and Vision

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Why High Quality Internships Are Important for Students – and How We Can Create More of Them

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  1. Why High Quality Internships Are Important for Students – and How We Can Create More of Them APPIC Conference 2014 Candice Crowell, Matthew FitzGerald, Eddy Ameen

  2. What is APAGS? • Mission and Vision • We build a better future for psychology by serving as a united voice to enrich and advocate for graduate student development • We aspire to achieve the highest quality graduate training experience for the next generation of scientific innovators, expert practitioners and visionary leaders in psychology • About • 26th year representing psychology students • Governed by a committee of 14 students, supported by 5 subcommittees, and by four staff • Currently 27,000 graduate student members • 50% of our members need a doctoral internship

  3. What is our top issue? • Goal: Ending the internship crisis • Objective: An accredited internship for every student from an accredited program How does high quality = accredited? • Ensures fairness, respect, and due process • Ease of licensing, employment • Peer-review  quality training  quality care

  4. Are we really in a crisis? • Yes – and particularly for students from accredited doctoral programs • Match rates for 2012-2013 internships: • In same year, 71% of all APPIC applicants matched to an internship through APPIC: 53% matched to accred, 18% non-accred. (Source: APPIC, 2012). Source: APA CoA, 2014

  5. Are there reasons to be hopeful? Yes, several! • You! • A sold-out APPIC conference • Slight improvements in 2013, 2014 • ACA has given access to care to 7M+ people • The Fed has provided more money to training • CoA’s new standards bring positive changes to training for doc students and interns

  6. How are students impacted? • APPIC survey of students after the match • Variety of responses to the way the imbalance has had negative impact: • Personal/Interpersonal Costs • Costs to doctoral training and prof devt. • Costs to the profession • APAGS wanted to put faces to these responses • We are finishing production of a video, due this July • Find it at http://on.apa.org/internshipcrisis

  7. Emotions

  8. Process

  9. Impactof not matching • “Not matching means devastation. For me, it means putting off my life for another year. It means putting myself through hell for another year” • “I did not match. This has affected me to my core and thrown my entire career and self-worth into doubt. My husband and I held each other and cried for a full hour at the news. It was one of the most difficult moments of my life.” • “It has been one of the most chronically stressful periods of my life, and has made me question whether or not I really wanted to continue pursuing psychology at all”

  10. Impactof not matching (cont.) • “The experience of not having matched is devastating. You feel like a failure and an embarrassment. You failed yourself, you failed you family, you failed your program.” • “I want the training community to know the devastation that this has brought me. Not matching has stripped me of my belief that I am a capable, successful and hard-working student.” • “The lesson for me was that no matter how hard you work, it can never be enough. I am absolutely heartbroken. I feel that my passion for all that I have been doing has died. The thought of having to go through this process again is unbearable.”

  11. Reactions & Thoughts?

  12. What can psychologists do to usher in more quality training experiences? • Awareness • Start a conversation by sharing the video • Join APAGSINTERNSHIP listserv to discuss ways to end the crisis • Advocacy • Federal internship funding sources (e.g., GPE, MBHET) • Insurance reimbursement for trainee services: Connect with your state association, check with your billing/compliance office • Action • Pay it forward: Identify, mentor potential new sites

  13. And what is APAGS doing? • Collaborating with relevant stakeholders • Informing students • Amplifying student concern • Advocating for sustainable long-term solutions

  14. What lessons can we share? • Keep constituents front and center • Protect principles of fairness, respect, quality • Find frontiers without trainees • Recognize your power • Individuals and small groups can have a big impact • Being authoritative requires doing your homework • Borrow ideas • What works for others may work for you, too • Pay it forward • If you learn something, teach someone new

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