Tag Archives: Advice

Discussing Diversity for Internship: “Go find less.”

Georgina Sakyi, M.Ed.

The time has finally come for me to apply for internship, and true to my personality, I’d started well before I needed to – sometime around June. I’d spent the summer coming up with a list of sites I wanted to apply to, working on my essays, and attending virtual workshops and meetings created to help support students applying for Match this fall. While the “Autobiographical” essay caused some anxiety within myself and among my peers, there was also significant concern about the “Diversity” essay we’re required to submit.

For those less familiar, here is the updated prompt for the 2022-2023 cycle: “Describe how multicultural and diversity variables inform your case conceptualization and clinical practice. Please use de-identified case material to illustrate your approach.”

The main groan about this prompt is it’s broadness, but Dr. Grace Chen offers guidance on her website, Psych Grad Corner. She advises that it may be more helpful to go into depth about one or two themes regarding multiculturalism and diversity rather than trying to capture all of your thoughts about the topic in 500 words. Reading and preparing to address this essay prompt as a racially and ethnically minoritized student filled me with absolute dread. Of course, there were many themes that came to mind: cultural humility, intersectionality, unconscious bias, systemic oppression, etc. I wasn’t sure which direction I wanted to take it, but more than that, I was aware that whoever read my essay would know I was a minortiized student. My concern centered around how well my essay would be received. 

Could I be as bold as I wanted to be? Could I be honest and unapologetic about my strong emotions regarding multiculturalism and diversity in clinical practice? Would the reader think something along the lines of, “This student is passionate about this,” or, “This student might not be the right fit for our site.”? Like many others, I have worked on my personal and professional development in this area – getting comfortable with being uncomfortable, having uncomfortable conversations with my peers and my superiors, confronting my own internalized racism, thoughts, and behaviors that uphold white supremacy. In a lot of ways, leaders in our field have taken up the torch and are equally passionate about this work; however, a fear still lingers that this passion is hard for others to swallow. 

I’d attended a Q&A session about internship essays, and someone even brought up discussing diversity issues on interviews. They were particularly interested in figuring out where the “line” was: how forthcoming could they be about their perspective on systemic racism in their community? Should they be cautious when responding to questions? In other words, should we, as minoritized graduate students in psychology, “reel in” the intensity with which we relay our personal experiences and that of the communities we serve for the sake of being palatable or a Westernized conceptualization of “professional”? We ask these questions, knowing what we want the answer to be, because while we want to be true and authentic to ourselves, we want to match!

Herein lies the point of this blog post: I want to encourage you to be who you are and trust in the Match process. Just like when we all applied to our doctoral programs, the key word is “fit”. The right site for you is the site that is willing to include (not tolerate), support, and train the fullest, most authentic version of you. If you’ve never heard the phrase “you carry who you are wherever you go,” know this to be true: whatever you “reel in” for your essays or your interviews will surely come out during your training year. What you don’t want is to be matched to a site where tension and conflict rule your experience. You want to be sure that where you’re going supports your personal and professional journey. If for some reason a site makes you feel like your passion, your fire, your advocacy, your voice is too much, I hope you feel empowered to tell them, “Go find less.”

Resources:

References:

Chen, G. (2022, September 23). Essay 3: Diversity. Psych Grad Corner. Retrieved October 4, 2022, from https://psychgradcorner.com/2019/06/06/essay-3-diversity/ 

9 Tips for Navigating an In-Person Convention

By Amanda Wisinger, APAGS Convention Committee

A return to in-person conferences is likely bringing about a mix of emotions for students – both positive and negative. Many of us have spent the better part of two years attending classes and seminars behind computer screens. For some of us, our entire graduate school experience has been spent in virtual spaces with limited opportunities to connect in-person with our peers and professors. We have grown adept at navigating a variety of typically in-person events being held virtually, such as dissertation defenses, interviews for practicum and internship, and even professional conferences.

If you are attending the APA Convention in Minneapolis this August in-person, it may be your first in-person conference ever. Or, your first in-person conference in a few years. While virtual conferences provided us with many benefits (e.g., reduced travel and lodging costs, the ability to refill your coffee by simply taking a few steps into your kitchen, attending sessions in your sweatpants, etc.), there were undoubtedly many opportunities that virtual events did not provide – including the ability to form new professional relationships and contacts through in-person networking.

Here are my top tips to boost your networking skills and make the most of an in-person Convention:

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Scary Statistics: Resources to Help Reduce Fear and Get on with Your Research

Statistics can seem scary and unapproachable: maybe math was not always your strongest subject or you’re still processing the trauma of by-hand ANOVAs in undergraduate statistics classes. Luckily, this blog is designed to help you make friends with statistics and move forward with your research. Specifically, I’ll focus on resources to help guide you through: 1) deciding which statistical analyses to run for a given question and 2) tools to use to run those statistical analyses.

Part 1: Choosing an appropriate statistical analysis

Step 1: Be familiar with commonly-used statistical analyses.

  • This free online self-paced course covers correlations, probability, confidence intervals, and significance tests.
  • This free online self-paced course covers regression, comparing groups, ANOVA, and non-parametric tests.
  • CenterStat provides free videos on youtube, including Structural Equation Modeling (or sign up for a free live class!)
    • They also offer classes on a wide range of more advanced statistics topics for a fee on their website.
  • If you prefer written information, Professor Peggy Kern created very helpful handouts!

Step 2: Choosing a statistical analysis to address your question.

  • You should consider whether the outcome of your analysis is addressing your research question. For example, if you did a correlation but you don’t know what the r value means for your research question, then you have wasted your time.
  • You also want to make sure that your research design/methods meet the requirements for the statistical test. For example, if you wanted to do an independent samples t-test but only have 1 group, then you are using the wrong test.
    • Decision trees can help visualize how to narrow down which test to use and what aspects to consider when choosing a test.

Source: https://www.peggykern.org/uploads/5/6/6/7/56678211/edu90790_decision_chart.pdf

Part 2: Using Statistical Software

  • Your University may have access to statistical software such as SPSS, SAS, and Matlab. In addition, R is free to download on their website and provides powerful statistical computing and graphics.

In conclusion, statistics are a powerful tool to use in research. With the right support, you too can learn to use it appropriately and effectively. Do not rush into running statistical tests, but first assess whether the test is appropriate. Learning a new statistical software, like R, takes time. Don’t be discouraged if you are learning it slowly, the best way to learn is to try!

Best of luck on your statistical journey!

She Went That Way? A Pathway to Graduate School

This blog post is a part of the series, “So Good,” developed by the APAGS Committee for Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity. This series will discuss current events and how these events relate to LGBTQ+ graduate students in psychology. If you are interested in contributing to the “So Good” series, please contact Mallaigh McGinley (they/them).

If you are a fan of RuPaul’s Drag Race, ball culture, or queer nightlife, then you have probably heard gay men reclaim femmephobic or homonegative slurs, such as playing with pronouns or using the word “girl” as a term of endearment. And if you are wondering whether your invisible psychosocial disability bars you from graduate school, then girl, let me tell you something.

She—meaning me—took the path less traveled.

Of course, the reclamation of effeminacy from a heterosexist environment—spaces where there is one way to be masculine—comes from a place of privilege. Shifting between pronouns is relatively safe for a gay cisgender man. For my transgender or nonbinary peers, a change in pronouns is too often life-threatening. So, my intention is not to make light of pronouns, but to honor the gay male community that nourishes me.

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Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash

What Will Internship Sites Say About My Medical Marijuana?

Recently, we received this question in our APAGS inbox:

“As a psychology doctoral student, I am about to apply for internships. I take prescribed medical marijuana for a health condition.  How do I approach the issue of drug testing as part of pre-internship employment screening?” 

What a good question. I reached out to Dr. Jeff Baker, the head of the Association of Psychological Postdoctoral and Internship Centers, for his opinion on the matter. Dr. Baker kindly replied, giving his own personal thoughts on the matter (not those of APPIC’s) as formed by his years as a training director.  He said this issue has come up a few times before, and it’s not as simple as drawing a line around states where it is legal. He writes, “There are many sites in Colorado and California, where THC is legal, that will not allow a positive drug screen for it.  I’m not positive the rationale is universal, but a few programs have stated, ‘Alcohol is legal, but we do not allow trainees to have it in their system.'”

Dr. Baker’s advice continues —

“1. If a site does not allow medical marijuana, hopefully it says that in public materials (especially in states where that is allowed).  The site should have some statement saying it requires THC (drug) screenings so the applicant can decide what sites might be eligible or ineligible.

2. If this information isn’t public, I would check with the site’s Human Resources department, hopefully anonymously and discreetly, prior to submitting an application.  Some will have a policy, and some will not. This is not to be sneaky, but it is to remove any possibility that they would track your application.  PS: Don’t call from your cellphone with caller ID.  I don’t think most sites would go to this trouble to find out who called, but it doesn’t hurt to be cautious.

3. When checking with anyone at the program, I would advise applicants to be very clear about having a medical condition (do not give the name and disclose only what is necessary); that they have been prescribed THC; and that THC has been helpful for them to manage their medical condition which has been approved by a licensed health care provider.

4. I would advise them to apply to those sites that say it is not a problem but carefully read their public materials about drug screens.

5. I would advise them to be cautious about those that do not know their policy or clearly state that medical THC would be counted as a positive drug screen and is not allowed at this site. If they do NOT review the public/HR policy about prescribed THC and match to a site, then they find out that medical marijuana is not allowed, they have wasted a lot of time.

6. I do NOT advise applicants to consult with the program or training director directly about the issue.  I fear that will likely increase the chances that site will decline to interview that person. They will be taking a chance by disclosing it. This is NOT true for the vast majority of training directors but there is no need to disclose identifying information prior to submitting an application.”

With any luck, prospective sites will see you, dear reader, as an asset all around. Thank you for being so responsible and proactive with treatment and contacting APAGS with your question.