It's no secret that the internship match process is nerve-wracking — but it's particularly jarring for students who don't secure a position.
"Not matching means devastation," wrote one student on the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers' (APPIC's) recent questionnaire. "For me, it means putting off my life for yet another year... For some of my classmates, it means waiting one more year before having children. For others, it means considering quitting now, leaving the program, and getting a master's-level job. For all of us, it means prolonging our wait to become a psychologist."
Not matching, however, doesn't have to mean devastation. Hearing the news is painful, of course, but it can also be a way to refocus your goals and get closer to a good fit. So here's some advice from the experts and students on how to move forward if you don't match.
1. Take time to grieve
"On the day you don't match, you can't make plans," says Nabil El-Ghoroury, PhD, APAGS's associate executive director. Take some time to process the news, he says, first using emotion-focused coping methods to deal with your anger, depression and anxiety. Spending some time reflecting on the experience, and perhaps discussing it with friends or an adviser or therapist to process it, is important. Then, when you're ready, move on to problem-focused methods — mapping out specific moves to make in the coming months.
It's also important not to reject friends' attempts to help, even though you may want to. "Don't isolate yourself," says Sabrina Esbitt, chair of the APAGS Advocacy Coordinating Team (APAGS-ACT), who's doing her postdoc at the Manhattan VA. "Your friends may not know what to say, and in the very best-meaning way, they'll try to tell you how to feel. But you don't have to feel better right away. Tell them what to do for you in specific terms, whether it's that you want to watch 'Vampire Diaries' for a week or you don't want to talk."
It's better if you have these conversations before the internship matches are announced, so plans are in place.
2. Remember, it's a numbers game
Though it's certainly a blow not to match, it's important to remember that there's a well-known imbalance in the system — too few spots for highly qualified students. "If you don't match, remember, it's not you," says El-Ghoroury, "it's the number of spots." APA is working with several groups to create more internships, and more students matched in 2014 than in previous years.
3. Consider the road(s) less traveled
Once you recover from the disappointment of not matching in Phase 1, focus on Phase 2, when APPIC lists unfilled positions from Phase 1, new openings, and sites whose funding only became secured after the Phase 1 deadline. Remember, there is only a six-day period after the Phase 1 results to submit applications to Phase 2. "It's easy to waste a month moping, [but] there are a lot of really stellar sites in Phase 2," says Mike Parent, PhD, assistant professor of psychology at Texas Tech.
Unaccredited internships, within or outside of APPIC, may be another option. While most states don't require an APA-accredited internship for licensure, a few do, so make sure you know your state's licensure requirements. Even if you don't need an APA-accredited internship for licensure, going the unaccredited route can mean fewer job prospects — for instance, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs does require an APA-accredited internship. Still, for some students, an unaccredited internship is a viable option, and some very good ones exist. "In New York, some really good places, like Mount Sinai and Fordham, offer some excellent unaccredited internships," says Esbitt.
Also keep your eye out for newly created sites that open up once they get funding. "This year, for example, there were a bunch of APA-accredited internships in health psychology that were only released in the summer because of funding," she says.
Some students may even create their own internship opportunities, just as with postdocs, says Eddy Ameen, PhD, assistant director of APAGS. "People have been known to 'grow their own' by finding a site that has space and would provide developmentally sequenced training and supervision that could pass muster for licensure in their state." Talk with your adviser about which sites might be willing to work this way.
4. Talk, talk, talk
Whether you're going into Phase 2, designing your own internship or taking an extra year, talk with as many people as you can who will listen and advise. "Develop a targeted plan," says Esbitt. "That means having a lot of thoughtful conversations with a lot of different people. Talk about the payoffs and benefits of each option."
Among the people you should reach out to are those who interviewed you for the internships you applied for, says Mitch Prinstein, PhD, co-author of "Internships in Psychology: The APAGS Workbook for Writing Successful Applications and Finding The Right Fit." He says the first step is to see if you can get feedback from your interviewers. "Ask your director of clinical training to call a few places where you interviewed or where you did not get an interview and see if there is any feedback they can get that would help explain what happened," he says. Also, ask your advisers to re-evaluate your application with fresh eyes, and ask your director of training if he or she can request copies of your letters to review. Hindsight may reveal something that could be done differently the second time around.
In many cases, though, there's likely nothing that officially went "wrong." It could just be a matter of refining what you already have and perhaps getting different opinions. "Don't drop your adviser," says Ameen. "Maybe just enlarge your network." Consider asking other faculty members to weigh in on application essays, interview skills and the most appropriate sites to rank.
5. Beef it up
Although it may seem at first like a lost year, it can also be an opportunity to fine-tune your skill set.
"There is a lot that can be done in a year," says Parent. Research-focused students can, for example, rev up the data collection process, finish existing projects, or even develop a clinically focused paper from a research topic. Clinical students can gain experience in a new area. "Perhaps try assessment if you don't have many assessment hours or integrated reports, or try a summer practicum at a new clinical site," he says.
For Sarah Elizabeth Cleary, a counseling psychology PhD student at the University of Denver, the experience of not matching last year was sobering, but she looks forward to a better experience this year. "I recently started a new practicum placement at an amazing site with supervisors who have already pledged their dedication to helping guide me through the process this time, hopefully making it a more successful outcome for me."
6. Cast a wider net
Consider a different set of sites to apply to, says Ameen. "Think about applying to less competitive sites or, if possible, broaden the range of areas where you're willing to relocate."
Through it all, keep the bigger picture in mind. "I'm trying to surround myself with people who love and appreciate me no matter what," says Cleary, "and to stay away from unhelpful negativity. Most of all, I'm trying to remind myself that all the good qualities I had before I didn't match for internship are still within me — they haven't changed, and in fact, in some ways, perhaps they are even stronger."