absolutelynott

Oh wow, thank you for this very helpful response! Good to hear that you literally just received word. Maybe there's still hope yet - I'll hold on for another couple days then. Do you think that if I'm rejected, my POI would inform me soon?

Should I follow up after two weeks of waiting after two Skype interviews? I had two Skype interviews with my POI at Queens, the second of which was two weeks ago now. She said that the next step would be an interview with the departmental committee, and that those interviews would likely be held some time at the beginning of February. I haven't heard anything at all yet, either from her or the committee, so I'm assuming probably I was rejected, but wouldn't you think that after two Skype calls she would've just told me over email herself by now? To make matters more confusing, I've been emailing back and forth with one of her grad students, who has no idea what is going on - she didn't even know the departmental interview was a thing. Any suggestions? Should I email my POI for an update?

Hi, has anyone gotten invited to the departmental committee interview at Queens yet? I’ve already had two interviews with my POI and I’m dying over here!

When you're asked "What is an obstacle you've had to overcome and how did you overcome it?", what sort of obstacle are they looking for? I have a difficult interpersonal situation that I'm planning on talking about, but I'm afraid it'll come off as shallow in comparison to someone who has had to face legitimate, personal obstacles in life.

I would say it's a calm emerald green. Definitely not bright lime green, but I also wouldn't call it dark.

Would a green blazer be acceptable for an interview? It's a very professional blazer, it's just that it's green, and I know I've seen some people saying that this isn't the time for fashion, but I think it's beautiful and I like how I look in it. Should I stick to neutrals? Also, do blazers need to button in the front? My only black blazer does not button. Sorry y'all I feel dumb asking these things.

Does anyone have any advice for answering questions that assess clinical suitability? I'm most nervous for those, because while I have a decent amount of research training, I don't really have much clinical training to speak of (which I imagine is the case for most people like me who don't have a master's). What kinds of responses are they looking for?

Does anyone know if UT-Austin (clinical psych phd) has multiple interview days? For anyone that got an invite, what was the date they gave you?

Tip to anyone who was invited to interview at Saskatchewan: they do not do an in-person interview day. This phone call is essentially your official interview. I did NOT know that during mine on Friday. I would say everything went fine and I was mostly prepared for everything, but when my POI told me at the end that this was the official interview (they do their whole interview process pretty informally) and I'll be hearing back in 1-2 months, I was like HUH WHAT?? Like welp I guess I just did my first official interview!! So yeah, if anyone is curious about Sask, that's the big scoop.

Had a phone interview today, and was asked what makes me suited for clinical work, and also how would people describe me. I fumbled and panicked a bit, and ended up spitting out a bunch of adjectives for both answers. I just got so nervous and was overthinking two very simple questions. I don’t want to screw up those answers again, any tips?

Are all the invites out for University of Nevada Reno?

To flip sendhelp’s question, what are some questions you can expect to be asked by faculty that are not your chosen mentor? I’m really nervous about those ones in particular.

School: University of Saskatchewan Type: Clinical PhD Date of invite: 1/11/20 Type of invite: Email invite for a phone interview this week Interview date(s): TBD just wait until these fine institutions find out i am a trash clown in interviews ?

Hi all, in preparing for interviews, I find I’m struggling the most to come up with answers to the more generic/broad questions that are typically asked. For example, when prompted with “Tell me about yourself”, what is the appropriate course of action? Do you talk about your academic/research history? Do you mention hobbies/personal stuff? What are they looking for? I get so overwhelmed with these extremely broad questions and start rambling with the hopes that I’m saying the right thing, and my lack of confidence shows. I also fear not sounding unique. Any advice would be appreciated!!

School: Drexel University Type: Clinical Psych PhD Date of invite: 01/06/20 Type of invite: Phone call from a psych department admissions coordinator Interview date(s): 2/14/20 Feel free to PM for POI!

I've seen a lot of posts here asking for advice regarding interviews, but the advice I've seen given seems to mostly be focused on the interview with your POI, and I think I've got a good idea of what that interview is going to look like. What I'm looking for is some advice about the interviews you (sometimes) do with other professors/department members at the university. I received an interview invite today that said I would be interviewed by 3 different committees before the interview with my POI, and I'm nervous as hell! I do TERRIBLY in these formal interview settings, so any advice on what to expect would be much appreciated! What types of "generic" questions should I expect from these other people? What kinds of answers are they looking for?

I don't know for sure that all invitations were sent out, it just seemed like a generic mass email. I'd wait to see what happens this week. I think they'd notify you either way?

School: Indiana University - Bloomington Type: Counseling Psychology PhD Date of invite: 12/17 Type of invite: Mass email from the program director inviting me to an on-campus interview. Interview date(s): 2/3

Whoever got the UNevada-Reno interview, would really love to know the initials of your PI!

School: University of Texas - Austin Type: Clinical PhD Date of invite: December 12th Type of invite: Email from POI (feel free to DM for name) for a quick phone interview

To the UNevada Reno interviewee, mind sharing the initials of your POI?

Hello! I am applying to University of Ottawa and currently working on my statement of interest. I was hoping someone here who is currently applying to UOttawa or has applied in the past could offer a bit of insight. How much of your statement did you spend talking specifically about your POI(s)? I'm truly passionate about the work of the POIs I'm applying to, and I want to convey that, but I also want to balance the statement with talking about my own history, qualifications, and interests. Anyone know what they look for at Ottawa?

Yup! For the past year and a half I've been working as a research assistant for a forensic psychology/neuroscience research institute. I spend the majority of my time focusing on a grant exploring sexual sadism, and I spend 2-3 days out of the week conducting clinical interviews in prisons and a secure sex offender treatment center, which has been super awesome since my interests are in the realm of sexual offender/paraphilia research. Very lucky to have gotten this unique experience! Hoping it's worth something to the schools/PIs I'm applying to ?

Can someone help? For one of the clinical psych grad programs I am applying to, I noticed in the application that there is a box for a "Statement of Interest" (4000 characters max) as well as a box that says "Please tell us about your previous research and how it matches the faculty you have chosen to work with" (2000 characters max). The latter question is already incorporated into my personal statement/statement of interest. Am I perhaps misinterpreting what the "Statement of Interest" should include? Is it totally different from the average PS/LOI? Any insight would be appreciated!

That's a solid list, we actually have very little overlap! I'm applying to John Jay (obv) and Drexel too. I'm also applying to University of Denver, University of Colorado @ Colorado Springs, University of Ottawa, Queens University, UT-Austin, University of Saskatchewan, UNevada-Reno, and Indiana University. I'm more interested in sex offender research though, which probably explains the major differences in our lists!