VanessaB

There's a lot of overlap between the two. With your master's in counselling, I suspect you'd have really strong clinical interviewing skills and therapeutic intervention skills, so I don't think it would look unfocused if phrased carefully.

There's a lot of overlap between the two. With your master's in counselling, I suspect you'd have really strong clinical interviewing skills and therapeutic intervention skills, so I don't think it would look unfocused if phrased carefully.

https://clinicalneurosciences.ca - Anthony C. Ruocco (U of T Clinical) - https://clinicalneurosciences.ca/publications (lots of BPD publications in this lab)
https://erinannekaufman.wixsite.com/mappedlab - Erin Kaufman (UWO Clinical - https://erinannekaufman.wixsite.com/mappedlab/publications
https://www.tuliplab.ca - Skye Fitzpatrick (YorkU Clinical) - https://www.tuliplab.ca/publications.html
https://www.sfu.ca/psychology/research/perl/ - Alexander Chapman (SFU Clinical) - https://www.sfu.ca/psychology/about/people/profiles/alchapma.html

This is a very valid conflict! One of the things that might work is making a pros and cons list for the two schools. This is what I did last year (but with three schools) because I had two offers on the table, but I hadn’t yet heard back from one more program, which was also high on my list due to the specific specialization.
I needed to decide if I should accept an offer already on the table, or wait to see if I got an offer to the third school I was waiting to hear back from. Ultimately, by making a pros/cons list for the schools, I realized the best fit for me was a school I already had an offer for.
I’m not sure if making a pros/cons list is suitable for everyone, but I can say it definitely helped me sus out some uncertainties and evaluate what was most important to me. It also helped me consider some things I hadn’t yet thought much about. Rejecting a program offer and accepting another can be a scary thing! The decision has a lot of power to change the course of your life.

This is a very valid conflict! One of the things that might work is making a pros and cons list for the two schools. This is what I did last year (but with three schools) because I had two offers on the table, but I hadn’t yet heard back from one more program, which was also high on my list due to the specific specialization.
I needed to decide if I should accept an offer already on the table, or wait to see if I got an offer to the third school I was waiting to hear back from. Ultimately, by making a pros/cons list for the schools, I realized the best fit for me was a school I already had an offer for.
I’m not sure if making a pros/cons list is suitable for everyone, but I can say it definitely helped me sus out some uncertainties and evaluate what was most important to me. It also helped me consider some things I hadn’t yet thought much about. Rejecting a program offer and accepting another can be a scary thing! The decision has a lot of power to change the course of your life.

This is a very valid conflict! One of the things that might work is making a pros and cons list for the two schools. This is what I did last year (but with three schools) because I had two offers on the table, but I hadn’t yet heard back from one more program, which was also high on my list due to the specific specialization.
I needed to decide if I should accept an offer already on the table, or wait to see if I got an offer to the third school I was waiting to hear back from. Ultimately, by making a pros/cons list for the schools, I realized the best fit for me was a school I already had an offer for.
I’m not sure if making a pros/cons list is suitable for everyone, but I can say it definitely helped me sus out some uncertainties and evaluate what was most important to me. It also helped me consider some things I hadn’t yet thought much about. Rejecting a program offer and accepting another can be a scary thing! The decision has a lot of power to change the course of your life.

This is a very valid conflict! One of the things that might work is making a pros and cons list for the two schools. This is what I did last year (but with three schools) because I had two offers on the table, but I hadn’t yet heard back from one more program, which was also high on my list due to the specific specialization.
I needed to decide if I should accept an offer already on the table, or wait to see if I got an offer to the third school I was waiting to hear back from. Ultimately, by making a pros/cons list for the schools, I realized the best fit for me was a school I already had an offer for.
I’m not sure if making a pros/cons list is suitable for everyone, but I can say it definitely helped me sus out some uncertainties and evaluate what was most important to me. It also helped me consider some things I hadn’t yet thought much about. Rejecting a program offer and accepting another can be a scary thing! The decision has a lot of power to change the course of your life.

This is a very valid conflict! One of the things that might work is making a pros and cons list for the two schools. This is what I did last year (but with three schools) because I had two offers on the table, but I hadn’t yet heard back from one more program, which was also high on my list due to the specific specialization.
I needed to decide if I should accept an offer already on the table, or wait to see if I got an offer to the third school I was waiting to hear back from. Ultimately, by making a pros/cons list for the schools, I realized the best fit for me was a school I already had an offer for.
I’m not sure if making a pros/cons list is suitable for everyone, but I can say it definitely helped me sus out some uncertainties and evaluate what was most important to me. It also helped me consider some things I hadn’t yet thought much about. Rejecting a program offer and accepting another can be a scary thing! The decision has a lot of power to change the course of your life.

This is a very valid conflict! One of the things that might work is making a pros and cons list for the two schools. This is what I did last year (but with three schools) because I had two offers on the table, but I hadn’t yet heard back from one more program, which was also high on my list due to the specific specialization.
I needed to decide if I should accept an offer already on the table, or wait to see if I got an offer to the third school I was waiting to hear back from. Ultimately, by making a pros/cons list for the schools, I realized the best fit for me was a school I already had an offer for.
I’m not sure if making a pros/cons list is suitable for everyone, but I can say it definitely helped me sus out some uncertainties and evaluate what was most important to me. It also helped me consider some things I hadn’t yet thought much about. Rejecting a program offer and accepting another can be a scary thing! The decision has a lot of power to change the course of your life.

Not sure how common these ones are, but I also took into account the degree name/type (e.g., MEd v. MA v. MSc) that I thought best reflected my personal and professional identity, and I considered expected course load/balance. Oh, yes, and I also took into account CPA accreditation.
 
Later on, I took into account more factors such as intuition (it just felt right deep down) and level of excitement from different offers when making a final decision. 

Not sure how common these ones are, but I also took into account the degree name/type (e.g., MEd v. MA v. MSc) that I thought best reflected my personal and professional identity, and I considered expected course load/balance. Oh, yes, and I also took into account CPA accreditation.
 
Later on, I took into account more factors such as intuition (it just felt right deep down) and level of excitement from different offers when making a final decision. 

You can apply to UVic and take the courses as a post-professional student or whatever they call it now. It might be worth considering if UVic is a top choice for you. It will be semi-expensive, but in my situation I figured I’d do anything for my dreams, even if it meant doing more courses or spending more money. The courses might even be online for you now if you wanted to take them and take them soon, but I lived in Victoria for two months as there were no online options at the time. Side note...I don’t recommend staying in campus townhomes. I’ll spare you the story!
Anyways, I did the courses back in the summer of 2018. I spent a summer in Victoria, which was a new experience having lived in Alberta most of my life! I took ED-D 414 (group processes) and ED-D 417 (skills for effective interpersonal communication). I already had the counselling theories class from an Alberta university. I did the two classes as “extra” classes you could say, but the prep in 417 was fantastic, and the instructor was what I’d call a master at her craft. She also occasionally brought in current MA counselling psyc students to talk about the program and answer questions about the program.
Ultimately, that experience made me realize that I actually wanted to go into a school/clinical/applied child psychology program and not counselling psychology, so it was a very insightful summer that changed my new career path (I started as a teacher wanting to become a counsellor, but I’m now in my dream program...SCCP). “Trying things on,” so to speak, in Victoria also gave me a chance to see if I’d like living in Victoria and if I liked the courses. I found my group process instructor to be slightly bonkers, and although that wasn’t what ultimately turned me off from counselling psychology altogether, I couldn’t imagine myself in the program part way and at the end of that summer experience.
Interestingly, for those wanting to do the UVic program, my counselling skills class was told that being a male can help you get in the program as very few males apply compared to females. I believe the MA in counselling psyc at UVic may still consider you if you’re missing a prerequisite, but I think getting admitted with a missing prerequisite is rare. Between my two classes (ED-D 414 and 417), there was only one student who had been admitted and was required take a course prior to the program start.

You can apply to UVic and take the courses as a post-professional student or whatever they call it now. It might be worth considering if UVic is a top choice for you. It will be semi-expensive, but in my situation I figured I’d do anything for my dreams, even if it meant doing more courses or spending more money. The courses might even be online for you now if you wanted to take them and take them soon, but I lived in Victoria for two months as there were no online options at the time. Side note...I don’t recommend staying in campus townhomes. I’ll spare you the story!
Anyways, I did the courses back in the summer of 2018. I spent a summer in Victoria, which was a new experience having lived in Alberta most of my life! I took ED-D 414 (group processes) and ED-D 417 (skills for effective interpersonal communication). I already had the counselling theories class from an Alberta university. I did the two classes as “extra” classes you could say, but the prep in 417 was fantastic, and the instructor was what I’d call a master at her craft. She also occasionally brought in current MA counselling psyc students to talk about the program and answer questions about the program.
Ultimately, that experience made me realize that I actually wanted to go into a school/clinical/applied child psychology program and not counselling psychology, so it was a very insightful summer that changed my new career path (I started as a teacher wanting to become a counsellor, but I’m now in my dream program...SCCP). “Trying things on,” so to speak, in Victoria also gave me a chance to see if I’d like living in Victoria and if I liked the courses. I found my group process instructor to be slightly bonkers, and although that wasn’t what ultimately turned me off from counselling psychology altogether, I couldn’t imagine myself in the program part way and at the end of that summer experience.
Interestingly, for those wanting to do the UVic program, my counselling skills class was told that being a male can help you get in the program as very few males apply compared to females. I believe the MA in counselling psyc at UVic may still consider you if you’re missing a prerequisite, but I think getting admitted with a missing prerequisite is rare. Between my two classes (ED-D 414 and 417), there was only one student who had been admitted and was required take a course prior to the program start.

You can apply to UVic and take the courses as a post-professional student or whatever they call it now. It might be worth considering if UVic is a top choice for you. It will be semi-expensive, but in my situation I figured I’d do anything for my dreams, even if it meant doing more courses or spending more money. The courses might even be online for you now if you wanted to take them and take them soon, but I lived in Victoria for two months as there were no online options at the time. Side note...I don’t recommend staying in campus townhomes. I’ll spare you the story!
Anyways, I did the courses back in the summer of 2018. I spent a summer in Victoria, which was a new experience having lived in Alberta most of my life! I took ED-D 414 (group processes) and ED-D 417 (skills for effective interpersonal communication). I already had the counselling theories class from an Alberta university. I did the two classes as “extra” classes you could say, but the prep in 417 was fantastic, and the instructor was what I’d call a master at her craft. She also occasionally brought in current MA counselling psyc students to talk about the program and answer questions about the program.
Ultimately, that experience made me realize that I actually wanted to go into a school/clinical/applied child psychology program and not counselling psychology, so it was a very insightful summer that changed my new career path (I started as a teacher wanting to become a counsellor, but I’m now in my dream program...SCCP). “Trying things on,” so to speak, in Victoria also gave me a chance to see if I’d like living in Victoria and if I liked the courses. I found my group process instructor to be slightly bonkers, and although that wasn’t what ultimately turned me off from counselling psychology altogether, I couldn’t imagine myself in the program part way and at the end of that summer experience.
Interestingly, for those wanting to do the UVic program, my counselling skills class was told that being a male can help you get in the program as very few males apply compared to females. I believe the MA in counselling psyc at UVic may still consider you if you’re missing a prerequisite, but I think getting admitted with a missing prerequisite is rare. Between my two classes (ED-D 414 and 417), there was only one student who had been admitted and was required take a course prior to the program start.

You can apply to UVic and take the courses as a post-professional student or whatever they call it now. It might be worth considering if UVic is a top choice for you. It will be semi-expensive, but in my situation I figured I’d do anything for my dreams, even if it meant doing more courses or spending more money. The courses might even be online for you now if you wanted to take them and take them soon, but I lived in Victoria for two months as there were no online options at the time. Side note...I don’t recommend staying in campus townhomes. I’ll spare you the story!
Anyways, I did the courses back in the summer of 2018. I spent a summer in Victoria, which was a new experience having lived in Alberta most of my life! I took ED-D 414 (group processes) and ED-D 417 (skills for effective interpersonal communication). I already had the counselling theories class from an Alberta university. I did the two classes as “extra” classes you could say, but the prep in 417 was fantastic, and the instructor was what I’d call a master at her craft. She also occasionally brought in current MA counselling psyc students to talk about the program and answer questions about the program.
Ultimately, that experience made me realize that I actually wanted to go into a school/clinical/applied child psychology program and not counselling psychology, so it was a very insightful summer that changed my new career path (I started as a teacher wanting to become a counsellor, but I’m now in my dream program...SCCP). “Trying things on,” so to speak, in Victoria also gave me a chance to see if I’d like living in Victoria and if I liked the courses. I found my group process instructor to be slightly bonkers, and although that wasn’t what ultimately turned me off from counselling psychology altogether, I couldn’t imagine myself in the program part way and at the end of that summer experience.
Interestingly, for those wanting to do the UVic program, my counselling skills class was told that being a male can help you get in the program as very few males apply compared to females. I believe the MA in counselling psyc at UVic may still consider you if you’re missing a prerequisite, but I think getting admitted with a missing prerequisite is rare. Between my two classes (ED-D 414 and 417), there was only one student who had been admitted and was required take a course prior to the program start.

I would think that at most schools an admissions committee would have the final say, but I could be wrong. I've been collecting some information about my own program to pass along to a mentee, and I've learned a few things in the process. For example, I've learned that if a student fell below the typically accepted GPA range, a professor couldn't outright accept that student. For instance, the professor couldn't just say they know the student and would like to work with them. Instead, the professor would need to have specific reasons, including some concrete evidence (e.g., the student retook courses and did much better the second time to show their improvement and their ability to take on a challenging program), for why the program should accept that particular student.

I would think that at most schools an admissions committee would have the final say, but I could be wrong. I've been collecting some information about my own program to pass along to a mentee, and I've learned a few things in the process. For example, I've learned that if a student fell below the typically accepted GPA range, a professor couldn't outright accept that student. For instance, the professor couldn't just say they know the student and would like to work with them. Instead, the professor would need to have specific reasons, including some concrete evidence (e.g., the student retook courses and did much better the second time to show their improvement and their ability to take on a challenging program), for why the program should accept that particular student.

I'm not so sure the do-your-degree-in-one-place thing is all that bad. At my most recent undergrad institution, I recall seeing three degrees on a professor's wall that were all from the same university. That particular professor is full professor, has won numerous teaching awards, has been the chair of the psych dept many times over, and is one of the most prolific in terms of publications. That said, personally I think going to another institution can lead to personal and professional growth, but expanding one's horizons, as some would like to put it, is not a prerequisite for a successful career.

I'm not so sure the do-your-degree-in-one-place thing is all that bad. At my most recent undergrad institution, I recall seeing three degrees on a professor's wall that were all from the same university. That particular professor is full professor, has won numerous teaching awards, has been the chair of the psych dept many times over, and is one of the most prolific in terms of publications. That said, personally I think going to another institution can lead to personal and professional growth, but expanding one's horizons, as some would like to put it, is not a prerequisite for a successful career.

The U of T/OISE School & Clinical Child Psych program and the U of A School and Clinical Child Psych program both don’t require it. As well, I don’t think Concordia requires it.

Hey Mickey,
Just FYI...
College of Alberta Psychologist (CAP) now approves CPA-accredited programs for fulfilling the academic credential requirements as per their August 2020 update, so if you go all the way to the doctoral level with your schooling, when you're ready to register in Alberta, you no longer need to ensure you've taken the range of courses CAP is asking for. The same holds true if you're in a program approved by the college.
https://www.cap.ab.ca/Portals/0/pdfs/evaluation-criteria/Criteria-for-Evaluating-Academic-Credentials-After-August-31-2020.pdf?ver=2020-11-26-171348-830&timestamp=1606436125447

I think it really depends on the program. While I think most programs do interviews, not all of them have interviews integrated into their formal admission criteria. With the program I'm in now, during a discussion on admission requirements, my supervisor explained that because formal interviews are not part of the actual admission criteria, a faculty member could certainly choose to meet with and interview a potential student if they wanted to, but the interview would have no weight or bearing in the final admission decision. I guess the faculty undergo unconscious bias training and are trained to try be as objective as possible when making their decisions, but I'm not sure if that's the case at all places.
During my application cycle, I also experienced something similar with some professors not emailing back. What I've found is that, in some instances, it may mean the professor has already decided who they want to try and take on as a student. In my cohort, one of the girls is working with a supervisor I contacted during my cycle, but that supervisor never replied back to me when I reached out, so I figure the supervisor was hoping to commit to/take on the other student, so it would've been a useless email exchange.

Try to relax and breathe a little! You can still apply in your first year if you get admitted into a program. I just applied for CGS-M this year, after starting a program in September and being admitted a few places for the Fall 2020 cycle, so there’s still time to do it next year if you get in. I actually found applying after starting a program helped because I was able to connect with lab members, see winning proposal examples, and ask my lab members questions about the process when or if I needed clarification.

Usually, you'd have to request those transcripts to be mailed directly from the institution to the school(s) you're applying at, so if they don't attach a grading sheet then the receiving institution will likely just use what's in the envelope. If you think your official documents won't suffice, you may want to contact the programs directly and ask if they'd prefer a separate mailed grading sheet or if the official copy will be enough. Most of the time, if the official transcripts aren't sufficient, they'll let you know, but some schools get so many applications that they may not be able to flag every issue.

You can put unpaid/volunteer research in the work section. Just make sure you label your position title as Volunteer RA or Volunteer XYZ . . . whatever it is that you want to call yourself depending on your role.