WickedWorld91

I think you already got plenty of good advice from others. The biggest thing I would echo is tailoring the application to fit the values of the program and having graduate students or a faculty member from that program review your letter of intent and CV. I would also suggest not restricting yourself geographically. It's not uncommon for people to apply to up to 10 programs, sometimes more (as long as your references are willing). But I get that moving around isn't always practical for many people, especially those of us who are a bit older and more settled.
Anyway, the real reason I am responding is to tell you that you are not alone. I am on my fourth year of applications of applying to clinical and counselling programs. I was misinformed when I was in undergrad and told I would have no problem getting into counselling but that clinical was ultra competitive. It turns out both are ultra competitive. I've had four clinical interviews between this year's cycle and last, and never heard back from any counselling programs I've applied to. Admittedly my CV is very clinically oriented, so some of that makes sense. I am literally almost to the point where if it doesn't work out this year, then I am going to apply aggressively for one more year, and if that doesn't work out, I am going to have to make some tough decisions about my career and potentially take a different route. And I refuse to go into a ridiculous amount of debt to pay to go to one of the online programs that essentially have no admission criteria and that are not well recognized after I went back to undergrad in my mid-20s to re-do my education to be a competitive applicant. I am in my early 30s and I am not sure how much longer me and my fiancee (who is well into her career) can deal with this state of limbo
Whatever the case, this process is excruciating. The important thing is to approach this with a self-compassionate mindset and to always try to do whatever you can to improve your CV and application. The harsh reality is that the system for clinical and counselling psychology programs is broken in many ways. People want to believe that the system works and that if they do x, y, and z that they should be able to get in. And then for those who do manage to get in there's a sort of attribution bias that happens where they say I got in because of x, y, and z. Don't get me wrong, everyone who manages to get in absolutely worked their butt off and deserve it, but there's also a degree of measurement error and luck involved in the process. My boss is a clinical professor and has gave me many helpful suggestions in improving my application, but also admitted that there is luck involved, which is not an easy thing to hear when you're trying to do all of the right things. When I was in undergrad doing my honours, a grad student who was just finishing their PhD in clinical gave a presentation on applying to clinical and referred to it as a "lottery pick" and spent 10 or 15 minutes talking about how it can be healthy sometimes to disengage from the goal of pursuing clinical lol...It appears that counselling is not far behind in this regard.
As you can tell, I am also very jaded by the process lol. And I'm not encouraging a pessimistic / woe is me sort of mindset, I just think it's okay to acknowledge that the system is broken. The country is desperate for well-trained counsellors and psychologists but these programs don't even come close to having the necessary capacities to support the demand. There is no good reason for these programs to be as or more competitive than the top Med Schools in the country.
That being said, try and stay positive, be self-compassionate (don't let this influence your self worth), and do what you can to improve your application. I believe that if it's really what you want, you'll find a way to make it happen, even if you have to take a different path than you initially wanted to get there. 

I think you already got plenty of good advice from others. The biggest thing I would echo is tailoring the application to fit the values of the program and having graduate students or a faculty member from that program review your letter of intent and CV. I would also suggest not restricting yourself geographically. It's not uncommon for people to apply to up to 10 programs, sometimes more (as long as your references are willing). But I get that moving around isn't always practical for many people, especially those of us who are a bit older and more settled.
Anyway, the real reason I am responding is to tell you that you are not alone. I am on my fourth year of applications of applying to clinical and counselling programs. I was misinformed when I was in undergrad and told I would have no problem getting into counselling but that clinical was ultra competitive. It turns out both are ultra competitive. I've had four clinical interviews between this year's cycle and last, and never heard back from any counselling programs I've applied to. Admittedly my CV is very clinically oriented, so some of that makes sense. I am literally almost to the point where if it doesn't work out this year, then I am going to apply aggressively for one more year, and if that doesn't work out, I am going to have to make some tough decisions about my career and potentially take a different route. And I refuse to go into a ridiculous amount of debt to pay to go to one of the online programs that essentially have no admission criteria and that are not well recognized after I went back to undergrad in my mid-20s to re-do my education to be a competitive applicant. I am in my early 30s and I am not sure how much longer me and my fiancee (who is well into her career) can deal with this state of limbo
Whatever the case, this process is excruciating. The important thing is to approach this with a self-compassionate mindset and to always try to do whatever you can to improve your CV and application. The harsh reality is that the system for clinical and counselling psychology programs is broken in many ways. People want to believe that the system works and that if they do x, y, and z that they should be able to get in. And then for those who do manage to get in there's a sort of attribution bias that happens where they say I got in because of x, y, and z. Don't get me wrong, everyone who manages to get in absolutely worked their butt off and deserve it, but there's also a degree of measurement error and luck involved in the process. My boss is a clinical professor and has gave me many helpful suggestions in improving my application, but also admitted that there is luck involved, which is not an easy thing to hear when you're trying to do all of the right things. When I was in undergrad doing my honours, a grad student who was just finishing their PhD in clinical gave a presentation on applying to clinical and referred to it as a "lottery pick" and spent 10 or 15 minutes talking about how it can be healthy sometimes to disengage from the goal of pursuing clinical lol...It appears that counselling is not far behind in this regard.
As you can tell, I am also very jaded by the process lol. And I'm not encouraging a pessimistic / woe is me sort of mindset, I just think it's okay to acknowledge that the system is broken. The country is desperate for well-trained counsellors and psychologists but these programs don't even come close to having the necessary capacities to support the demand. There is no good reason for these programs to be as or more competitive than the top Med Schools in the country.
That being said, try and stay positive, be self-compassionate (don't let this influence your self worth), and do what you can to improve your application. I believe that if it's really what you want, you'll find a way to make it happen, even if you have to take a different path than you initially wanted to get there. 

I think you already got plenty of good advice from others. The biggest thing I would echo is tailoring the application to fit the values of the program and having graduate students or a faculty member from that program review your letter of intent and CV. I would also suggest not restricting yourself geographically. It's not uncommon for people to apply to up to 10 programs, sometimes more (as long as your references are willing). But I get that moving around isn't always practical for many people, especially those of us who are a bit older and more settled.
Anyway, the real reason I am responding is to tell you that you are not alone. I am on my fourth year of applications of applying to clinical and counselling programs. I was misinformed when I was in undergrad and told I would have no problem getting into counselling but that clinical was ultra competitive. It turns out both are ultra competitive. I've had four clinical interviews between this year's cycle and last, and never heard back from any counselling programs I've applied to. Admittedly my CV is very clinically oriented, so some of that makes sense. I am literally almost to the point where if it doesn't work out this year, then I am going to apply aggressively for one more year, and if that doesn't work out, I am going to have to make some tough decisions about my career and potentially take a different route. And I refuse to go into a ridiculous amount of debt to pay to go to one of the online programs that essentially have no admission criteria and that are not well recognized after I went back to undergrad in my mid-20s to re-do my education to be a competitive applicant. I am in my early 30s and I am not sure how much longer me and my fiancee (who is well into her career) can deal with this state of limbo
Whatever the case, this process is excruciating. The important thing is to approach this with a self-compassionate mindset and to always try to do whatever you can to improve your CV and application. The harsh reality is that the system for clinical and counselling psychology programs is broken in many ways. People want to believe that the system works and that if they do x, y, and z that they should be able to get in. And then for those who do manage to get in there's a sort of attribution bias that happens where they say I got in because of x, y, and z. Don't get me wrong, everyone who manages to get in absolutely worked their butt off and deserve it, but there's also a degree of measurement error and luck involved in the process. My boss is a clinical professor and has gave me many helpful suggestions in improving my application, but also admitted that there is luck involved, which is not an easy thing to hear when you're trying to do all of the right things. When I was in undergrad doing my honours, a grad student who was just finishing their PhD in clinical gave a presentation on applying to clinical and referred to it as a "lottery pick" and spent 10 or 15 minutes talking about how it can be healthy sometimes to disengage from the goal of pursuing clinical lol...It appears that counselling is not far behind in this regard.
As you can tell, I am also very jaded by the process lol. And I'm not encouraging a pessimistic / woe is me sort of mindset, I just think it's okay to acknowledge that the system is broken. The country is desperate for well-trained counsellors and psychologists but these programs don't even come close to having the necessary capacities to support the demand. There is no good reason for these programs to be as or more competitive than the top Med Schools in the country.
That being said, try and stay positive, be self-compassionate (don't let this influence your self worth), and do what you can to improve your application. I believe that if it's really what you want, you'll find a way to make it happen, even if you have to take a different path than you initially wanted to get there. 

I think you already got plenty of good advice from others. The biggest thing I would echo is tailoring the application to fit the values of the program and having graduate students or a faculty member from that program review your letter of intent and CV. I would also suggest not restricting yourself geographically. It's not uncommon for people to apply to up to 10 programs, sometimes more (as long as your references are willing). But I get that moving around isn't always practical for many people, especially those of us who are a bit older and more settled.
Anyway, the real reason I am responding is to tell you that you are not alone. I am on my fourth year of applications of applying to clinical and counselling programs. I was misinformed when I was in undergrad and told I would have no problem getting into counselling but that clinical was ultra competitive. It turns out both are ultra competitive. I've had four clinical interviews between this year's cycle and last, and never heard back from any counselling programs I've applied to. Admittedly my CV is very clinically oriented, so some of that makes sense. I am literally almost to the point where if it doesn't work out this year, then I am going to apply aggressively for one more year, and if that doesn't work out, I am going to have to make some tough decisions about my career and potentially take a different route. And I refuse to go into a ridiculous amount of debt to pay to go to one of the online programs that essentially have no admission criteria and that are not well recognized after I went back to undergrad in my mid-20s to re-do my education to be a competitive applicant. I am in my early 30s and I am not sure how much longer me and my fiancee (who is well into her career) can deal with this state of limbo
Whatever the case, this process is excruciating. The important thing is to approach this with a self-compassionate mindset and to always try to do whatever you can to improve your CV and application. The harsh reality is that the system for clinical and counselling psychology programs is broken in many ways. People want to believe that the system works and that if they do x, y, and z that they should be able to get in. And then for those who do manage to get in there's a sort of attribution bias that happens where they say I got in because of x, y, and z. Don't get me wrong, everyone who manages to get in absolutely worked their butt off and deserve it, but there's also a degree of measurement error and luck involved in the process. My boss is a clinical professor and has gave me many helpful suggestions in improving my application, but also admitted that there is luck involved, which is not an easy thing to hear when you're trying to do all of the right things. When I was in undergrad doing my honours, a grad student who was just finishing their PhD in clinical gave a presentation on applying to clinical and referred to it as a "lottery pick" and spent 10 or 15 minutes talking about how it can be healthy sometimes to disengage from the goal of pursuing clinical lol...It appears that counselling is not far behind in this regard.
As you can tell, I am also very jaded by the process lol. And I'm not encouraging a pessimistic / woe is me sort of mindset, I just think it's okay to acknowledge that the system is broken. The country is desperate for well-trained counsellors and psychologists but these programs don't even come close to having the necessary capacities to support the demand. There is no good reason for these programs to be as or more competitive than the top Med Schools in the country.
That being said, try and stay positive, be self-compassionate (don't let this influence your self worth), and do what you can to improve your application. I believe that if it's really what you want, you'll find a way to make it happen, even if you have to take a different path than you initially wanted to get there. 

Hey, I think you should consider broadening the schools you apply to. I'm assuming you must live in Alberta but if you're open/able to move out of province, that would help expand your options by applying to other programs. You can also look into online counselling programs like Yorkville and Athabasca. I don't know anything about Athabasca but I know Yorkville tuition is quite expensive and is 2.5 years long, which is longer than other programs, but it does provide you the flexibility of not needing to leave your home province.
Similar to the previous poster, MSWs are also an option but it is program specific so you would need to look into one that specializes in providing clinical training. But just to correct something previously mentioned, people with MSWs become Registered Social Workers (RSW). RSWs along with other certain registered bodies (e.g., RNs, OTs, RPs, psychologists, etc.) are legally allowed to practice the controlled act of psychotherapy. And therefore can call themselves a Psychotherapist. But when calling yourself a Psychotherapist, you must mention your registration or credentials first. So for RSWs, something like this would be permitted: "Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist". Note, I'm basing this off of Ontario's Registration criteria, so obviously I would check for your province specifically, if interested. 
Edited: okay i see your most recent post about having a strong interest in research. Then i would say disregard the MSW option and consider applying to other programs to increase your chances! 

Thanks for the thoughtful response! I do agree there's a certain prestige around Clinical and people just automatically work towards that without fully realizing why they want to do it or whether they actually enjoy research. However, I am coming at this from a bit of a different angle than you for two reasons: First, I really enjoy research. I have been very reassured in this as I've been working as a full-time research assistant for going on two years and I plan to look for more research jobs once this contract is up. Second, my end goal is becoming a registered psychologist so I have to be careful in the type of Masters that I pursue if I want to move on to a PhD someday. At this point, I don't care whether I get there via Clinical or Counselling. I just want it to be research focused so that I have those skills in case I decide I want a job someday that focuses on research rather than practice. The reality is I want both research and practice, so I am being fussy, but a thesis-based program is really the way to go for me. Unfortunately, these happen to be the most competitive.

I was in a very similar position to you actually. 3 clinical based RA roles, teaching roles, a psych hons degree AND an MSc in Neuroscience and it took me three application cycles. One of the RA roles was at UBC itself, but in psychiatry. Turns out, I was leaning far too much on the clinical and research for counselling, and that as a result, I didn't appear a good fit. This time around my statement essentially stripped out my clinical work (still mentioned on my CV mind) and focussed almost entirely on my counselling related work, experience and specific theoretical approaches that my schools utilised in their programs. It seems to have worked. 

It really does seem to boil down to whether or not the school thinks you are a good fit, especially with your background. It's akin to a job application. You may have all the experience required, but so may someone else, so why are you a better fit for the position. If things don't work out this time, whilst it may seem counterintuitive, letting your clinical CV speak for itself whilst your statement speaks to why you are a good fit for the program and profession. 

As an aside, I hear you. I think this profession seriously lacks a clinical, research heavy background practitioners, with a real need for evidence based practice, but I guess that's what distinguishes it from clinical psych. 

In Canada, ranking means very little as most counselling programs happen through public universities that are trustworthy and deliver quality education (generally speaking). Unlike the USA where there is a large variation in the quality of both private and public schools, almost all of Canada's graduate level training in psychology happens through these publicly funded universities which are well-respected. There are a few exceptions, like Adler and Yorkville, which are private/for-profit institutions. I can't speak to the quality of the education at such for-profit schools, but they do cost an incredible amount of money (with less available resources) and are generally not research focused, so they may not give you the necessary skills/credentials to pursue a PhD (i.e., if becoming a psychologist in any province other than Alberta is something that might interest you down the road or if you want to do research rather than practice). If you're ranking your options on a personal level, I think the focus should be more so about how the programs fits your needs and interests rather than how, for example, Macleans may have rated the school. We are fortunate in Canada not to have to deal with too many fraudulent type universities, otherwise known as "degree mills". There are many horror stories from the states where people's degree were not recognized in certain states or by certain employers.

There doesn't seem to be much on here regarding Clinical at York University (Toronto). Has anyone heard anything from York or know their process? Thanks.

There doesn't seem to be much on here regarding Clinical at York University (Toronto). Has anyone heard anything from York or know their process? Thanks.

I emailed the grad department yesterday asking if all interview invites had gone out already and they said interviews were still ongoing. That said, POIs have been reaching out to do interviews for a few weeks now and there was an Open House last Friday where they mentioned offers may go out by the next week (i.e., this week)...so things are definitely moving. So, even though they said interviews are ongoing, for my mental health i'm considering this a soft rejection so I can focus on other schools haha

In Canada, ranking means very little as most counselling programs happen through public universities that are trustworthy and deliver quality education (generally speaking). Unlike the USA where there is a large variation in the quality of both private and public schools, almost all of Canada's graduate level training in psychology happens through these publicly funded universities which are well-respected. There are a few exceptions, like Adler and Yorkville, which are private/for-profit institutions. I can't speak to the quality of the education at such for-profit schools, but they do cost an incredible amount of money (with less available resources) and are generally not research focused, so they may not give you the necessary skills/credentials to pursue a PhD (i.e., if becoming a psychologist in any province other than Alberta is something that might interest you down the road or if you want to do research rather than practice). If you're ranking your options on a personal level, I think the focus should be more so about how the programs fits your needs and interests rather than how, for example, Macleans may have rated the school. We are fortunate in Canada not to have to deal with too many fraudulent type universities, otherwise known as "degree mills". There are many horror stories from the states where people's degree were not recognized in certain states or by certain employers.

In Canada, ranking means very little as most counselling programs happen through public universities that are trustworthy and deliver quality education (generally speaking). Unlike the USA where there is a large variation in the quality of both private and public schools, almost all of Canada's graduate level training in psychology happens through these publicly funded universities which are well-respected. There are a few exceptions, like Adler and Yorkville, which are private/for-profit institutions. I can't speak to the quality of the education at such for-profit schools, but they do cost an incredible amount of money (with less available resources) and are generally not research focused, so they may not give you the necessary skills/credentials to pursue a PhD (i.e., if becoming a psychologist in any province other than Alberta is something that might interest you down the road or if you want to do research rather than practice). If you're ranking your options on a personal level, I think the focus should be more so about how the programs fits your needs and interests rather than how, for example, Macleans may have rated the school. We are fortunate in Canada not to have to deal with too many fraudulent type universities, otherwise known as "degree mills". There are many horror stories from the states where people's degree were not recognized in certain states or by certain employers.

In Canada, ranking means very little as most counselling programs happen through public universities that are trustworthy and deliver quality education (generally speaking). Unlike the USA where there is a large variation in the quality of both private and public schools, almost all of Canada's graduate level training in psychology happens through these publicly funded universities which are well-respected. There are a few exceptions, like Adler and Yorkville, which are private/for-profit institutions. I can't speak to the quality of the education at such for-profit schools, but they do cost an incredible amount of money (with less available resources) and are generally not research focused, so they may not give you the necessary skills/credentials to pursue a PhD (i.e., if becoming a psychologist in any province other than Alberta is something that might interest you down the road or if you want to do research rather than practice). If you're ranking your options on a personal level, I think the focus should be more so about how the programs fits your needs and interests rather than how, for example, Macleans may have rated the school. We are fortunate in Canada not to have to deal with too many fraudulent type universities, otherwise known as "degree mills". There are many horror stories from the states where people's degree were not recognized in certain states or by certain employers.

In Canada, ranking means very little as most counselling programs happen through public universities that are trustworthy and deliver quality education (generally speaking). Unlike the USA where there is a large variation in the quality of both private and public schools, almost all of Canada's graduate level training in psychology happens through these publicly funded universities which are well-respected. There are a few exceptions, like Adler and Yorkville, which are private/for-profit institutions. I can't speak to the quality of the education at such for-profit schools, but they do cost an incredible amount of money (with less available resources) and are generally not research focused, so they may not give you the necessary skills/credentials to pursue a PhD (i.e., if becoming a psychologist in any province other than Alberta is something that might interest you down the road or if you want to do research rather than practice). If you're ranking your options on a personal level, I think the focus should be more so about how the programs fits your needs and interests rather than how, for example, Macleans may have rated the school. We are fortunate in Canada not to have to deal with too many fraudulent type universities, otherwise known as "degree mills". There are many horror stories from the states where people's degree were not recognized in certain states or by certain employers.

In Canada, ranking means very little as most counselling programs happen through public universities that are trustworthy and deliver quality education (generally speaking). Unlike the USA where there is a large variation in the quality of both private and public schools, almost all of Canada's graduate level training in psychology happens through these publicly funded universities which are well-respected. There are a few exceptions, like Adler and Yorkville, which are private/for-profit institutions. I can't speak to the quality of the education at such for-profit schools, but they do cost an incredible amount of money (with less available resources) and are generally not research focused, so they may not give you the necessary skills/credentials to pursue a PhD (i.e., if becoming a psychologist in any province other than Alberta is something that might interest you down the road or if you want to do research rather than practice). If you're ranking your options on a personal level, I think the focus should be more so about how the programs fits your needs and interests rather than how, for example, Macleans may have rated the school. We are fortunate in Canada not to have to deal with too many fraudulent type universities, otherwise known as "degree mills". There are many horror stories from the states where people's degree were not recognized in certain states or by certain employers.

In Canada, ranking means very little as most counselling programs happen through public universities that are trustworthy and deliver quality education (generally speaking). Unlike the USA where there is a large variation in the quality of both private and public schools, almost all of Canada's graduate level training in psychology happens through these publicly funded universities which are well-respected. There are a few exceptions, like Adler and Yorkville, which are private/for-profit institutions. I can't speak to the quality of the education at such for-profit schools, but they do cost an incredible amount of money (with less available resources) and are generally not research focused, so they may not give you the necessary skills/credentials to pursue a PhD (i.e., if becoming a psychologist in any province other than Alberta is something that might interest you down the road or if you want to do research rather than practice). If you're ranking your options on a personal level, I think the focus should be more so about how the programs fits your needs and interests rather than how, for example, Macleans may have rated the school. We are fortunate in Canada not to have to deal with too many fraudulent type universities, otherwise known as "degree mills". There are many horror stories from the states where people's degree were not recognized in certain states or by certain employers.

As mentioned, you would be an extremely strong applicant for Counselling. Based on the information you've given, you may even be a good candidate for clinical. The only one potential downside in regards to counselling is that older candidates may have more experience in the field working directly with vulnerable populations, which definitely hold weights for counselling (whereas clinical focuses more on research).
If by some chance you don't get any offers this year, don't fret. I applied to MSc Counselling Psych at Calgary this year and haven't heard anything, while others have. I have an honours degree in psych, a high GPA, a publication, two years research experience, am currently working a full time position in a lab under, and have two years experience working in the field. I think it is just a very tough year to be applying as applicant numbers are through the roof because of COVID. 

As mentioned, you would be an extremely strong applicant for Counselling. Based on the information you've given, you may even be a good candidate for clinical. The only one potential downside in regards to counselling is that older candidates may have more experience in the field working directly with vulnerable populations, which definitely hold weights for counselling (whereas clinical focuses more on research).
If by some chance you don't get any offers this year, don't fret. I applied to MSc Counselling Psych at Calgary this year and haven't heard anything, while others have. I have an honours degree in psych, a high GPA, a publication, two years research experience, am currently working a full time position in a lab under, and have two years experience working in the field. I think it is just a very tough year to be applying as applicant numbers are through the roof because of COVID. 

As mentioned, you would be an extremely strong applicant for Counselling. Based on the information you've given, you may even be a good candidate for clinical. The only one potential downside in regards to counselling is that older candidates may have more experience in the field working directly with vulnerable populations, which definitely hold weights for counselling (whereas clinical focuses more on research).
If by some chance you don't get any offers this year, don't fret. I applied to MSc Counselling Psych at Calgary this year and haven't heard anything, while others have. I have an honours degree in psych, a high GPA, a publication, two years research experience, am currently working a full time position in a lab under, and have two years experience working in the field. I think it is just a very tough year to be applying as applicant numbers are through the roof because of COVID. 

Hi, it was an email with a letter attached as a PDF. There was an interview.  I do believe they have already notified waitlisted candidates, but I only know through word of mouth.
Best of luck with your other applications and if it doesn't work out this year, keep your head up! It took me two tries.

I know UBC-O has already sent out interview invites, and unfortunately there are very, very few spots this year so i wouldn't expect a second round of interviews. I hate to pass on the news but better than not knowing! I am hoping to apply next year when more professors are accepting students!