2022-2023 Clinical Psychology Applications - Canada

[CCApA]

It would be great to know if anyone got one from HP at York..

[numnum]

1 hour ago, CCApA said:

It would be great to know if anyone got one from HP at York..

why did I think you meant Harry Potter ? no braincells left

[babooshka]

School: UTSC

Date of invite: Jan 14

Date of formal interview: Feb 14-16

I spoke last week with two faculty informally and got this today. I feel ecstatic, even knowing that I might not make it all the way - please do not give up. Seems like 3rd time's the charm after all. Thanking this community so much for its support over the last three cycles  

 

[T.O.hopeful]

Congrats @babooshka!! Has anyone else received a formal invite from UTSC? Please DM me if so! ?

[Gradschool2022]

Congrats @babooshka for the formal interview invite at UTSC! Did the invitation come from your POIs or the grad secretary/administrator?

 

 

[babooshka]

10 minutes ago, Gradschool2022 said:

Congrats @babooshka for the formal interview invite at UTSC! Did the invitation come from your POIs or the grad secretary/administrator?

 

 

Thank you so much! It came from the grad secretary/administrator. Is there a difference in what that means? Sorry, I'm not fully aware of the process!

[Gradschool2022]

6 minutes ago, babooshka said:

Thank you so much! It came from the grad secretary/administrator. Is there a difference in what that means? Sorry, I'm not fully aware of the process!

 Thanks for the info! I believe formal invites  get sent around the same time by the grad secretary/admin whereas those sent by individual supervisors could be sent in the course of several weeks. That’s just my experience with interviews during previous cycles.  

[sparrow123]

Current clinical student at York here. Grad students got an email today stating that interview offers should be going out next week. I know that people will ask but I don't know ANYTHING about any candidates who are getting interview invites, including from my own supervisor, so I am of no help there. 

Edited January 14, 2022 by sparrow123

[psychowannabee]

Can someone clarify the difference between OGS vs. CGSM to me?

 

Is my understanding correct that unlike the CGSM with its limitations of only listing 3 schools, OGS is applicable to all Ontario schools so if you have let's says 8 Ontario schools on your list, you can submit the exact same OGS application to each of those 8 schools? Or is there a limit as to how many schools you can apply for OGS as well?

Edited January 15, 2022 by psychowannabee

[okayidk]

This is a little late in the process, but I'm interested to know what you all have been including as "Writing Samples" with your applications (for the schools that require them). Your thesis? Assignments? Lit review? 

[emsmith]

2 hours ago, okayidk said:

This is a little late in the process, but I'm interested to know what you all have been including as "Writing Samples" with your applications (for the schools that require them). Your thesis? Assignments? Lit review? 

I submitted a publication I was first author on (not a good idea if you're co-author since it's not your writing), but if I didn't have a journal article I would have submitted an assignment I did well on in a relevant course /on a relevant topic, like maybe you wrote a paper in a drugs and behaviour class and you're applying to a POI who studies addiction for example.

I think submitting your thesis is too long, you can't expect the admissions committee/POI to read a 50 page document. Although maybe you could submit just your intro and literature review since it is a "sample".

This is the first year I applied to a school that allows you to submit writing samples so I haven't thought about this much. I would be interested in hearing from others too

Edited January 15, 2022 by emsmith

[SoundofSilence]

I submitted a master's thesis once (since they had that as an example of things we can send) and a second time I did a larger lit review that I had for an assignment that got very good feedback. If you have a publication that's even better, but some may ask that you are the sole author - just make sure you check the guidelines or ask the grad admin.

[emsmith]

46 minutes ago, SoundofSilence said:

I submitted a master's thesis once (since they had that as an example of things we can send) and a second time I did a larger lit review that I had for an assignment that got very good feedback. If you have a publication that's even better, but some may ask that you are the sole author - just make sure you check the guidelines or ask the grad admin.

Hmm, that's a really interesting point, I didn't think of that! How would anyone at our stage in their career  have a sole-author publication though? Surely to get published in a peer-reviewed journal you would have to have at the very least your supervisor as a co-author. Unless perhaps it's a letter to the editor or something? 

[SoundofSilence]

2 hours ago, emsmith said:

Hmm, that's a really interesting point, I didn't think of that! How would anyone at our stage in their career  have a sole-author publication though? Surely to get published in a peer-reviewed journal you would have to have at the very least your supervisor as a co-author. Unless perhaps it's a letter to the editor or something? 

The thing is, when they ask for a writing sample, they want to see how you write, not how you co-write with others in a group; because even if you are the first author, others revise and edit what you wrote. So that is why it's a good idea to check. POIs sometimes get students that are really bad writers/ or writers that need a lot of training, so they want to see what your level is - and a publication might not show your true level. I see it kind of the same with English level (I'm an international student). Many POIs told me they were unpleasantly surprised by a grad student's ability in English, so they had to make extra effort to get them up to speed. And I get it - even if it's not my first language, I need to be able to communicate in it fluently because grad school is clearly at a different level than general undergrad courses. So making sure the student you pick has the necessary abilities to succeed becomes important, hence the request for a writing sample.

[clinclin]

Any updates from OISE? Anyone heard back even informally ?

[emsmith]

7 hours ago, SoundofSilence said:

The thing is, when they ask for a writing sample, they want to see how you write, not how you co-write with others in a group; because even if you are the first author, others revise and edit what you wrote. So that is why it's a good idea to check. POIs sometimes get students that are really bad writers/ or writers that need a lot of training, so they want to see what your level is - and a publication might not show your true level. I see it kind of the same with English level (I'm an international student). Many POIs told me they were unpleasantly surprised by a grad student's ability in English, so they had to make extra effort to get them up to speed. And I get it - even if it's not my first language, I need to be able to communicate in it fluently because grad school is clearly at a different level than general undergrad courses. So making sure the student you pick has the necessary abilities to succeed becomes important, hence the request for a writing sample.

No you're completely right, it's something I didn't really consider since my co-authors did very little writing on what I submitted but of course this would vary a lot within other teams and even other papers. Now I'm very nervous about my decision, despite being really proud of my work because I guess they have no idea how much of it I wrote ??‍♀️

It's tricky though because I've been out of university for quite a long time and so any assignments, my thesis, etc are all quite old and I'm a much better academic writer now, so my publications are the only thing that I have really to show this. Oh well, it's too late to change now but definitely something to think about for future applications!

[T.O.hopeful]

7 hours ago, emsmith said:

It's tricky though because I've been out of university for quite a long time and so any assignments, my thesis, etc are all quite old and I'm a much better academic writer now, so my publications are the only thing that I have really to show this. Oh well, it's too late to change now but definitely something to think about for future applications!

Luckily, only 1 or 2 schools I applied to mentioned a writing sample and it was optional. I didn't submit one for the exact reason you mention. I've been out of school since 2013 and I'm a much better writer now, so any sample from school would not have been an accurate depiction of my current writing skills. If I had applied anywhere that had a mandatory writing sample requirement, I likely would have looked into whether it can be something I draft specifically for the application.

As someone mentioned, peer-reviewed papers are tricky because it's rare one person writes the entire thing without others/senior authors revising it, so it's hard to know someone's base level of writing skills pre-revision. That said, I honestly wouldn't worry that much about it. The writing sample is not going to make or break you receiving an interview and/or offer as it will likely be weighted lower than your GPA, research experience, statement letter, and maybe even references. Plus having a first author paper to even submit is a major strength for your application, so don't worry about it!

[clinicalpolarbear]

Has anyone heard back from Queen's yet as to whether or not they made it to the departmental interview? I had my interview with my POI on Tuesday but am still waiting to hear if I made it to the departmental set of final interviews!

[Gradschool2022]

Have all the formal interview invites for UTSC been sent out? I’m just wondering if I should lose hope of getting contacted by them at this point…they’re one of my top three schools. 

[lishlish]

Hey everyone, this is my first application cycle, so I am hoping to get some advice on informal interview prep as I have one this week. 

 

Thanks so much,

Elysha 

[clinicallypsych3d]

51 minutes ago, lishlish said:

Hey everyone, this is my first application cycle, so I am hoping to get some advice on informal interview prep as I have one this week. 

 

Thanks so much,

Elysha 

Which school are you interviewing with?

[Nazb]

Hello everyone, 

I just received an interview invitation from Windsor. I'm very nervous on what they might ask. Do you have any advice or pointers on what they might ask? your help will save me from a heart attack. 

[carlrogersfan98]

7 hours ago, clinicalpolarbear said:

Has anyone heard back from Queen's yet as to whether or not they made it to the departmental interview? I had my interview with my POI on Tuesday but am still waiting to hear if I made it to the departmental set of final interviews!

I have not yet even had my prelim (I am having it on Monday) so I am assuming towards the end of this week at the earliest!

[Gradschool2022]

@Nazb Hi! Is it a preliminary interview or a formal one? If it’s a prelim it’ll be shorter and more casual; they’ll probably ask you about your research interests and why you applied to work with a certain supervisor. If it’s formal, then the questions would be more in-depth and some may cover your future career goals, personality, research background etc. Feel free to DM me if you have any questions! I interviewed with them last year. 

Edited January 17, 2022 by Gradschool2022

[siriuslypadfoot]

2 hours ago, Nazb said:

Hello everyone, 

I just received an interview invitation from Windsor. I'm very nervous on what they might ask. Do you have any advice or pointers on what they might ask? your help will save me from a heart attack. 

Do you mind PMing me your POI? I interviewed them with a few cycles ago and would be happy to answer any specific questions