Don't Sell Yourself Short:
When Considering
Possible Internship Sites, Aim for the Top
by John T. Carlsen, Psy.D.
One of the worst decisions you
can make in applying for internship is setting your sights too low.
What I mean by this is limiting
your prospects to those training programs where you seem to have the best
chances of matching - or where you believe you could match without much effort
- instead of those that offer what you really want. . . and need.
My attitude might surprise you.
Why wouldn't I recommend that you apply for training positions that seem
within your reach? Why wouldn't I want you to increase your
chances for success? Don't I understand how competitive the internship
application process is?
After all, most training
departments and academic advisors will try to prevent you from even
considering the top-tier sites. And, they try to steer you away from sites
that receive the most applications per position or that have long-standing
national reputations.
Massachusetts General Hospital, The Ohio State University Counseling and
Consultation Service, Bellevue Psychiatric Hospital, The Institute for
Juvenile Research . . . . These are reserved for applicants from the best
schools. Or, so you are led to believe.
(Of course, your school's
training department might be influenced just a bit more by the desire to
report good matching rates for your school than by what is actually best for
you. As with your family and friends, they probably want most for you to
succeed, preferably without taking too many unnecessary risks.
Stop and think: Can you
remember the last time your parents encouraged you to go after what you want,
regardless of the odds you faced?
I, on the other hand, believe absolutely that you must aim for the top, pull
out all the stops, and give it everything you've got. Go for broke. Reach for
the stars.
Why?
Because the only thing that will truly put you in charge of your internship application and interviewing process is setting your sights on something you genuinely want. Something that truly brings out your best. Something that uses your deepest inborn talents and gifts. Something that truly gets your blood pumping and mobilizes your efforts so you can show your professors and your classmates what you are made of and are capable of accomplishing.
In other words, you will probably Pull Out the Big Guns only when you have Something Worth Fighting For, something that truly matters to you.
(Please excuse me for using a violent metaphor, but, let's face facts:
This is not table tennis; you are choosing the foundation of your career.)
So, you must give this process all you've got. Otherwise, you might never know what
kind of professional you can actually become.
I think one of the saddest questions people can ever ask themselves is, "What if I had
. . . .?"
Ultimately, wasn't this the reason you chose to earn a doctorate in clinical psychology
- so you could become a professional instead of staying a case manager for the rest of your life? (Not that there is anything wrong with case management . . . it is one of the most important,
but under-rated, jobs in any clinic.) But, you probably would not have invested so much time and energy (and money) in
this professional training if you wanted to
wind up in something so far below your potential.
No, you would probably simply settled for
A Job.
From your own experience, you probably know that the only time you are truly in charge of what
you are doing is when you are leading from the inside. Think about it: Whenever you go after what you want, you are too
immersed in your own thoughts and plans to worry about what someone else wants or is thinking.
You are too preoccupied with reaching your goal to worry about how you will
get there. In fact, the farthest thing from your mind is how much competition you
face or what your chances are. Instead, when you concentrate on getting something that inspires you but is just out of reach, something that will stretch you beyond your comfort zone but
promises to bring you fulfillment, you find ways to mobilize all of your energy and focus on
getting it. Clearly, the more you convince yourself that you deserve to
have what you want, the more determined and confident you become in making
sure you achieve it.
As an internship applicant,
this attitude will keep you from becoming caught in the pointless ruminations about what is the "ideal applicant" for a particular site and wasting your time trying to fit into it. It can also prevent you from obsessing unnecessarily about the level of competition you face from other applicants. And, it will build a solid foundation of confidence and determination deep within you that reminds you of how much you deserve to get what you want and need from your
training.
Of course, I am not suggesting that you limit yourself to top-tier sites and go all the way out on a limb. That would be completely irresponsible. You owe it to yourself to make sure that you have
a back-up plan, some possibilities that you can fall back on if your dreams
fail to materialize this time around. Even if you do not match with the
internship you want, you can always save your application materials to pursue your dream job
there after graduation.
In any case, I encourage you to find the commitment it takes to set your goals high. After all, your internship is the foundation of your entire professional career. If you approach the internship process with this attitude, I can almost guarantee that you will dramatically increase your chances for success.
As I stated earlier, your confidence will increase dramatically. Your focus will become sharper. And your determination to get what you want will grow stronger with each passing day.
What's more, as your classmates continue fumbling around in the dark - trying to fit themselves into what they believe each site wants and worrying about the gaps in their qualifications - you will be well on your way to becoming your own "ideal applicant."
And, deep down, isn't that what you actually want?
John T. Carlsen, Psy.D. is
a licensed clinical psychologist who trains and supervises psychology interns
and externs. He offers personal coaching and training resources for graduate
students applying for internships and post-doctoral jobs. Click here
to learn more about how to write
effective applications and prepare for interviews. Click here
to submit comments, questions, or suggestions for future newsletter topics.
