The APPIC Post-Match Vacancy Service
Instructions for Internship Training Directors

The APPIC Post-Match Vacancy Service will begin operation on March 26, 2012 (upon conclusion of Phase II of the 2012 APPIC Match) and will remain available through October 31, 2012.  This service allows eligible internship programs to post information about unfilled positions for students who remain unmatched.

IMPORTANT NOTE: If an intern withdraws or is terminated from a position at your site for any reason, either during the internship year or prior to the start of the year, you must consult with APPIC before announcing or filling this vacancy.  Please contact Dr. Gene D'Angelo, Chair, APPIC Board of Directors, at eugene.dangelo@childrens.harvard.edu or (617) 355-7650.

PROGRAM FEES AND ELIGIBILITY

APPIC-member internship programs, as well as non-member programs that registered for the 2012 APPIC Match, are eligible to use the Post-Match Vacancy Service at no additional charge. For these programs, eligibility is automatic and no registration is required.

Non-member programs that did not participate in the Match may use the APPIC Post-Match Vacancy Service if they meet the criteria described in APPIC's policies regarding participation by non-members. Eligible non-member programs must register in advance by submitting a completed "Post-Match Vacancy Service Participation Agreement" along with the appropriate fee to APPIC. Please contact the APPIC Central Office in order to obtain a copy of the agreement and to initiate the registration process.

OVERVIEW FOR PROGRAMS

Please note that the AAPI Online service will NOT be used to submit applications to sites after Phase II of the Match is completed.  Instead, applicants will submit application materials to sites via e-mail attachment. Applicants who participated in the APPIC Match have been given the ability to download a formatted copy of their AAPIs from the AAPI Online service, which can then be provided to sites that request them.

Following is an overview of the Post-Match Vacancy Service process from the perspective of an internship program.  The process begins at 11:00 am EST on APPIC Match Day, Monday, March 26, 2012 (although the first set of vacancy announcements won't be posted until approximately noon Eastern Time the next day), and continues through October 31, 2012.

1. Training Directors who wish to announce vacant positions should submit an e-mail message to Dr. Greg Keilin at gkeilin@mail.utexas.edu with the information listed below. Vacancies will be posted within 24 hours of receipt.
   
   IMPORTANT: A list of positions left unfilled from Phase II of the Match will not be provided to applicants. Thus, applicants will have no way of knowing about your vacancy unless you submit this information.
   
   
   1. Name of Program.
   2. Four-digit APPIC member number. Non-members should provide their Program Code Number from the APPIC Match, or specify "None" if the program did not register for the Match.
   3. Name of Training Director and contact information (phone and/or e-mail).
   4. APA or CPA accreditation status.
   5. APPIC membership status.
   6. URL to your web page (if any) that contains information about your program.
   7. E-mail address that applicants should use to submit applications.
   8. Text of your announcement.
      
2. The text of your announcement should be relatively brief (i.e., a few sentences or paragraphs) and may include specific application instructions or requirements, selection criteria, or other information that is pertinent to applicants. Please do not use this service to post a description of your program or provide information that is already available on your web site. Programs without web sites may direct applicants to contact the Training Director in order to learn more about the program.
   


3. Announcements will be posted to the "current list of available positions" page on the APPIC web site. If you wish to update the information listed, simply e-mail Dr. Keilin at the address provided above. You may also provide status updates (e.g., "no longer accepting applications", "position filled") in this manner.
   
   If you wish to receive an e-mailed notification whenever this vacancy list is updated, you may sign up for such notifications here. These e-mails will only indicate when the current list of unfilled positions has been updated, and will not contain specific information about the vacancies.
   
   
4. Unless you provide alternate instructions to applicants, they have been instructed to submit their application materials as follows:
   
   
   1. Applicants will submit only a cover letter and a vita. They are not permitted to send any other materials (e.g., AAPI, letters of recommendation) unless and until you authorize them to do so.
      
      
   2. Applicants have been told to submit the cover letter and vita (combined within a single word processing document) via e-mail attachment.
      
      
   3. As part of your process of reviewing applicants' cover letters and vitas, you may choose to invite certain applicants to submit additional materials to you. As long as you authorize an applicant to send these additional materials, it is fine for them to do so. Please note that some applicants have not been given copies of their letters of recommendation or verification of internship eligibility; thus, if you request such materials, these applicants may need some extra time to have them sent by their DCT and/or letter-writers. Furthermore, some applicants may not have participated in the Match and thus may not have completed an application via the AAPI Online service.
      
   These procedures (i.e., submissions limited to a cover letter and vita) were implemented in order to reduce the likelihood that programs would be overwhelmed by application materials. If an applicant does not conform to these procedures, it is up to you as to whether or not you wish to consider his/her application.
   
   

5. Applicants have been instructed to tailor their cover letters to each site to which they apply. (Please note that this is a change from previous years, in which applicants were told that it was acceptable for them to submit "generic" cover letters).

6. If you DO provide specific application instructions (i.e., in your posting to the vacancy list), applicants have been instructed to follow your instructions rather than the procedures described in the previous paragraphs. In your instructions, you can ask applicants to submit whatever application materials you wish to receive and via whatever method you wish to receive them (i.e., you don't have to conform to the procedures described above).

   Applicants who previously submitted an application via the AAPI Online service have been given the ability to download a formatted version of their AAPI. This AAPI will exclude items that were site-specific (e.g., essays, vitas, cover letters) and/or confidential (letters of recommendation, transcripts, DCT's verification of eligibility and readiness). Thus, applicants may submit application materials to you in separate documents.

   IMPORTANT NOTE: Students' AAPI documents will be quite large, averaging about 3 MB in size (with some being as large as 9 MB). Thus, most sites will not want to request the AAPI from every applicant, as that could quickly fill up one's e-mailbox. Instead, it is highly recommended that sites request AAPIs only from those applicants who are under serious consideration. Even with this limitation, you should check your e-mailbox often, download students' application materials to your computer, and delete those large messages from your e-mail server in order to free up space for other incoming mail.
   
   Be as specific as possible in terms of the materials that you are requesting, and request only those materials that you truly want to review. These materials may include: A formatted AAPI, transcripts, vita (included in the AAPI), essays, letters of recommendation, and verification of eligibility for internship from the DCT.
   
   You should also be aware that the AAPIs you receive from applicants will not have been updated since the original application process, and thus will reflect applicants' training and experience only through approximately November 1 of last year.
   
   Also, as previously noted, some applicants may not have participated in the Match and thus may not have completed an application via the AAPI Online service.
   
   
7. While the volume of applications that you receive may make it difficult to do, applicants greatly appreciate receiving even a brief acknowledgement that you have received their application. You might consider creating a "form" e-mail for this purpose.
   
   
8. You are free to implement whatever interview procedures you wish to use. While you may feel compelled to move very quickly in your selection process, there is really no need to do so.
   
   
9. APPIC requires that, before making an offer to an applicant, you ensure that the applicant's doctoral program has verified his/her eligibility for internship. APPIC Match Policy 9c states, "Prior to making offers to fill open positions, internship training directors must ensure that doctoral programs have verified their applicants' eligibility and readiness for internship. Such verification can occur via a review of the appropriate application materials and/or via direct communication with the doctoral programs."
   
   When making an offer of employment to an applicant, please remember APPIC Match Policy 9b, which states: "Prior to making offers to fill open positions, internship training directors must verify with applicants, to the best of their abilities, that the applicants have not previously been matched to other internship programs nor accepted other offers." Applicants are not permitted to accept an offer if they have been matched or have already accepted an offer from another internship program.
   
   
10. Once you decide on a top candidate, you can make an offer directly to the applicant. It is up to you to decide how long to give the applicant to make a decision. APPIC recommends giving applicants a minimum of 24 hours to accept or decline your offer, and encourages you to provide more time than this recommended minimum in order to allow them to fully consider the offer and to consult with their doctoral faculty and family members.
    
    
11. An offer that is tendered by an internship program and accepted by an applicant constitutes a binding agreement between the program, the applicant, and APPIC that may not be reversed without APPIC's consent.
    
    
12. Once your offer has been accepted by an applicant, you must put in writing the appointment agreement with the applicant in a letter postmarked or e-mailed no later than seven days following acceptance of the offer. A copy of this appointment letter must be sent simultaneously to the applicant and to his/her academic training director. This letter must include confirmation of conditions of the appointment, such as stipend, fringe benefits, and the dates on which the internship begins and ends. See Match Policy 9f, 7a, and 7b for more information.
    
    
13. Once your position(s) have been filled, or if you are no longer accepting applications, please notify applicants by submitting an update to the Post-Match Vacancy Service as outlined in paragraph #3 above.
    

In conclusion: Please remember that, while having an unfilled position can be frustrating for a Training Director, being an unmatched applicant is a very challenging and emotionally-laden experience. Anything that you can do to make your post-Match selection process less stressful will be greatly appreciated by applicants.