2000 APPIC Match: Survey of Internship Applicants
Summary of Survey Results
March 25, 2000
This survey of applicants who were registered for the 2000 Match was conducted via the internet between February 22 and March 22, 2000. Subscribers to the e-mail list APPIC-MATCH-NEWS were notified that a survey was available at a specific internet address.
Results of the survey are presented below. Please keep in mind that this is not a scientific sampling, as not all applicants were subscribed to APPIC-MATCH-NEWS and thus some did not receive notification that a survey was available.
Missing data and "Not Applicable" responses have been eliminated, and percentages do not necessarily total 100% due to rounding. Questions 12 and 17-20 were items that requested open-ended comments and thus not included below.
1. Type of Doctoral Program
Clinical 694 76 %
Counseling 141 15 %
School 30 3 %
Other 50 5 %
2. Degree Sought
Ph.D. 645 71 %
Psy.D. 245 27 %
Ed.D. 2 0 %
Other 22 2 %
3. Is your doctoral program APA-accredited?
Yes 828 91 %
No 81 9 %
4a. The materials and instructions provided by National Matching
Services (NMS) were clear and comprehensive.
Strongly Agree 578 63 %
Agree 293 32 %
Unsure 17 2 %
Disagree 12 1 %
Strongly Disagree 14 2 %
4b. The registration process with NMS went smoothly.
Strongly Agree 663 73 %
Agree 200 22 %
Unsure 18 2 %
Disagree 13 1 %
Strongly Disagree 20 2 %
4c. The submission of my Rank Order List to NMS went smoothly.
Strongly Agree 681 75 %
Agree 168 19 %
Unsure 17 2 %
Disagree 20 2 %
Strongly Disagree 20 2 %
4d. NMS was responsive to my questions and concerns
(choose "N/A" if you never contacted NMS).
Strongly Agree 289 66 %
Agree 103 24 %
Unsure 16 4 %
Disagree 15 3 %
Strongly Disagree 15 3 %
4e. I am satisfied with the Match result that I received from
the Matching Program.
Strongly Agree 550 61 %
Agree 169 19 %
Unsure 48 5 %
Disagree 39 4 %
Strongly Disagree 94 10 %
4f. Overall, I am satisfied with the APPIC Matching Program.
Strongly Agree 469 51 %
Agree 271 30 %
Unsure 77 8 %
Disagree 40 4 %
Strongly Disagree 52 6 %
5. On Match Day, February 22, how did you FIRST obtain your
Match result?
E-mail from NMS 809 89 %
From NMS web site 63 7 %
From NMS via phone 1 0 %
From NMS via mail 3 0 %
From DCT / Faculty 19 2 %
Other 15 2 %
6. On Match Day, February 22, did you experience any difficulty
obtaining your Match result?
Yes 14 2 %
No 895 98 %
NOTE: For comparison purposes: in the 1999 Match, 53% of
applicants surveyed reported experiencing difficulty obtaining
their results.
7. Were you subscribed to APPIC-MATCH-NEWS, an e-mail list that
provided news and information about the Match?
Yes 900 99 %
No 10 1 %
NOTE: Since the announcement for this survey was distributed
only via APPIC-MATCH-NEWS, this item is essentially meaningless.
8. If you were subscribed to APPIC-MATCH-NEWS, how helpful was the
information that was provided on this e-mail list?
Extremely helpful 195 22 %
394 44 %
Somewhat helpful 245 27 %
55 6 %
Not at all helpful 14 2 %
9. If you were subscribed to APPIC-MATCH-NEWS, what is your opinion
about the volume of information that you received from this
e-mail list?
Too much information 71 8 %
241 27 %
Just about right 560 62 %
32 4 %
Too little information 0 0 %
10. Would you recommend that the APPIC-MATCH-NEWS e-mail list service
be provided again for participants in next year's Match?
Yes 884 98 %
No 20 2 %
11. Did you use the APPIC Travel Discount program to buy an airline
ticket or rent a car?
Yes 104 11 %
No 749 82 %
Didn't know about it 61 7 %
12. (Not included - this was an open-ended comment item about APPIC
Travel Discounts).
13a. The APPIC Match Policies were sufficiently clear regarding
what constituted "acceptable" and "unacceptable"
communication between applicants and sites.
Strongly Agree 240 26 %
Agree 433 48 %
Unsure 114 13 %
Disagree 101 11 %
Strongly Disagree 21 2 %
13b. The Match Policies' limitations on the communication of
rankings helps to reduce applicant stress.
Strongly Agree 194 21 %
Agree 304 33 %
Unsure 182 20 %
Disagree 167 18 %
Strongly Disagree 64 7 %
13c. I believe that the Match Policies' restrictions on the
communication of rankings should be ELIMINATED, allowing
applicants and sites to communicate in any way they choose.
Strongly Agree 60 7 %
Agree 120 13 %
Unsure 148 16 %
Disagree 237 26 %
Strongly Disagree 347 38 %
14a. In your judgment, did you experience any violation(s) of
APPIC Match Policies by any site?
Yes 133 15 %
No 672 74 %
Unsure 107 12 %
14b. Did you reveal any ranking information (e.g., "You are my
first choice") to any site?
Yes 18 2 %
No 880 96 %
Unsure 14 2 %
14c. Did you experience inappropriate pressure from any site to
reveal your rankings?
Yes 76 8 %
No 788 86 %
Unsure 46 5 %
14d. Did any site reveal ranking information to you (e.g., "You
are our first choice")?
Yes 33 4 %
No 835 92 %
Unsure 41 4 %
15a. I found that the on-site interviews that I attended provided
much more information about a site than did telephone
interviews.
Strongly Agree 420 62 %
Agree 204 30 %
Unsure 28 4 %
Disagree 19 3 %
Strongly Disagree 8 1 %
15b. Compared to telephone interviews, attending on-site
interviews helped me to make better decisions about how I
should rank those sites.
Strongly Agree 423 62 %
Agree 187 28 %
Unsure 37 5 %
Disagree 22 3 %
Strongly Disagree 10 1 %
15c. Sites generally gave me sufficient advance notice of
on-site interviews in order for me to make my travel plans.
Strongly Agree 217 25 %
Agree 403 47 %
Unsure 86 10 %
Disagree 112 13 %
Strongly Disagree 40 5 %
15d. Sites were generally clear about whether or not an on-site
interview was required, preferred, optional, or not allowed.
Strongly Agree 266 31 %
Agree 386 45 %
Unsure 94 11 %
Disagree 91 11 %
Strongly Disagree 26 3 %
15e. Overall, I believe that the benefits of attending on-site
interviews justify the time, effort, and costs in doing so.
Strongly Agree 354 40 %
Agree 330 38 %
Unsure 105 12 %
Disagree 52 6 %
Strongly Disagree 35 4 %
16. Please rate the importance of each of the following activities
when it comes to participating in ON-SITE INTERVIEWS (mean
responses are reported below on the following scale:
1 = Not at all important, 5 = Very Important):
a. Receiving a copy of the interview schedule in advance (4.02)
b. Touring the internship site (4.27)
c. Meeting with one or more of the current interns (4.78)
d. Meeting with the Training Director (4.62)
e. Meeting with other staff members (other than the
Training Director) (4.59)