This e-mail
contains six separate items about interview notification and
scheduling, applicants with disabilities, and appropriate and inappropriate
interview questions.
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[1] NMS INTERVIEW
We
wanted to remind applicants that the APPIC Board has adopted an online
interview scheduling system called "NMS Interview," which is
available to everyone at no cost and provides substantial benefits to
applicants and programs as compared to more traditional scheduling
approaches. From the applicant perspective, you will have considerable
control and flexibility in the scheduling of your interviews, the ability to
view and modify your interview schedule online on one platform, and the ability
to import programs with which you interviewed directly into your Rank Order
List.
While internship programs are not required to use NMS Interview, we expect that
most will do so. If a site to which you apply uses a different interview
scheduling approach, that site should provide you with instructions.
Interviews scheduled outside of the NMS Interview system cannot be viewed or
changed from within that system.
Applicant instructions for NMS Interview are available at:
https://natmatch.com/psychint/applicants/interviews.html#scheduling
Internship programs that use this system will set up their available time slots
online and invite you to schedule an interview using NMS Interview. You
will receive the interview invitation by email, which will provide a link that
will enable you to schedule yourself into an available time slot for that
internship online. You can book, manage, change and view your schedule
online in the NMS Match System.
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[2] "SPAM" FILTERING
Most
interview notifications, along with other communications from sites and the
Match, will come to applicants via e-mail. Remember that
"spam" filters used by your e-mail server or program can result in
your not receiving important messages from internship programs, APPIC,
and/or National Matching Services.
Applicants should check their Spam and/or Junk Mail folders regularly to ensure
that they do not miss any important communications during the selection
process. We recommend making any necessary adjustments to your
e-mail program so that you will receive all e-mail from APPIC (@appic.org or
@lyris.appic.org) and National Matching Services (@natmatch.com). More
information on adding specific e-mail and IP addresses to your "allow list"
for NMS is available at natmatch.com/psychint/contact.html .
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[3] INTERVIEW STATUS NOTIFICATION
We
would like to remind applicants and Training Directors about the APPIC Match
Policy regarding interview notification. This policy is designed to
make the interview notification and scheduling process considerably easier
and less stressful for applicants.
Match Policy #6 states:
"6.
For Phase I of the Match, internship programs that conduct interviews must make
a reasonable effort to notify every applicant who submits a complete set of
application materials as to their interview status.
a.
Sites that conduct open houses to which all applicants are invited and conduct
no other interviews are exempt from this interview notification requirement
(this exemption should be clearly stated in sites' APPIC Directory listings
and/or public materials).
b.
Notification of interview status for Phase I of the Match must occur no later
than the interview notification date that appears in the program's APPIC
Directory listing and/or other publicity materials, and may be communicated via
e-mail, telephone, regular mail (to be received no later than the interview
notification date), or other means.
c.
For Phase II of the Match, notification of interview status is not
required."
While
APPIC continues to recommend an (optional) December 15th interview notification
date, each internship site ultimately determines its own date. Thus,
applicants should consult the APPIC Directory to determine the specific
interview notification date for each program to which they applied.
It is important for applicants to understand that Training Directors work very
hard to meet this notification date, and notifications can sometimes
arrive at the last minute. Some sites may send their interview
notifications much earlier than the notification date listed in the Directory,
while other sites may send them on that date. Furthermore, some sites
don't send all of their notifications out on the same day.
Applicants should never make assumptions about their interview status with a
site until they have received the notification from that site. In
the event that you don't receive an interview notification in a timely
manner, then (1) check your "junk mail" or "spam" folder to
see if it ended up there, and (2) contact the site the day after
that site's interview notification date to inquire about your status.
Please note that notifying an applicant about their interview status (i.e.,
whether or not they will be offered an interview) is not necessarily the same
thing as inviting an applicant to a specific interview event. Many sites will
notify applicants by the interview notification date of whether or not the
applicant will be offered an interview, but then send invitations to specific
interview events at a later date.
It is imperative that all Match participants be very familiar with the APPIC
Match Policies. The complete Match Policies may be found at appic.org/Internships/Match/Match-Policies.
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[4] INTERVIEW ATTENDANCE
Applicants
who decide to cancel or move a scheduled interview should provide as much
advance notice to the site as possible. Please don't be a
"no-show" for your interview! Most sites have a limited number
of available interview slots, and unused slots can be filled with other
applicants if sufficient notice is provided.
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[5] APPLICANTS WITH DISABILITIES
Given
the shift to virtual interviews at many sites, Training Directors should be
aware that the online approach (e.g., Zoom) can be challenging for some
individuals with disabilities. APPIC encourages Training Directors and
training faculty/staff to educate themselves about these issues and should be
proactive in offering to provide accommodations.
The
APA Public Interest Directorate provides an online "Resource Guide for
Psychology Graduate Students with Disabilities (2nd Edition)" which
includes articles on internship selection and interviews from the student
perspective:
apa.org/pi/disability/resources/publications/resource-guide.aspx
Click
the links on that page for the following articles:
"The
Internship Match Process and Suggestions for Applicants with Disabilities"
"Factors
to Consider in Psychology Practicum and Internship Interviews"
The
APA Public Interest Directorate also provides the following articles from the
Training Director perspective:
"Interviewing
Applicants with Disabilities for Doctoral and Postdoctoral Internship
Positions"
apa.org/pi/disability/resources/interviewing.aspx
"The
ADA and Internships: Your Responsibilities as Internship and Postdoctoral
Agency Directors"
apa.org/pi/disability/resources/internship-directors.aspx
"Providing
Reasonable Accommodations to Individuals with Disabilities in Internship Sites
and Postdoctoral Internship Positions"
apa.org/pi/disability/resources/reasonable.aspx
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[6]
APPROPRIATE AND INAPPROPRIATE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
This
2015 article in Training and Education in Professional Psychology discussed
appropriate and inappropriate interview questions and explored the experiences
of students who interviewed at doctoral programs and internships (thanks to
Mike Parent (michael.parent@ttu.edu),
Dana Weiser, Andrea McCourt, and the APA Journals Department for making this
copyrighted article available to the education and training community):
apa.org/pubs/journals/features/tep-0000068.pdf
The
following article was published a number of years ago in the APPIC Newsletter,
and addresses appropriate and inappropriate interview questions. Please
note that this article is based on U.S. law. Individuals who are
interviewing in Canada should consult the laws and regulations pertinent to
their jurisdictions, and may find the following article helpful:
canadahrcentre.com/base/interview-questions/
Questions During Interviews, Revisited
by Mona Koppel Mitnick, Esq.
As
Match season approaches, the issue once more arises about the types of
questions site interviewers may ask applicants. Or, conversely, what
questions either violate applicants' legal rights or infringe upon
their privacy.
The issue is a recurring concern among intern applicants. Improper or
inappropriate personal questions to applicants/interviewees also should be
of concern to Training Directors and their staffs because such questions,
ultimately, could have legal consequences. Even questions that are not
inherently illegal may raise the specter of an illegal motive or
action. This article is another attempt to provide guidance, both
to interviewers and interviewees about permissible and non-permissible (or
non-recommended) questions.
A general rule for interviewers is to ask only questions directly relevant to
the applicant's qualifications; or to the internship position and
duties. When in doubt, don't ask!
In particular, improper or inappropriate areas of questioning relate to areas
in which applicants presumably have some interest in protecting their
privacy, e.g., their physical or mental status or health; their
marital, familial, or other close personal relationships; religion,
etc. Generally, it is inappropriate - and possibly even illegal - to
ask questions in these areas unless they directly relate to the internship or
the applicant raises the issue first.
As I stated in my previous article:
•
Generally, you may ask questions about an
applicant/interviewee's education, language proficiency (if directly
relevant to the requirements of the position), training and experience in
psychology/mental health areas, past practice and placement, career
interests and goals, professional memberships, and any other subjects
directly related to the internship and the psychology profession.
Ask the same basic questions of all applicants/interviewees insofar as
possible.
•
Conversely, you may not ask personal questions before hiring (i.e., either
on an application or during an interview) unless, either, they relate to
bona fide qualifications; or the applicant first raises such issues
him/herself. For example, you should not ask questions about
a candidate's marital or family status, religion, or physical
conditions or limitations. An exception to this rule is that Federal
government agencies, states and municipalities, and many state
universities generally require an employee to be a U.S. citizen.
They also may require some explanation of any criminal record other than
misdemeanors. While it is not always clear whether an intern is an
employee or a student, such questions may be permissible when the internship
center is a government agency or government-affiliated entity.
Notwithstanding
the above guidance-
•
[E]ven impermissible questions sometimes may become permissible if
the applicant first raises the issue. For example, if an
applicant/interviewee asks questions about the hours of work and mentions
family responsibilities or [their] religion and requests accommodations in
work hours; or asks about the physical demands of the position and
mentions physical limitations, the interviewer may follow up on such
questions.
• Other questions, which may be impermissible on an application or
during an interview, may become permissible after the intern is hired.
For example, proof of age and marital or parental/relationship
status may become relevant, after hiring, for tax, insurance, and
emergency contact purposes. Photographs also may be required after
hiring for identification cards. Some questions are almost never
permissible. For example, you should never ask questions about
sexual preference or whether someone has a particular disease, such as
AIDS.
Interviewers,
however, continue to ask inappropriate or improper questions. While they
may view these questions as establishing rapport with, or expressing
personal concern about, the applicants, many applicants take offense at
such questions. The following were samples of interview questions
recently submitted to APPIC by unhappy applicants:
•
In what ways do you think your older age will make it hard for you to fit
in with the other interns?
• Do
you have a partner/spouse and, if that person won't move, can you manage
being parted from that person?
• Who
will care for your children?
• Who
is your therapist, and what specific issues have you worked on?
• Will
a nose ring (an indicia of religion on someone from India) be problematic?
As mentioned above, while these questions may not be inherently illegal, they
may suggest to some applicants improper motivation by the interviewer:
The question about being older may make the applicant suspect
that being older is a disadvantage, creating a possible allegation of age
discrimination. The question about child care may make the applicant
suspect that being married or involved in a relationship, or having children
will place him/her at a disadvantage. Of course, the question would
become a permissible one if the applicant first raised the issue of the
hours and concern about child care.
The question about the name of the therapist and the specific issues worked on
relate to an area in which an applicant may be presumed to have a
significant privacy interest, so that he/she is unwilling to disclose
that information. The applicant may feel pressured to disclose the
information and may believe that, if he/she refuses to do so, he will be
at a disadvantage in the selection process.
Note: The information in this article merely is intended to provide
practical guidance. It is not intended to be definitive or to be
relied on without first consulting your legal counsel.