Alright, let me tell you about trying to find a psychology undergraduate internship here in NYC. It was quite the ride, really.
So, first thing I did was just kinda… look around. You know, typed stuff into search engines, asked a professor or two. Felt like shouting into the void, honestly. So many places, so much competition. Felt totally overwhelming at the start.
Getting Serious About Looking
After spinning my wheels for a bit, I realized I needed a proper plan. Just randomly applying wasn’t cutting it. I started making lists. Like, actual lists:
- Hospitals with psych departments? Wrote ’em down.
- Community mental health clinics? Yep, added those.
- University research labs that might take an undergrad? On the list.
- Even looked at some non-profits doing related work.
Basically, I tried to map out all the possible places where a psych undergrad could even potentially get a foot in the door.
The Application Grind
Then came the fun part: applications. Ugh. Tailoring that resume over and over again. Writing those darn cover letters, trying to sound passionate but professional, you know? Sent out dozens. Seriously, dozens. It felt like a full-time job just applying for this unpaid gig.
Hit a lot of walls. Emails that never got answered. Flat-out rejections. Sometimes you’d get that “we have too many applicants” line. It gets discouraging, not gonna lie. Especially in NYC, felt like everyone and their cousin wanted the same few spots.
Figuring Out What Worked (For Me)
What seemed to make a difference, eventually, wasn’t just blasting applications everywhere. It was getting a bit more specific. I started focusing on smaller clinics or specific research labs that matched my interests, even if they weren’t the big famous names. Read up on what they actually did.
Instead of a generic cover letter, I tried mentioning something specific I read about their work. Like, “Hey, I saw you published that paper on X, found it really interesting because of Y…” Seemed to help get my application looked at, maybe?
Networking helped too, kinda indirectly. Talking to older students, TAs, anyone who might have known someone or heard about an opening. You never know where a lead might come from.
Finally Landing Something
Eventually, persistence paid off. Got an interview at a smaller research-focused center. It wasn’t a big hospital placement, but it was solid. The interview was mostly about my interest, my coursework, and why I wanted this specific internship, not just any internship.
The actual internship was a lot of observing, helping with paperwork (lots of paperwork!), data entry for studies, literature reviews. Basic stuff, but you learn by being in the environment, seeing how things actually run day-to-day. Way different than just reading textbooks.
So yeah, it was a process. Took effort, a bunch of rejections, and rethinking my strategy. Wasn’t easy, but got there in the end. Just gotta keep plugging away at it.
