This past fall, a collaborative programming event was organized by the graduate student representatives of APA Divisions 37, 53, and 54: Professional Development Bootcamp: Advocacy, Virtual Interviewing, Job Search, and Negotiation. The group of graduate representatives met within the few months prior to the programming event and determined that during this tumultuous era of graduate school, students and trainees are eager to maximize professional development and broaden their networks, particularly during an increasingly virtual workforce. Thus, the bootcamp approach emerged with a goal to target trainees across the career lifespan. This programming event included topics on effective advocacy, virtual interviewing, and job search and negotiation. The four presenters selected were uniquely suited to speak to each of these three topics and served as representative of each divisions. Apryl Alexander, PsyD, our APA Division 37 representative, presented on advocacy, predoctoral intern Lexi Smith and postdoctoral fellow Jessica McCarthy, PhD, represented APA Division 53 and presented on virtual interviewing tips and tricks, and Lori Stark, PhD, represented APA Division 54 and presented on job search and negotiation. The event was free and for those who missed it, the recording is accessible on the SCCAP53 website. This programming event served as the second collaborative webinar between these three divisions and serves as a steppingstone for a new tradition of an annual, collaborative, trainee-focused webinar program hosted by the student representatives of all three APA divisions.
Advocacy is incredibly important to the students of Division 37, so it is helpful to share a handful of current advocacy efforts and opportunities available for students and psychologists:
- Climate Change: “Addressing the Climate Crisis: An Action Plan for Psychologists”
- Transgender Youth Legislation in Texas
- Minority Fellowship Program
- Family Reunification Task Force and Immigration Policies
- Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2022
- Public Safety Officer Support Act
- Substance Use and Mental Health Crisis: “Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders: Responding to the Growing Crisis”
- The Early Childhood Mental Health Support Act
Check out the APA Advocacy Washington Update for current information on these topics.
As the year unfolds, a primary goal for the graduate student representative, graduate student representative elect, and the graduate student board will be to increase connectivity, communication, and collaboration among student members. The 2022 APA Convention serves as an ideal meeting place to reconnect after two long years of virtual meetings and reestablish a plan for student involvement and presence in the division moving forward. Further, graduate student board members plan to meet more regularly to discuss involvement and student voices in both the division and broader APA communities. In particular, social media remains a key mechanism to include students and train students to effectively disseminate knowledge and data to a larger, diverse audience. Therefore, plans of social media training and growth in social media involvement are underway. We are excited to see the ideas of the students flourish over the year and are eager to share more updates in the next issue of The Advocate.