Before starting, I met with the previous AP in post to have a brief handover and I recall that she expressed that it was common to feel a bit of a fraud when offered your first AP role. To be honest, I had not really noticed this feeling as other than a natural apprehension, I think I was still shocked for getting the job. However, this feeling did creep up when reality set in and now I can absolutely relate to this. My experience of becoming an AP was a testing one. The workload was significantly more than I was used to and the strict deadlines were also new to me. I have often had feelings of doubt such as ‘I can’t do this’ or ‘I shouldn’t be in this role’ and ‘I don’t feel qualified or experienced enough’. Although having now been in the post for almost two years, although I am always learning, I have since come to appreciate that I am not a fraud or an ‘imposter’, but a qualified graduate who merely required the opportunity to develop many more skills.
My role includes supporting psychological assessments for the court by summarising legal bundles and administering psychometric tests. A typical day for me will start with checking my emails to see if we have received any enquiries from professionals regarding the timescales for delivering a psychological assessment and report from the Expert Witness (Consultant Clinical Psychologist). This will vary depending on how many current instructions we have confirmed in the diary and how many individuals are required to be assessed. We can receive enquiries from Local Authorities, possibly a Social Worker or Guardian representing the child(ren) in family cases, or most likely the enquiry will come from the lead Solicitor of a family case.
Next on the to-do list, I will check our instructions to assess which case is next in the diary and I will read and summarise the legal ‘bundle’ and documents into a draft report. Reading the legal documentation varies greatly dependent on the size, however typically it will take me a few days to complete the reading in advance of meeting the family to deliver the psychometrics. This allows me to gather some screening information in preparation for my Supervisor’s assessment. I am required to manage both mine and my Supervisor’s (Clinical Psychologist) diary, which can take some organisation regarding the time management for the two of us to ensure that we get everything done in time.
If not already, I will then arrange the appointments to meet with the family. Typically, I will meet the child(ren) at their school to deliver some questionnaires and/or a cognitive assessment if there are some learning needs raised by education or the medical records provided. I will also gather some information from education staff and ask them to complete some psychometrics regarding the adaptive functioning and abilities of the child(ren). This can take anywhere between 1 – 3 hours based on what is required for each child. I will then meet with the parents at their solicitor’s office to deliver their psychometrics, which can also take approximately 2-3 hours. These appointments are usually spread over a few days and after I have met with each family member, I will score the psychometric data and add it to the draft report for my Supervisor to have sight of.
I will then arrange for contact between the parent(s) and child(ren) to be observed by my Supervisor, in advance of them being assessed formally. This is to ensure that the child(ren) are not familiar with the Expert at this stage and so are less likely to alter their behaviour. Appointments will also be confirmed by myself, with the parent(s) usually via their solicitor for the Clinical Psychologist to meet with them individually, for their formal assessment.
Once my screening appointments, data gathering, scoring, and inputting are complete and added to the draft report, I then repeat the above process with the next family. This allows my Supervisor to complete their assessment and add to the report for completion. It is pivotal that I am always a week or so ahead, for the assessment process to flow smoothly and there not be any delays or overlaps between us. This is because the work by myself is required to be completed in advance of my Supervisor meeting with the family.
Amongst and in between the above, I am often liaising with several professionals for several cases at once. This may to ensure that medical records have been requested, that we have received the legal documentation in good time, gathering contact details and chasing any additional information that may have been omitted.
To list just a few of the skills I have gained in this role, I have learnt to summarise large legal documents, prepare draft reports for the Court, deliver psychometric and screening information to adults and children, deliver cognitive assessments to all ages and score and summarise all of the above. I have learnt to manage two diaries simultaneously, implementing effective time management, demonstrate concentration for prolonged periods of time and communicate efficiently and sensitively with professionals and families who are part of the court process.
Considering Assistant Psychologist roles can be so hard to come by, the competition is fierce, and the pay is often considered much too low for the workload, why do we put ourselves through it? I consider it is because as an Aspiring Clinical Psychologist, we have an understanding that even though it will be challenging, the experience in the field is second to none. I consider that this explains why it is common to have significant self-doubt, as there is a lot of responsibility and possible uncertainty about being ‘good enough’ for the role.
Before starting, I met with the previous AP in post to have a brief handover and I recall that she expressed that it was common to feel a bit of a fraud when offered your first AP role. To be honest, I had not really noticed this feeling as other than a natural apprehension, I think I was still shocked for getting the job. However, this feeling did creep up when reality set in and now I can absolutely relate to this. My experience of becoming an AP was a testing one. The workload was significantly more than I was used to and the strict deadlines were also new to me. I have often had feelings of doubt such as ‘I can’t do this’ or ‘I shouldn’t be in this role’ and ‘I don’t feel qualified or experienced enough’. Although having now been in the post for almost two years, although I am always learning, I have since come to appreciate that I am not a fraud or an ‘imposter’, but a qualified graduate who merely required the opportunity to develop many more skills.
My role includes supporting psychological assessments for the court by summarising legal bundles and administering psychometric tests. A typical day for me will start with checking my emails to see if we have received any enquiries from professionals regarding the timescales for delivering a psychological assessment and report from the Expert Witness (Consultant Clinical Psychologist). This will vary depending on how many current instructions we have confirmed in the diary and how many individuals are required to be assessed. We can receive enquiries from Local Authorities, possibly a Social Worker or Guardian representing the child(ren) in family cases, or most likely the enquiry will come from the lead Solicitor of a family case.
Next on the to-do list, I will check our instructions to assess which case is next in the diary and I will read and summarise the legal ‘bundle’ and documents into a draft report. Reading the legal documentation varies greatly dependent on the size, however typically it will take me a few days to complete the reading in advance of meeting the family to deliver the psychometrics. This allows me to gather some screening information in preparation for my Supervisor’s assessment. I am required to manage both mine and my Supervisor’s (Clinical Psychologist) diary, which can take some organisation regarding the time management for the two of us to ensure that we get everything done in time.
If not already, I will then arrange the appointments to meet with the family. Typically, I will meet the child(ren) at their school to deliver some questionnaires and/or a cognitive assessment if there are some learning needs raised by education or the medical records provided. I will also gather some information from education staff and ask them to complete some psychometrics regarding the adaptive functioning and abilities of the child(ren). This can take anywhere between 1 – 3 hours based on what is required for each child. I will then meet with the parents at their solicitor’s office to deliver their psychometrics, which can also take approximately 2-3 hours. These appointments are usually spread over a few days and after I have met with each family member, I will score the psychometric data and add it to the draft report for my Supervisor to have sight of.
I will then arrange for contact between the parent(s) and child(ren) to be observed by my Supervisor, in advance of them being assessed formally. This is to ensure that the child(ren) are not familiar with the Expert at this stage and so are less likely to alter their behaviour. Appointments will also be confirmed by myself, with the parent(s) usually via their solicitor for the Clinical Psychologist to meet with them individually, for their formal assessment.
Once my screening appointments, data gathering, scoring, and inputting are complete and added to the draft report, I then repeat the above process with the next family. This allows my Supervisor to complete their assessment and add to the report for completion. It is pivotal that I am always a week or so ahead, for the assessment process to flow smoothly and there not be any delays or overlaps between us. This is because the work by myself is required to be completed in advance of my Supervisor meeting with the family.
Amongst and in between the above, I am often liaising with several professionals for several cases at once. This may to ensure that medical records have been requested, that we have received the legal documentation in good time, gathering contact details and chasing any additional information that may have been omitted.
To list just a few of the skills I have gained in this role, I have learnt to summarise large legal documents, prepare draft reports for the Court, deliver psychometric and screening information to adults and children, deliver cognitive assessments to all ages and score and summarise all of the above. I have learnt to manage two diaries simultaneously, implementing effective time management, demonstrate concentration for prolonged periods of time and communicate efficiently and sensitively with professionals and families who are part of the court process.
Considering Assistant Psychologist roles can be so hard to come by, the competition is fierce, and the pay is often considered much too low for the workload, why do we put ourselves through it? I consider it is because as an Aspiring Clinical Psychologist, we have an understanding that even though it will be challenging, the experience in the field is second to none. I consider that this explains why it is common to have significant self-doubt, as there is a lot of responsibility and possible uncertainty about being ‘good enough’ for the role.
Advice – Just keep going and keep applying for all types of roles, in all types of settings and when (not if) you get that job offer, jump right in. You may have some worry about whether you can do it and there probably will be days you feel like you are unable to manage, but just keep going. The learning and experience will pay off eventually.