Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

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Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

Mariela G. Shibley, Psy.D.

25 episodes

1 week ago

When a client’s fear sounds irrational on paper, it can quietly undermine their credibility, even when the emotion behind it is completely valid. This episode explores how to translate those fears into clear, compassionate language that preserves both emotional truth and clinical accuracy. Using real examples of clients who catastrophize medical results or describe relocation in dramatic terms, you’ll learn how context, framing, and careful wording can transform a report from questionable to ...

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Health & Fitness

All content for Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast is the property of Mariela G. Shibley, Psy.D. and is served directly from their servers with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.

When a client’s fear sounds irrational on paper, it can quietly undermine their credibility, even when the emotion behind it is completely valid. This episode explores how to translate those fears into clear, compassionate language that preserves both emotional truth and clinical accuracy. Using real examples of clients who catastrophize medical results or describe relocation in dramatic terms, you’ll learn how context, framing, and careful wording can transform a report from questionable to ...

Show more...

Health & Fitness

Episodes (20/25)

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

When Client Fears Undermine Credibility: The Art of Conveying Anxiety Without Exaggeration

When a client’s fear sounds irrational on paper, it can quietly undermine their credibility, even when the emotion behind it is completely valid. This episode explores how to translate those fears into clear, compassionate language that preserves both emotional truth and clinical accuracy. Using real examples of clients who catastrophize medical results or describe relocation in dramatic terms, you’ll learn how context, framing, and careful wording can transform a report from questionable to ...

1 week ago

12 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

Confidence in Immigration Court with Gabrielle Bryan, LCSW

Testifying in immigration court can feel intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. Retired Army behavioral health officer and clinical social worker Gabrielle Bryan, LCSW, shares how she developed confidence as an expert witness and what mental health professionals can do to prepare for court with clarity and calm. Drawing on her 20 years in military behavioral health and her full-time immigration evaluation practice, Gabrielle and Mariela discuss what to expect in virtual court, how to handle...

3 weeks ago

45 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

Relevant or Harmful? Ethical Guidelines for Report Writing

Psychological immigration evaluations require clinicians to walk a fine line: include enough detail to be objective and credible, but avoid irrelevant information that could harm a client’s immigration case. This episode explores how to make those tough judgment calls in private practice, guided by the APA Ethics Code and forensic psychology standards. You’ll hear how to apply a “relevance and necessity” test, why certain disclosures belong in your private notes instead of your report, and ho...

1 month ago

16 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

Inside IMPACT with Dr. Lynn Moore: Training Clinicians to Meet the Rising Demand for Immigration Evaluations

Urgent demand for psychological immigration evaluations is reshaping the work of clinicians across the U.S.—and this episode dives deep into how to meet that need with skill, compassion, and sustainability. Dr. Lynn Moore, a forensic psychologist and founder of Impact, the Immigration Psychology Access Team, shares how her nonprofit has built a team of 21 clinicians providing high-quality, trauma-informed evaluations for low-income immigrants and refugees—while also mentoring new mental healt...

2 months ago

35 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

Behind the Gates: What It’s Really Like Doing Evaluations in Detention Centers

What clinicians need to know before stepping behind the gates to conduct psychological immigration evaluations in U.S. detention centers. This episode pulls back the curtain on the logistics, risks, ethics, and emotional realities of working inside immigration detention facilities. From preparing for competency and asylum evaluations to navigating clearance protocols, restricted environments, and working without internet or phones, you’ll hear what it’s really like to conduct these high-stake...

2 months ago

16 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

Who Can Do Immigration Evaluations? What Clinicians Need to Know

Master’s level clinicians and pre-licensed therapists are not disqualified from conducting psychological immigration evaluations—here’s what actually determines your eligibility and credibility. Far too many skilled clinicians assume they can't break into immigration evaluation work without a doctorate or license, but that’s simply not true. This episode dispels common myths and gives mental health professionals a clear, empowering framework for how to ethically and effectively conduct psycho...

2 months ago

9 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

U.S. Immigration Law for Clinician Evaluators with Immigration Attorney Jacob Sapochnick Part 2

Psychological evaluations are playing an increasingly critical role in immigration cases—from cancellation of removal to VAWA and hardship waivers—and clinicians in private practice need to be ready. In this part 2 episode, Attorney Jacob J. Sapochnick returns to share real-world insights from his practice, including how a 25-year-old conviction can derail a client's life, and how clinicians can help. He and Dr. Shibley also explore the future of provisional waivers, the growing need for hard...

3 months ago

12 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

U.S. Immigration Law for Clinician Evaluators with Immigration Attorney Jacob Sapochnick Part 1

Immigration evaluations that actually help clients start with understanding what attorneys need. This episode dives into exactly how clinicians can collaborate effectively with immigration attorneys to write legally impactful psychological evaluations. Mariela speaks with attorney Jacob J. Sapochnick about what USCIS and immigration courts are really looking for in hardship evaluations, the legal meaning of “extreme hardship,” common pitfalls clinicians accidentally fall into, and how private...

3 months ago

23 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

How Legal Blind Spots Can Sabotage an Immigration Evaluation Report

A routine U Visa evaluation turns into a high-stakes scramble when a client’s DUI history is revealed mid-interview—shifting the focus from trauma assessment to evidence of rehabilitation. Clinicians conducting psychological immigration evaluations must understand the legal nuances behind each case or risk producing unusable reports. This real-world scenario illustrates how quickly an immigration evaluation’s purpose can change, why direct communication with attorneys is crucial, and ho...

4 months ago

9 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

How Therapists Make High-Income, Flexible Practices

Burned-out clinicians are getting time back while growing their income by shifting from traditional therapy models to psychological immigration evaluations. This episode tells the story of a therapist who reduced her caseload from 20 weekly therapy clients to just 2 immigration evaluations per week, maintaining her income while regaining her work/life balance. We explore how this pivot into U.S. immigration work created a flexible, low-overhead, high-impact private practice. You’ll hear...

4 months ago

10 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

New U.S. Immigration Rules for N-648 in 2025: What Mental Health Professionals Must Know

US Immigration implemented major policy changes to the N-648 disability process on June 13, 2025. Mental health professionals conducting psychological immigration evaluations must now meet stricter standards and ensure clinical consistency to avoid serious consequences. We unpack how these changes impact the documentation of cognitive, psychiatric, and developmental disabilities, what counts as “extenuating circumstances” for late submissions, and why inconsistencies —even unintentional...

4 months ago

25 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

5 Easy Steps to Writing an Immigration Report for Psychological Evaluations

Writing immigration evaluation reports doesn’t have to be overwhelming—these 5 streamlined steps will help you write psychological evaluation reports faster, stay organized, and deliver clear, effective documentation that supports your client’s case. In this episode, you’ll learn a method that transforms report writing from a dreaded task into a structured, manageable process. You'll discover how to align your intake with your report structure, create a searchable log of past reports for easy...

5 months ago

14 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

The Emotional Toll of Seeking Asylum – With Filmmaker Cady Voge

A Honduran family’s journey from the 2018 migrant caravan to unexpected refuge in Seattle reveals the hidden emotional toll of asylum, separation, and survival—and the rare support that helped them heal. Filmmaker Cady Voge captures it all in All We Carry, blending firsthand footage, intimate storytelling, and hard truths about what it really means to flee violence and rebuild. We explore what didn’t make it on screen, how joy and grief often collide in migration stories, and why faith, frien...

5 months ago

44 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

Why Self-Care Matters for Mental Health Professionals Doing Immigration Evaluation Work

Holding space for trauma day after day takes a toll—and without intentional self-care, even the most mission-driven clinicians can burn out. This episode explores the emotional cost mental health professionals endure in immigration evaluation work, unpacking vicarious trauma, compassion fatigue, and the subtle ways burnout creeps in. You'll learn how to recognize subtle warning signs, establish sustainable habits, and protect your emotional health without losing your sense of purpose. W...

6 months ago

15 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

How Psychoanalytic Thinking Deepens Immigration Evaluations

Psychoanalytic thinking transforms psychological U.S. immigration evaluations. It gives clinicians deeper insights into their clients so they can write more credible reports. Instead of fixating on surface-level symptoms or narrowly diagnosing distress, Dr. Mariela Shibley unpacks how her psychoanalytic training allows her to hear what's left unsaid—revealing unconscious defenses, emotional patterns, and developmental histories that deeply shape a client’s trauma response. Whether working on ...

6 months ago

12 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

How to Write Immigration Evaluation Reports in 4 Hours or Less Ethically

How do I write a psychological immigration evaluation report in 4 hours or less? Efficient workflows, streamlined case interviews, and faster report writing—this episode dives into how to simplify every step of the immigration evaluation process. Learn how to book new clients, clarify immigration case types, schedule case interviews with intention, and reduce no-shows to appointments. Dr. Shibley shares her favorite time-saving strategies, including structured intake guides, templ...

7 months ago

20 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

How Mental Health Professionals Support Immigrant Families Living in Fear

Fear isn’t always a response to trauma—it can be the trauma. For immigrant communities, the constant threat of detention, deportation, and separation doesn’t just provoke anxiety—it creates real-time psychological harm that mirrors PTSD. This episode dives into the emotional toll of living in chronic fear, how it affects families and children, and why mental health professionals have a powerful, often untapped tool to respond: immigration evaluations. You’ll hear about what it means to be an ...

7 months ago

12 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

Why Immigration Attorneys Rely on Psychological Evaluations: Legal Insights from Attorney Ginger Jacobs

Legal outcomes in immigration cases often depend on the precision and credibility of psychological evaluations. From hardship waivers to asylum and cancellation of removal, courts and immigration officers rely on these evaluations to determine whether someone’s suffering meets the legal threshold for relief—but not all reports are created equal. In this episode, immigration attorney Ginger Jacobs shares what mental health professionals need to know to write evaluations that hold up under scru...

7 months ago

43 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

Great vs. Basic Reports: Mistakes That Make or Break an Immigration Case

Shortcut training to learn how to do immigration evaluations isn’t just ineffective—it’s unethical. Many mental health professionals believe they can master these complex evaluations through a single workshop or just by reviewing a sample report. But without a deep understanding of legal and psychological nuances, evaluators risk producing weak, misleading reports that can lead to case denials and devastating consequences for immigrant families. This episode uncovers why conductin...

8 months ago

10 minutes

Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

How Mental Health Providers Can Set Their Fees as Immigration Evaluators

Setting fees for immigration evaluations can feel like a balancing act between fair compensation and client accessibility. This episode dives into practical strategies for pricing your services, managing payment plans, and handling rush requests—all while maintaining empathy for clients facing financial hardship. Learn why flat fees often work better than hourly rates, how to set clear payment policies, and when offering pro bono services might make sense for your practice. You’ll leave with ...

8 months ago

11 minutes