Since I began my studies at SUNY Oswego, I have shifted career paths a few times, and may do so again before I continue on into graduate school. Initially, I entered college fairly certain of clinical psychology being my future career. I enjoyed helping others to get through challenging situations, I was a pretty good listener, and others seemed to open up to me fairly easily, so a career in therapy seemed to fit rather nicely. I also found psychological concepts (the context-dependent nature of human behavior, cult mentality, shared hallucinations, etc.) quite interesting from a young age. Novels that dealt with psychological phenomena, such as The Kite Runner, A Scary Scene in a Scary Movie, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, and I Am the Cheese, as well as films, such as The Imitation Game, Good Will Hunting, A Beautiful Mind, and The Theory of Everything, were influential in my awareness of these interests, to name a few.
I thoroughly enjoyed my initial courses in psychology and human development (I began my studies with a human development minor, before eventually switching to applied statistics). In particular, Abnormal Psychology, which investigates behavioral patterns, emotional experiences, thought processes, and other symptoms associated with mental disorders, Gerontology, which studies psychological, cognitive, social, cultural, and biological elements that influence the aging process, and Adolescent Development, which examines social, cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and biological changes adolescents undergo as they develop into young adults, left a lasting impression.
The two courses that sparked my interest in a different career path were Brains, Minds, and Consciousness and Biopsychology, where I found the connections made between the brain and the mind fascinating, specifically conscious thought processes, emotions, planning, decision-making, and behavior. I then considered clinical neuropsychology as a potential career, as I had thoroughly enjoyed the more in-depth study of the brain, its neurotransmission and physiology, and its relation to human behavior. To further explore these associations, I studied how patients who suffered from traumatic brain injury could exhibit neurological abnormalities and behavioral changes in Brain Injury and Psychopathology, and how medications affected neuronal activity and behavior in Behavioral Pharmacology. Around the same time, I considered a future career in psychiatry, and began taking premedical courses. The more I learned about the field of psychiatry, the more excited I became.
My experiences functioning as a caregiver for my grandmother who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease further heightened my interest in working with patients in the medical setting. I have strong research interests in examining the onset and progression of neurodegenerative disease, and hope to assist in the search for effective treatments against these debilitating diseases.
Additional careers that may be of interest include working as a school psychologist or physician's assistant specializing in psychiatry/mental health. Following graduation, I plan to gain experience in each of these fields (shadowing/observation, interview, work/volunteer, etc.) to assist in my selection of a future career that aligns with my personal interests.