Coursework
Here you will find an overview of each of the relevant courses that constitute my academic and community engagement interests. These courses were spread across my four years of undergraduate studies, propelling me forward both in my study of psychology and understanding how I can serve my community with my career. Without a doubt, each of these classes contributed to what has become a ceaseless passion for helping others at the intersection of community service and psychological sciences.
Introduction to Civic Engagement
SPPA100 | Community Engagement Scholars Course of Study | Fall 2020
When I first enrolled as a student at UD, I knew I wanted to dedicate my time to some form of volunteer work that helped me give back to others in the ways I only knew how to. Upon my discovery of the Community Engagement Scholars Program, I knew I had to shoot my shot to become part of it. Introduction to Civic Engagement was the first course I took in this program that opened my eyes to the innumerable ways in which one can be involved with their community. This course taught me to think locally when it came to civic engagement and forging partnerships with organizations in order to catalyze long-term change. This class showed me that you do not have to be involved in leadership roles to get involved with a cause - there is no limit to what progress you can make. Whether it was volunteering for a food bank or a homeless shelter, partnering with local schools as a freelance tutor for students who needed extra help, or offering your time to people who are having a mental health crisis to be there for them. I was shown that there are no boundaries in the realm of community service, as long as you are making a difference, regardless of how small that change may be. This course was an indispensable experience in my community engagement toolkit, as it laid the foundation for me to believe in myself, take initiative, and spark meaningful progress in various areas of my community.
Changing the World: The Role of Public Policy
UAPP110 | Community Engagement Scholars Course of Study | Spring 2021
Changing the World was the second class in the Community Engagement Scholars course of study. This class served as the ideal complement to its predecessor, SPPA100. Where SPPA100 laid the foundation for finding one’s passions and specializations in community service, this class provided an in-depth and useful set of knowledge that helps students make informed policy decisions to advocate for the changes they wanted to see in the world. To motivate positive change, one must be well-versed in the history of the issue at hand in addition to the mechanisms in place at local, state, and federal levels that can accelerate or decelerate the momentum of policy change. During my time in this class, I wrote an essay pertaining to the ongoing opioid crisis, something I was interested in because I knew very little about the current event. Needless to say, completion of this project exponentially strengthened my understanding of the issue and helped to instill indispensable research, critical thinking, analytical, and writing skills. In today’s day and age, it is becoming increasingly valuable to keep oneself well-informed on a myriad of hotly debated topics in the media, to understand vast political networks and the inner workings of the U.S. legislative branch, all of which this course provided me with the capacity to do.
Psychopathology
PSYC380 | Psychology Major Course of Study | Fall 2022
Psychopathology became the first class in my major’s course of study that discussed subjects I wanted to center my future career around. This experience solidified further my desire to pursue a career in the mental health field. This course gave me in-depth reviews of various psychological disorders ranging from those pertaining to personality to disordered eating and addiction. I read all about prevalence rates, tests performed by clinicians to assess the severity of various conditions and symptoms. The basis for a lot of the content covered in this class was developed with specific case studies (studies concentrated on one patient) as well as the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (DSM-5). This book is likely the most important and relevant book for any Clinical Psychologist or mental healthcare worker: it is the basis of diagnosis for all types of psychiatric disorders. Everything one might need to know whilst considering a career as a Clinical Psychologist or mental healthcare worker was covered in this class. I am certain that taking this course prepared me exceedingly well by providing me with preliminary knowledge before pursuing higher education that will delve even deeper into the ocean of information we know about different disorders, treatments, and practices.
Trauma and Resilience
PSYC486 | Psychology Major Course of Study | Fall 2023
There are a myriad of different approaches one can take to build their career in Clinical Psychology and mental healthcare. You could work as a school therapist and influence the lives of young teens as they navigate the question of who they want to become. You could work in behavioral centers or psychiatric hospitals to help reform behavioral conduct issues in individuals who have serious disorders or have come from backgrounds that negatively impacted their behavioral development. The list goes on. This course, Trauma and Resilience, I believe is a staple class that applies to each of those various career paths. This course explores the question of what trauma is, distinguishing between capital T “Trauma” and lowercase t “trauma.” It evaluates multiple treatment approaches, both old and novel, assessing which ones have proven to show betterment for different symptoms and disorders. Further, this class introduces students to the idea of post-traumatic growth (PTG), which describes a phenomenon in which people who have experienced trauma’s adverse effects come out of it with a deeper appreciation and understanding for life, newfound perspectives or a stronger sense of purpose. Individuals who have PTG turn something that happened to them senselessly into motivation to improve their life and the lives of others who have lived similar circumstances, whether by writing a book telling their story, starting a non-profit, becoming more spiritually-inclined, or improving their relationships with others. The principle of resilience and growth as a result of adversity is something I truly believe in and embrace. Not everyone has experienced trauma or had PTG, but everyone sees hardship. This course instilled in me a deep appreciation and admiration for those who have experienced extreme trauma and underwent positive transformation as a result. This class left me exceedingly hopeful and optimistic for my future career by demonstrating the inexplicably powerful ripple effects of treatment that extend beyond the therapy couch and bleed into various facets of patients' lives.
Independent Study
PSYC366 | Discovery Learning Experience | Fall 2023
During the summer between my sophomore and junior year of high school, I had the privilege of joining one of my former professors’ research labs. I became involved with the Close Relationships and Health Lab (CRH Lab), which is led by my previous Research Methods professor, Dr. Jaremka. This lab experience has been valuable community service and research experience as it combines lab work with collaboration with local residents of our community wherein both parties mutually benefit. My role in this lab is to code participant behaviors according to the Rapid Marital Interaction Coding System, 2nd edition (RMICS2) manual. My coding colleagues and I met once every week to discuss and deliberate the appropriate codes for every behavior of each spouse for every five-second interval of the video interaction. Working in the lab for Dr. Jaremka has exposed me to various facets of psychological research that will lay down the foundation for future research I may involve myself in during graduate school and has helped me develop crucial skills in research such as data analysis, critical thinking, collaboration, and data organization. The lab tries to understand relationships, both romantic and platonic, and how they can impact our endocrine and immune functions as well as long-term health. The work I focused on helps couples to openly discuss their marital problems in private while monitoring physiological measures such as blood pressure or heart rate, and examines the relationship between physiological stress and communicating about problems, as well as navigating conflicts in the marriage. This knowledge has the potential to help steer scientists in the direction of unveiling improved and effective means of communication about conflict or adversity in relationships, and explores the intersection of health (chronic pain, physical ailments, endocrine functions and immunity) and relationship problem-solving. I am proud to be a member of this incredible lab and all the amazing work it does for both the scientific and local community.
Integrative Neuroscience II
NSCI430 | Neuroscience Minor Course of Study | Spring 2023
Integrative Neuroscience II proved to be one of my favorite courses in my neuroscience minor. This course delves into behavioral neuroscience, including nervous system development, as well as brain systems underlying arousal, emotion, physiological regulation, and cognitive functioning. The copious research papers, unanswered neuroscience questions, and compelling topics this course covered helped me realize my passion for the neuroscience influences on our psychology. This course helped steer me to pursue a degree that integrated empirically based practices with clinical applications, because of the fact that this class was so heavily embedded in novel research findings. Rather than focus on what has already been known for several decades, the majority of our classes were spent reading recently published research papers that teetered on the forefront of neuroscientific discovery and knowledge. This pushed us beyond the bounds of current knowledge, forced us to think critically about potential disadvantages or shortcomings in a researcher’s methods, and highlighted the importance of being able to stay up to date with, critique, and appraise the newest literature in psychology and neuroscience. Ultimately, these key qualities of the course compelled me to chase after a career that only utilizes evidence-based practices, or practices that have only proven to be effective through repeated clinical research trials. In addition, this course served a purpose as my capstone class. I believe that this class helped prepare me for a career in Clinical Psychology as it provided me with insights into Clinical Neuroscience applications and their intersections with Clinical Psychology, two fields I am highly interested in. Furthermore, the level of reading and number of hours required for this class every week, I believe, helped prime me for what is to come when I pursue my doctoral degree. Lastly, this course provided me with an opportunity to write a personal statement that could be used for grad school applications or demonstrate how the class could help me in future endeavors. The combined effects of a research-intensive course that covers deeply complex topics that integrate neuroscience and behavior and offers professional growth opportunities have shaped me as a learner, aspiring clinician, and consumer of research altogether.