Sandra’s Story

Meet Sandra, one of our 2024 scholarship recipients. She is finishing the last few months of her internship in a Canadian operational stress injury clinic working with active military, veterans, and police. Her work focuses on post traumatic stress disorder and other mental health problems related to service. “I never would have thought that veterans and police would be a population of interest for me, but I’m really enjoying it so far.”

Sandra initially wanted to be a teacher, but an undergrad psychology course piqued her interest.

“I realized psychology would be a really cool way to do the stuff I liked about teaching—the ability to meet someone where they are and move in a direction of understanding.”

What’s Sandra’s biggest takeaway from her internship experience? Appreciating how much of a skillset she built up during her PhD program.

“I’ve learned to appreciate the specialized skills I bring to the table and feel so much more comfortable and confident clinically.”

Sandra knows how important it is to invest in the next generation of psychologists. “We’re moving culturally to a more accepting place of conversations around mental health and demand is increasing. Investing in students helps ensure we’re churning out committed, quality clinicians who can begin meeting increased needs in communities.”

As Sandra speaks with more psychologists about their careers, she’s taking the pressure off her job search, comforted by the notion that most psychologists take windy paths to their current positions. She did decide to stay in Ottawa for the foreseeable future.

“It’s allowed me to lean into making community here outside of work. I’ve been trying lots of new restaurants and doing weekend trips.”

Thinking about the scholarship she received, Sandra sends “a huge thank you” to National Register donors. “It’s uncomfortable when you go into a helping profession to ask for help along the way. There’s so much we have to juggle during internship and having one less stress on our plate makes a really big difference.”

About her career choice, Sandra feels “It’s a privilege to be the person that someone comes to and to be their safe space to help them get to their goals. It’s super rewarding.”