Katya had been a senior at the University of Puerto Rico at the Rio Piedras Campus where she had majored in Psychology during her internship. Katya had enjoyed the opportunity to work on her own research project. As an intern, she had said, “When it is your own [research], you care more… I have my results, it’s my stuff. I created it and can build on the findings and theory.”
The perspectives of a range of mental health disciplines have shaped Katya’s training. At her home institution, she had participated in the Career Opportunities in Research (COR) program. There, she worked with two mentors, Dr. Guillermo Bernial in clinical psychology, and Dr. Giovanni Tirado, a neuro-psychologist. Dr. Guarnaccia, who had been Katya’s Project L/EARN mentor, is a medical anthropologist.
Katya’s clinical interests combined with her newfound love for research has only clouded her decision whether to pursue a Psy.D. or a Ph.D. in Pyschology. Of course, the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology here at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey would be her first choice for a Psy.D.
