During the summer of 2018, I had the life changing experience of interning at a child developmental psychology center in Connecticut. Never before had I had work experience in this field. For many years, I have worked with children through tutoring and other programs. When I was accepted as an intern at the psychology center, I knew the opportunity would be different, more exciting, and more focused on my interests.
Before going into the summer, I had the opportunity to meet with Dr. Blackshear’s wife, Kimberly. Kimberly Blackshear is very involved in the child trauma psychology field. She was the perfect professional to talk to. She gave me some advice regarding the field and encouraged me to be confident as I ventured out into my future arena. We also discussed other future opportunities that would broaden my horizons. I was, and still am, extremely thankful for this invaluable mentorship because I did not previously know anyone in the developmental psychology field.
I interned at the center for six weeks. During these six weeks, I was exposed to many fortunate opportunities. I was allowed to do quite a lot, considering I was only a college level student. Since my mentor at the center was an educational psychologist (the center’s main focus is in educational and developmental testing for children) I was able to sit in testing sessions for different ages. Being able to watch how a psychologist and a child interact with each other was so valuable. I was amazed at how much I learned during those sessions. It was fascinating to see how each psychologist could pull together tests, human interaction, and neuroscience all into one treatment to better help the child. I was also allowed to sit in on the testing and therapy case meetings. Watching psychologists from a multitude of different backgrounds work together to piece together a child’s case was so intriguing. I am not a student who is naturally good at group work, so I found it very important to watch and understand how to work with others. It reminded me a lot of SPIRE’s main mission of creating a safe community for STEM field discussion.
Along with these fascinating meetings, I helped the center reframe all of their presentations. Although it sounds like a daunting task, the presentations were filled with such interesting information. I learned so much going through the PowerPoints and reading about the neuroscience behind learning disabilities and emotional abnormalities. I was able to see the connection between my previous knowledge from Duke and its real-life application.
Altogether, my summer experience was profound and has encouraged me to go into the developmental psychology field which focuses on neuroscience. I am so grateful for the mentorship I received in this field from Kimberly Blackshear, as well as SPIRE’s continuous support that allowed me to step out of my initial comfort zone.
