Alumni : The University of Akron

	Devon Whitehead, PhD, LP What you are doing now: Licensed Psychologist in Minnesota doing primarily DBT. Advice for students entering: It's exhausting, but take as many opportunities as you can that are offered to you! The more experiences you can have, the better prepared you are. And don't lose touch with people who can help you reach your goals.
	David J. Wimer, Ph.D. What you are doing now: I'm an associate teaching professor (non tenure track, with more of a focus on teaching than research) at Penn State University in University Park, PA (the main campus). I've been teaching here for almost ten years. I teach Abnormal Psychology, Theories of Personality, The Psychology of Adjustment & Social Relationships, and Psychology as a Science & Profession (which has a career counseling component). I also design and teach on-line courses for the Penn State World Campus. I'm currently designing a senior seminar on The Psychology of Men & Masculinities, based on the research I did and studied with my dissertation chair Dr. Ron Levant. A few years ago I won an Outstanding Teacher award from the Penn State College of Liberal Arts. For 8 years I worked as a part time therapist at the Penn State university counseling center (CAPS) but now I work part time (one day a week) in community mental health primarily with children and adolescents who have oppositional defiant disorder and other related concerns. It's very stressful but interesting and rewarding, and much more of a challenge than working with college students. Advice to students entering the program: U. Akron is probably different now than when I went there in the mid 2000s, but I remember it being a great place with great faculty. When I look back I really do think I made the right choice and that U Akron was a good fit for me. I would say to maximize your opportunities when you're in graduate school because it's much harder to get hands on training in things like clinical interventions and assessment after grad school is over. I frequently miss the support network that I had in grad school because now that I'm licensed I'm really on my own. When people ask me if I have regrets about grad school the #1 thing I tell them is that I took out and spent too much student loan money, and now I'm drowning in debt. I'm not very good with money and I wish I was more frugal in graduate school.
	Christina Rowan, Ph.D. What you are doing now: I am a clinical health psychologist at Summa Health’s Weight Management Institute. I work with patients who are pursuing or have had weight loss surgery, those attempting non-surgical weight loss, and patients with other disordered eating behaviors. We conduct pre-surgical psychological assessments, individual and group counseling, and inpatient consults as needed. Advice to students entering the program: Graduate school is about more than just jumping through arbitrary hoops to get your degree. At that time I know that’s what it can feel like, but is also an opportunity for great personal and interpersonal growth. Although all the readings, tests, assignments, and research can take up so much of your time, in doing all of these things you are expanding your problem-solving ability, your work ethic, and your sense of self-discipline. In working with supervisors, professors, colleagues, students, and clients, you are realizing just how much you are capable of interpersonally. Every difficult and uncomfortable situation you encounter, however awful it might feel at the time, is an opportunity for growth and learning. Ask yourself hard questions and seek support. Try to find at least one professor or supervisor who you can trust to be in your corner. This can go a long way to help you push through the difficult moments. Don’t worry about being perfect, just try to be present.
	Jennifer L. Wilson, Ph.D., LP What you are doing now: I am a Psychologist at a College Counseling Center More specifically, I work at The University of St Thomas Counseling and Psychological Services in Minnesota. I am the groups coordinator and supervisor for our doctoral internship program. Advice to students entering the program: I would have is to keep your options open and pursue things/training that gives you energy.
	Stephanie Drcar What you are doing now: I'm currently an Assistant Professor of Counselor Education at Cleveland State University. I am also a post-doctoral fellow at Cleveland State's Counseling Center. Advice to students entering the program: Be open to where your education may take you!
	Sara Rieder Bennett, Ph.D. What you are doing now: Licensed Psychologist, Assistant Director of Testing, Counseling & Testing Center, The University of Akron Advice to students entering the program: Be intentional about balancing work and life, self-care, and developing supports both in and out of the program.
	Amanda Lawson-Ross What you are doing now: I'm a Clinical Assistant Professor at the Counseling and Wellness Center at the University of Florida. I do individual, couples and group counseling, supervise and teach graduate students, do crisis intervention and do outreach among other things. My clinical interests are eating disorders and couples counseling with an emphasis on LGBTQ+ and other minority groups. Advice to students entering the program: Remember that it's a long process so you want to work hard and also take care of yourself. Keep your eye on your goals and steadily work toward them. I treated graduate school like an 8-5 job and did not have to pull all nighters in order to be successful.
	Megan Yetzer What you are doing now: Staff psychologist at Ohio University Advice to students entering the program: This program is a marathon, not a sprint; so it's okay to say "no", engaging in self-care is vital, and trust the process. :)
	Heather Sperry PhD, HSPP What I'm doing now: I'm currently working as a licensed psychologist in Primary Care-Mental Health Integration for the Veterans Health Administration in Indianapolis. Additionally, I serve as the LGBT Veteran Care Coordinator for the entire hospital and surrounding community outpatient clinics, which includes providing patient care, advocacy, and staff education. I also supervise practicum students and participate on the training committee for our hospital's APA-accredited psychology internship program health psychology track. Advice to students entering the program: Find your community within the field - we do better work when we consult, collaborate, and learn from one another.
	Jill Hendrickson I graduated in 2010. I currently am the Director of Behavioral Health for an integrated Medical, Dental, and Behavioral Health Center. CAA Health, Behavioral Health and Dental Center. My advice would be to enjoy it. It is easy to get overwhelmed with all the work, assignments, dissertation, etc. but it is important to find balance and enjoy the privileged of this level of education.
	Stephanie J. Cunningham, Ph.D., HSPP What I'm doing now: Psychologist for the Department of Mental Health Services at the Indiana University School of Medicine Advice to students entering the program: I know that it's extremely hard to work on dissertation stuff in the midst of all of the other obligations of the program, but do whatever you can to prioritize getting that done. If there is anything I wish I could have done differently about my time in the program, it would have been to not wait until I was ABD to work on my dissertation. You will have an infinitely easier time finding jobs if you are done (or very nearly done) with your dissertation by the time you're wrapping up internship.
	Christine Williams, PhD What you are doing now: I'm the associate director of Salem State University's counseling center, overseeing the doctoral training program and daily clinical services. I also have a small private practice and consult on the side. Advice to students entering the program: Take advantage of every minute of your education and training which relates to developing cultural humility and working with those who are different from you. As part of that, and your general professional development, take time to explore your own values and what this work means to you. And remember that you will develop competence in counseling - it just doesn't feel like it at first!
	Tim Rogers What are you doing now: I currently serve in two roles. I work as a licensed psychologist for the Center for Deployment Psychology that focuses on disseminating evidence based practices to provide the best quality of care for veterans, service members, and their families. As a CDP employee, I also serve as the Associate Program Director for the United States Air Force Clinical Psychology Internship program at Wilford Hall Ambulatory Surgical Center, Joint Base San Antonio Lackland. As such, I am responsible for ensuring our training program meets all accreditation requirements and prepare interns to serve as a active duty military psychologists. Advice to students entering the program: I would encourage you to check out the Archives of the History of American Psychology. It is such a tremendous resource to have in Akron. It routinely draws distinguished guests from our field, sponsors great educational forums, and gave me a greater appreciation for the historical roots of contemporary thought and approaches to problems facing society today.
	Colleen Maguire Jackson, Ph.D., HSPP What you are doing now: Assistant Director for Training, Counseling and Psychological Services, Purdue University Advice to students entering the program: Try to gain varied experiences within different practicum settings prior to internship. Prioritize gaining training experiences which stretch you, particularly culturally. Actively seek models for self-care, and develop a consistent self-care practice now.