Hello everyone, my name is Caroline Vincent, and I am a senior majoring in psychology and minoring in neuroscience. I am from Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina. I want to pursue a Ph.D. in clinical psychology. My research interests include assessment and interventions for disorders that have the presence of mania or psychosis. I have volunteered as a research assistant in the Penn lab led by Dr. David Penn as well as the MECCA lab led by Dr. Eric Youngstrom. I have learned a lot about evidence-based assessment and intervention. I also had the opportunity to join the NSF REU program researching PTSD and trauma in veteran populations this past summer. Research is ongoing and investigates if social determinants of health can predict future mental health diagnosis. I was able to integrate my research interests and expand my research experience by conducting an independent honors thesis project investigating the psychometric properties as well as the factor structure of the Child Mania Rating Scale. I have also been a part of Helping Give Away Psychological Science (HGAPS) that has grown me as a leader and has shown me the importance of the dissemination of research to improve and help clinical practice. While gaining much needed research experience, I realized I lacked the needed clinical experience to better inform my research.
I am thrilled and honored to be a part of this semester’s Gil cohort. The Gil internship has given me much needed clinical experience to better understand what career I want to ultimately pursue in the realm of clinical psychology. In the meantime, this clinical experience directly aids my research efforts because I better understand the clinical implications of research and the clinical realities of the populations I am studying. I have enjoyed working at Lepage Associates in Durham this semester with Dr. Colleen Hamilton and Dr. Mina Ratkalkar. Lepage Associates is a mental health clinic that offers an array of evidence-based treatment and assessments. I have worked in their office, on records reviews and reports, and on literature reviews. I have gained experience in assessment administration, writing reports, case conceptualization, and therapeutic intervention. I have also been able to attend some of their clinic meetings and peer supervision sessions to observe how the clinic functions and how the clinicians support each other.
The Gil internship has not only provided me with clinical experience but has fostered an environment for immense professional development. I have heard diverse perspectives of people in graduate school and in the field as well as received help with resources and skills to better market myself to future employers. I would like to thank Dr. Buzinski, Emily, Dr. Gil and the team at Lepage Associates for giving me this incredibly formative undergraduate intern experience!
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