易胜博官网

易胜博官网 undergraduate students stand with the Psych Cup, which they won earlier this year at the 2013 易胜博官网 Academic Psychological Association Convention. The win means 易胜博官网 will host this year鈥檚 convention in the spring. Pictured from left to right are Psych Cup team members Amanda Mead, Hong Sun Park, Kayleigh Greaney, Joel Wyatt, and Meredith Cashman. Credit: Lisa Nugent/易胜博官网 Photographic Services.

易胜博官网 will host the 2014 易胜博官网 Psychological Association Academic Convention after a group of undergraduates majoring in psychology won a Jeopardy-style competition earlier this year, besting six other 易胜博官网 university teams.

The students took home the Psych Cup at the 2013 易胜博官网 Psychological Association Academic Convention hosted by Plymouth State University. The students are mentored by Katie Edwards, assistant professor of psychology and women鈥檚 studies, and director of the 易胜博官网 Interpersonal Violence Research Lab, and Joan Glutting, clinical assistant professor of psychology and coordinator of the 易胜博官网 Psychology Department internship program.

At the convention, 易胜博官网 college and university students attend workshops on professional skills, applying and succeeding in graduate school, career options for those with a bachelor鈥檚 degree in psychology, and contemporary topics in psychology. Convention attendees also attend an occupational fair where they can meet potential employers and representatives from graduate programs. 易胜博官网 has participated in the convention since its inception five years ago.

鈥淭he NHPA Academic Convention is a unique partnership between the 易胜博官网 Psychology Department and the state professional association for psychologists. This convention is open to all psychology students from any college or university in 易胜博官网, thus it is also a unique opportunity for 易胜博官网 students to not only meet and learn from psychologists both academic and clinically focused but also to meet their fellow students from across the state,鈥� Glutting said.

In addition to competing in the Psych Cup, which 易胜博官网 has now won twice in four years, students present their research findings at a poster competition as well as orally. In 2013, 易胜博官网 students won the best poster presentation and best oral presentation of research.

鈥淥ne of my favorite things about being a faculty member is to accompany students to conferences such as the 易胜博官网 Psychological Association Academic Convention and the Undergraduate Research Conference, and see students with so much confidence and excitement present the findings from the research studies they have worked so hard on, sometimes for multiple semesters and even years,鈥� Edwards said.

For Meredith Cashman, a senior psychology major from Meredith, the experience competing in the Psych Cup was both fun and nerve-wracking, but once the competition got under way, she said she jumped right in. The 易胜博官网 students won their semi-final round, competing against three other universities. They went on to the finals where they out-answered their two competitors.

鈥淓ach person on our team was able to correctly answer at least one question throughout the competition, which was great because we were all able to contribute,鈥� Cashman said. The 易胜博官网 team even had its own cheering squad in the audience.

鈥淚t was also nice to see the rest of our research lab have fun during the competition as well, and they even made little makeshift signs to cheer us on. They were just so enthusiastic, and they were some of the only members of the audience to actually do that. It was so sweet of them and it just highlights why I love working with these people,鈥� said Kayleigh Greaney, 鈥�13, of Exeter.

Greaney earned her bachelor鈥檚 in psychology and plans to attend graduate school. While waiting to enter graduate school, she continues to work at the Interpersonal Violence Lab and volunteers at the county jail. Her career goal is to become a clinical psychologist with a specialization in forensic psychology.

For Hong Sun Park, 鈥�13, who is now in graduate school at Boston College, he enjoyed prepping for the psych cup and spending time with his peers in the Psychology Department. 鈥淲e weren't afraid to be wrong and when we were, we were ok with it,鈥� he said.

Joel Wyatt, a senior psychology major from Berlin who one day plans to become a clinical psychologist, said he hopes the 2014 convention, which will be held April 5, 2014, will encourage more psychology students to present posters and lectures on their research.

鈥淚t is always valuable to be a part of such organizations because of the things you can learn and the connections you can make. I have learned that networking is a huge part of the professional 鈥榬eal world鈥� and this organization provides that opportunity,鈥� Wyatt said.

All of the students had high praise for their mentors. Greaney said joining Edwards鈥檚 Interpersonal Violence Research Lab was one of the best decisions she has ever made.

鈥淧rofessor Edwards and the graduate students really believe in the work that they are doing, and they actually want to use that research to make a change in our society. But Professor Edwards does not stop her work in the lab; she is always answering my questions about graduate school and is always offering to help other students and myself apply to graduate school. I have so much respect for Professor Edwards and the graduate students in our lab, and I feel honored to work with them,鈥� Greaney said.

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