My name is Lauren Cancila and I graduated from Stevenson University in May of 2019. I am now studying Social Work at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. Stevenson’s Psychology program has definitely prepared me well for graduate school in a couple of significant ways.
1. The knowledge and skills that I have acquired are highly applicable to my current position. Specifically, I am confident about my new graduate-level social work research courses because of my extensive experience with research (e.g., individual and group research projects) when I was at Stevenson. In addition, the many clinical courses that I had taken proved to be very helpful as I began working with clients from different walks of life.
2. The Psychology professors at SU are simply amazing. Among them, Dr. Metzger has made the biggest impact on me. He was always the first person I went to with good or bad news, and somehow he always had answers to my questions! He believed in me in times when I didn’t believe in myself and had pushed me to be the best student I could ever be. In addition, I had learned so much from Dr. Iannone. Her professional development sequence was so helpful and she had definitely helped shape me into who I am today. Last but not least, Dr. Tulloch and her course “Drugs and Behavior” literally changed my life. I remember that it was a service-learning course where students were required to volunteer at a non-profit organization that dealt with drug and alcohol treatment or prevention. Through her class, I started volunteering at a halfway house which I am still involved with today. Her class and the way she taught the material had opened my eyes to something that I am extremely passionate about: to work with people who are in the process of recovery from various addictions.
The Social Work graduate program at UMB requires students to work as interns. For me, I was assigned to intern at a community outreach center in Baltimore City where I will be doing case management to clients aged 55 and older. In the long run, my goal is to become a case manager at a drug and alcohol treatment center and maybe even establish my own halfway house! Thanks to the outstanding experiences that I had gathered at Stevenson, I received the Substance Use Disorder Intervention Fellowship. Because of this fellowship, I will have a more focused education in substance abuse as well as a secured second year internship at a treatment center of my choice.
Taken together, I know I wouldn’t be where I am today without the Psychology program at Stevenson University. The students and faculty who I had met during my time there had blessed me with the skills, motivation, and knowledge I need to achieve my highest potential. The SU Psychology department will always be part of my family.
By: Lauren Cancila (’19 Psychology)