Congratulations to Dr. Dane Hilton on obtaining his Clinical Psychologist licensure! He explains the process of attaining the licensure and his future plans below.
On November 14 I received an email from the Virginia Board of Psychology that I had been approved for licensure as a Clinical Psychologist in Virginia. This was a pretty exciting moment and marked the final step in a long process that started over 8 years ago when I decided to pursue a career as a psychologist.
To become a licensed psychologist in most states, you must complete your PhD from an APA accredited program, complete a year-long clinical internship year from an APA accredited internship site, fulfill post-doctoral or pre-doctoral supervised clinical hour requirements, and pass the 225 question Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology (EPPP).
It’s a lot but I thoroughly enjoyed (almost) every moment of my training and education.
Now that I have my license, I can pursue independent practice as a clinical psychologist. More specifically, this means I can engage in therapy, assessment, consultation, and supervision of trainees within the Commonwealth of Virginia. I am very excited to begin working in the greater Roanoke community to help provide access to mental health services. I do not yet have a specific plan for clinical practice and I am really just enjoying the feeling of relief to have made it over that last hurdle in my clinical training.
I am always happy to talk with students who are curious about the field of clinical psychology or who want to talk about the specifics of education and training.
Congratulations again to Dr. Hilton!
If you would like to know more about becoming a Clinical Psychologist or have any questions, please feel free to contact Dr. Hilton at hilton@roanoke.edu.
Dr. Nichols continued his tradition of creating a GIF in celebration of departmental birthdays, the first being the legendary ‘flossing’ for Dr. FVN last semester. Watch the video below to see what he did this semester for Dr. O (and her reaction).
What is your name, class year, and your majors/minors/concentrations?
My name is Becca Thompson and I am a senior. I will be graduating with a major in Psychology and concentration in Human Development. I also have minors in Spanish and Sociology.
Where did you study abroad?
I studied abroad in Palmerston North, New Zealand.
What was your favorite moment while abroad?
My favorite moments while abroad (because they are tied!!) would be going to an All Blacks Rugby game, skydiving from 17,000 feet over the gorgeous Lake Taupo, and exploring the only active marine volcano in New Zealand on an island named White Island or Whakaari.
What were you most worried about in terms of studying abroad?
I was worried about being literally on the other side of the world from my family (Maryland to NZ, couldn’t have gone any further away!) I was also worried about missing my pets, let’s be honest.
What did you learn while abroad? (Not just in terms of coursework, but about the culture and, cheesy as it is, yourself?)
I learned about different mental healthcare practices through my abnormal psychology class, which I found very interesting. I also learned about the indigenous people to New Zealand, the Māori. About myself, I learned how strong I am and I furthered my passion of traveling!
Palmerston North
Did anything happen that you weren’t expecting? Similarly, were there any moments that particularly struck you while abroad?
I definitely did not expect to meet some of my best friends while abroad. Although we are located all over the place, we still talk often and cannot wait to plan a reunion. There were many twists and turns during my time abroad, but each adventure had its own purpose and lessons.
What are your plans for the future and how will you use what you learned while studying abroad to help you?
Studying abroad helped me to realize my interest in social work through the introduction class I took with one of the best professors I’ve ever had. This class helped me to realize that I would like to pursue child advocacy/family law in order to create change here in America. I would love to go to school in NZ to gain a better and more in-depth understanding of their social work practices, which strive to include all cultures and all people in a respectful manner.
Any advice for other students interested in studying abroad?
Just GO! Studying abroad changed my life and opened up so many doors for me. My time in New Zealand helped me to realize what I would like to pursue after college. I met so many incredible people and I now have an incredible core group of friends spread throughout the United States, as well as an extended family in Palmerston North.
Recently declared psychology majors are required to attend one department orientation. While there, students learn about opportunities in the psychology department and surrounding areas, as well as ask any questions they may have.
Snacks are provided and students are given either a “Get Psyched” T-shirt or stickers for attending.
There will be two more orientation sessions next semester. Stay tuned for those dates, which will be announced in the Spring.
Interested in psychology, human development, or neuroscience?
Then an upcoming talk at the nearby Virginia Tech Research Institute (VTCRI) on November 29th at 5:30 pm might be of interest to you!
The talk, titled “Synapses Lost and Found: Developmental Critical Periods and Alzheimer’s Disease”, is part of the VTCRI Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture series, will be given by Stanford’s Dr. Carla Shatz.
As the talk relates to neuroscience and human development, the psychology department is encouraging and organizing students in multiple classes and in the Neuroscience Concentration and the Human Development Concentration to attend.
The psychology department can provide transportation for students or faculty who need to or are interested in carpooling for the event but we need to know by the end of the day on November 26th (TODAY) regarding whether or not we will take a van.
If you plan to attend the talk on November 29th, please fill out the Doodle poll at: https://doodle.com/poll/cupicv2v6qqmdprv. Feel free to send the survey link to other students or faculty that you think would be interested in attending.
The Salem VA Medical Center offers the chance for Roanoke College undergraduates to gain experience working in research with a seasoned Principal Investigator (PI) on current medical research. Available research projects have included topics such as “Predictors of Treatment Response Among Veterans with PTSD”, “Mental Health in Rural Veterans with and without Traumatic Brain Injury”, and “Effect of Exercise Training on Inflammation and Function in HIV Infected Veterans”.
If you are interested in completing research with the Salem VA Medical Center, please meet with the Director of Undergraduate Research (Dr. Chris Lassiter, Associate Professor of Biology) in the fall semester or early in spring semester to discuss the program.
Application and Requirements:
An overall GPA of 3.4 or higher is preferred (though an overall GPA of 3.0 or higher will be considered).
Materials to submit include:
cover letter (with research interests),
CV,
unofficial transcript and
two letters of recommendation
Please submit the above materials to the Director of Undergraduate Research by February 15 for research in the summer or the next academic year (fall and spring semester).
Alumni Lauren Ratcliffe, Sabrina McAllister, Jacob Johnson, and Paige Dzindolet published their research seminar in neuroscience project from fall of 2016 in IMPULSE, an undergraduate neuroscience journal.
Their project, titled ‘During Ascending and Descending Limbs of the Blood Alcohol Concentration Curve’ uses a computerized trail making test in place of driving performance tests in order to better ascertain neurocognitive impairments associated with varying blood alcohol concentration (BAC) levels. Follow this link to go to the original article.
Students in Dr. Nichols’ research seminar in neuroscience have published their projects at a rate of one student publication per year.
Congratulations to our alumni on their recent publication!
Graduating Magna Cum Laude with Honors in Psychology from Roanoke College in 2017, Ratcliffe obtained a B.S. in Psychology and a concentration in Neuroscience. Ratcliffe is currently pursuing a Psy.D. at Mercer University in Clinical Medical Psychology with an emphasis on posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Ratcliffe also works as a research assistant at Mercer.
A Phi Beta Kappa member, McAllister obtained a B.S. in Psychology, a minor in Biology, and a concentration in Neuroscience from Roanoke College. McAllister graduated with ten semesters of psychology research experience in 2018. She is currently working as a psychometrist at Carilion Clinic in Roanoke, VA, with a goal of pursuing her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology.
Graduated in 2017 from Roanoke College with Honors in Psychology, a minor in Biology, and a concentration Neuroscience. He studied in Germany in the summer of 2016 and was recruited to Phi Beta Kappa as a junior. Johnson intends on pursuing a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology to teach college-level courses and perform therapy.
Dzindolet graduated in 2017 with a B.S. in Psychology and a minor Biology. In 2016, Dzindolet interned at Virginia Museum of Natural History where she worked with dinosaur bones and fossils, among other things. She is currently interested in obtaining a position involving Forensic Psychology and Criminology.
Click on the image above to go to their main page.
Saint Joseph’s University, ranked as one of America’s best colleges in 2011 by USNews, is hosting a virtual open house on Monday, November 12th at 2:00 pm.
The university offers an MS in psychology with particular emphasis on experimental psychology. This is a full-time program designed to provide students with a solid grounding in the scientific study of psychology. All students in the program are assigned to a mentor and conduct an empirically based research thesis under his/her direction.
Information on how to attend the open house can be found here
Click on the image to go to the admissions section of Saint Joseph’s University.
In an interview with a student assistant, recent graduate Maddie McCall ’18 describes life after graduation and recalls her favorite memories from Roanoke College.
To start off, can you tell me a little about yourself?
Just graduated in May of 2018, with a BA in Psychology and Honors in Sociology, with two concentrations, Human Development and Information Analysis. I was the VP of Psi Chi, a member of RCPA, wore all of the hats for the now inactive (RIP) chapter of Mu Beta Psi, was president of Lamba Alliance, and was active in a bunch of other clubs. I was also the Head Academic Coach, a Research Assistant to the wonderful Dr. Khoo, and was lucky enough to be the Head Student Assistant for the Psych Department (which I miss dearly).
What was graduating like?
Graduation was such a fun time (even waiting in the basement of West before line up)! I was the first person in my family to go to college, so being able to walk across the stage, shake President Maxey’s hand, and get my diploma… it meant so much, both to me and my family. But being able to stand next to all of my friends, who have all worked so hard the last four years, made it even more special. Plus, finally getting to step on the seal was pretty cool 😉
Grey outfit = groutfit.
What are you doing now after graduating?
After graduation I moved to Northern Virginia, where the people are diverse but all suck at driving. It sort of reminds me of Freshman year, where I’m starting fresh and finding my tribe. Apps like MeetUp have totally helped me branch out and meet new people! I’ve joined some board-game groups and have tried my hand at Bob Ross paint-alongs 😊 Oh! My roommate and I also adopted a gray cat named Groutfit (all gray outfit = groutfit, because of course).
I’m also working as a Survey Analyst at a market research company called Resonate.
Click on the image to go to Resonate’s official website.
How did you get your position? What do you do for them?
I honestly got this job mostly through my two seminar projects. Basically, what my job entails is creating hour long surveys on Qualtrics that then get sent out to thousands of people (a much bigger N than I was used to at Roanoke), monitoring and QA-ing the data, and delving deeper into and analyzing the “why” of human behavior. While at Roanoke, I used Qualtrics to create both my Soc and Psych senior seminar projects, which gave me a lot of experience at different features and logics Qualtrics has available. That, along with research experience on campus (which comes in handy when researching and writing the actual questions in a non-biased way) and just being open to learning new experiences was incredibly beneficial. (But, really, it was the fact that my now-boss asked me if I knew any jokes during my final interview… It’s like my whole life was leading up to that moment.)
What do you miss about Roanoke College? What is your favorite thing about having graduated?
I think one of my favorite things about having graduated is that I’m now 3.5 hours closer to my family. I also have a lot more free-time on my hands with just working a 9-5. However, there’s a ton that I miss from Roanoke, but mostly the people. (There’s something special about going to Sheetz at 1 in the morning and seeing people from your 9:40 class.) I miss being able to walk across campus and seeing so many of my friends and professors, all of the different events constantly happening, and those mountains. Man, you can’t beat those mountain sunsets.
But mostly, I’m going to miss Ellen’s Christmas trail mix!
What plans do you have for the future?
While I enjoy the job I currently have (HR gave me a Nerf gun on my first day, we have Bagel Wednesday’s, Snacktastic Friday’s, our teams are named after comic book groups, and we have Mystery Events twice a year!), ultimately, I would love to go back to school – both to learn and to teach. I would love to one day be a psych professor of my own. 😊
Do you still have an opportunity to utilize your knowledge of memes?
… I’ve begun to incorporate memes into my team’s group chat at work, so…
Is there anything else you would like to tell us?
Push yourself out of your comfort zone and experience new things (both academically and otherwise – you have no idea how they might benefit you when applying for jobs/grad school).
Stay on top of your LinkedIn profile.
Take it all in
And of course, because I’m me and I’m incapable of ending anything without a pun:
What do you call two monkeys who share an Amazon account?
Prime mates (because, let’s face it, those Prime rates are bananas)
We miss you, Maddie, but are glad that you are doing well! Thank you for taking your time to talk with us about life after graduation! (And for the cute cat pictures and fabulous memes/puns.)
If you have any questions about Qualtrics and/or job searching, feel free to email Maddie at mtmccall@mail.roanoke.edu. She will be happy to help you!
In an interview with a student assistant, recent graduate Maddie McCall ’18 describes life after graduation and recalls her favorite memories from Roanoke College.
