How to Build a Career in Clinical Psychology & Research

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Hi friends,

I am officially finished year ½ of my MSc, having completed my 3rd module last night! Time flies, but I am more excited that I can finally take a break from staring at my computer to write essays :’)

Also, you can now download Invite Health as a free app! Beehiiv (the platform I use for this newsletter) released this as an update yesterday. To download, follow this tutorial (it’s super easy). That way, you can always access Invite Health on your phone and get real-time notifications!

Welcome to interview #49! I am going to take a few weeks off from posting, but you can always read previous interviews here. I hope you enjoy the rest of your summer, and see you soon for interview #50. 💌 

This week, I invited Zuha Durrani to share her story. She’s a passionate researcher and aspiring clinical psychologist, who is starting her program in the fall! Today you’ll learn:

• Zuha’s research experiences, including Stanford University’s Muslim Mental Health & Islamic Psychology Lab and as a clinical research assistant at the University of Calgary (+ the cold email template she uses)

• Zuha’s application journey to pursuing a Master’s of Clinical Child Psychology at the University of Alberta

• Advice for students who are interested in pursuing a career in psychology and figuring out what they can do with a psychology degree

Enjoy today’s read,

Sachi 💌 

How to Build a Career in Clinical Psychology & Research : Interview with Zuha Durrani

First off, tell us about your journey so far. Where do you study, what inspired you to pursue this, and what’s next? What else do you like to do outside of studying?

Hi everyone! My name is Zuha Durrani (she/her) and I graduated in 2023 from the University of Calgary with a Bachelor of Science (First Class Honours) in Psychology. Over the past year I have been working as a Clinical Research Assistant (paid position) at the University of Calgary’s Psychiatry department and I am also super excited to be starting my Master’s degree in School & Clinical Child Psychology at the University of Alberta in Fall 2024! 

My journey into the field of psychology began in high school where I first learned about this subject area. After enrolling in a psychology course in grade 10, I realized that for the first time ever I wasn’t asking myself “what is the point of studying this?” or “when will I ever use this in real life?”, which I would often find myself asking when it came to other subjects in school (not that they aren’t important! I just personally found it hard to connect and find interest in those subjects). I think it was the idea of how applicable psychology was to our everyday lives which drew me in, since psychology is the study of mind and behaviour (to put it in very simple terms) and we interact with humans every day of our lives. 

From that day onwards, I knew that I wanted to continue exploring this field, and so I applied to psychology undergraduate programs - even though I had no idea where it would take me or what I would do with a psychology degree. I didn’t always know that I wanted to become a psychologist; this was something I discovered along the way through my experiences, research, and talking to people in the field. All I knew was that no other area of study interested me as much as psychology did, and I couldn’t imagine myself studying anything else. 

It wasn’t until I started my undergraduate degree that I realized there was so much about this field that I didn’t know. For starters, psychology is a very broad field. There are many different branches of psychology, each with their own unique focus. Some areas of study may even be a combination or overlap of more than one branch (e.g., my Master’s program is a combination of school and clinical psychology, but more on that later…). I went through my undergraduate years with an open mind which allowed me to gain a variety of experiences, even if they weren’t directly related to psychology (e.g., volunteering as a social media content creator and academic tutor) which were still very valuable to me. Throughout undergrad, I enrolled in various psychology courses, did my own research online about this field, took on a range of volunteer opportunities - and most importantly - I volunteered as a research assistant at a number of psychology research labs. I’d like to emphasize this last point because this is what played the biggest role in helping me narrow down and find my particular area of interest in the vast field of psychology. 

Research is a big part of this field, and joining 5 academic research labs (at the University of Calgary and Stanford University) throughout 4 years of undergrad - all in a different branch/area of psychology - was the best way to learn new research skills, get a feel for what branch of psychology I’m more interested in, and connect with professors! My first research experience also taught me that research is something I enjoy and want to continue pursuing. Because of this, I think it’s a great idea for undergrad students to get involved in research, even if it makes you realize that research is not something you’re super keen about.  

My motivation for pursuing a career in mental health is also fueled by the mental health disparities that exist in marginalized and racialized communities, and how underrepresented such groups are in academic research. This is important to me because as a South Asian Muslim woman, I have witnessed firsthand the challenges faced by my community in seeking mental health care, including inadequate access to care, stigma of mental illness, and a lack of culturally-congruent care. There is also a huge lack of cultural diversity in the mental health care profession, with racial and ethnic minorities representing only 26% of psychologists in the U.S. under age 36 (in 2018). Therefore, by entering this field, my goal is to play a role in increasing South Asian and Muslim representation in the psychology workforce.

Outside of school and work, I always turn to my artistic and creative side. I can be found painting (especially Arabic calligraphy), drawing, creating air dry clay projects, knitting, crocheting, and doing photography. And of course, as someone from Alberta, going up to the mountains, parks, and lakes is something I will always enjoy doing.

You are currently doing a research internship at Stanford University and volunteered as a research assistant at the University of Calgary. Can you tell us about your experience, including what you did, how you got the positions, if they were paid/unpaid, and some of your highlights?

To provide some context, I realized that I was passionate about research in my second year of undergrad after volunteering for the Pregnancy during the Pandemic study - a project exploring the effect of COVID-19 on the mental and physical health of pregnant individuals and their babies. This was at a UCalgary lab, and I got this position by filling out a short form that I found on the lab’s website, through which I expressed my interest in volunteering at the lab. Following this position, I continued to join more and more labs and projects. Each of the research labs I was involved with studied a different area of psychology, such as the psychobiology of stress, child development, internet gaming disorder, chronic pain in children, internalizing disorders in adolescents, and Muslim mental health. As you can see, some of these topics are very different from one another, but delving into a variety of areas rather than just sticking to one (at least during undergrad) is how I discovered that my main areas of interest are in child/youth mental health and Muslim mental health, broadly speaking.

At Stanford, I am currently volunteering (unpaid, remote) as a Research Intern at the Muslim Mental Health & Islamic Psychology Lab, led by Dr. Rania Awaad. I actually came across this opportunity on social media in the summer of 2022 when a post on the lab’s instagram page popped up on my explore feed. The post was a call for applications for their new cohort of research interns for the 2022-23 academic year. I ended up scrolling through their instagram page and quickly realized that this was Dr. Awaad’s research lab - someone whose work I was already familiar with and inspired by. After checking the lab’s website and reading about their research, I found it to be something that aligned perfectly with my interests and goals. Since they were accepting Canadian applicants, I decided to apply. To be honest, the application process was pretty long and rigorous, and consisted of a detailed online application, writing a short paper, and two rounds of Zoom interviews. However, it was all worth it in the end. After going through the entire process, I was informed of my acceptance in the fall of 2022! 

In a nutshell, this lab studies mental health and psychology in the context of the Islamic faith and Muslim populations, and has multiple lines of research, divided into different teams (which can be found on their website). I am a part of their Suicide Response and Awareness team which focuses on suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention in the Muslim community. Out of all the projects I have worked on during my time in the lab so far, two that stand out to me are papers I co-authored and published in a peer-reviewed journal. These papers provide guidelines for the development and implementation of novel, culturally sensitive suicide response toolkits, such as community-based crisis response teams for suicide tragedies. Here are the links to the papers if you would like to have a read:

1. Developing a Suicide Crisis Response Team in America: An Islamic Perspective: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10943-023-01993-3

2. The Development of a Novel Suicide Postvention Healing Model for Muslim Communities in the United States of America: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10943-023-01949-7

Another great opportunity I got was being able to present these papers at academic conferences, including the 16th Annual Muslim Mental Health Conference held earlier this year. Apart from these two projects, I have also been involved in assisting with participant recruitment, conducting qualitative interviews with research participants, and developing surveys on Qualtrics for data collection. Being a part of this lab is a huge privilege for me as I get to conduct research and share knowledge with the aim of helping the people of my community - a community that is marginalized, under-represented, and under-served. Muslims are a population that experience unique mental health struggles as a result of identity-based discrimination, Islamophobia, and barriers to accessing care. This is why I aspire to continue my work with my community, whether it’s through clinical practice, academic research, or teaching. 

At the University of Calgary, my most significant research experience was my honours thesis which I completed in fourth year. After being involved in research as a volunteer, I wanted to gain advanced skills and complete an independent research project which is why I decided to apply to the psychology honours program. Each university will have a different process for completing an honours degree, but at UCalgary, I had to submit an online application and reach out to professors to find a thesis supervisor. The way I found a supervisor was by:

1. Checking UCalgary’s website to find the list of psychology professors

2. Reading through their research which can usually be found on their university profile or lab website, including some of their recent publications to understand the research questions they study

3. Narrowing down and creating a list of professors whose research I found interesting

4. Cold emailing those professors asking about thesis supervision opportunities

Although cold emailing may seem daunting, you never know what opportunities you may find by putting yourself out there and introducing yourself. You may even be connected to another professor who you hadn’t initially come across, whose area of research may be the perfect fit for you. It may seem difficult to send this email especially if you haven’t done so before, so I have added the email structure I used which you can use as a template or starting point for your own emails:

I completed my honours thesis at the C-BRAID lab where I studied the bidirectional relationship between marital quality, parenting behaviours, and adolescent anxiety and depression. By the time I reached fourth year, I had developed an interest in clinical psychology and child/youth mental health, so completing my honours thesis at a clinical psyc lab that was studying adolescent anxiety and depression was the perfect fit. My thesis was based on quantitative data that had already been collected for a larger, ongoing longitudinal study that my supervisor was conducting, where a variety of data related to parenting, brain development, personality, and youth psychopathology was being collected. My supervisor gave me access to the huge database and allowed me the flexibility to develop my own research question based on the available data. After looking through the different variables (and there were a LOT of them), conducting a literature search, and consulting with my supervisor, I finalized my research question. Having access to existing data gave me the advantage of being able to conduct a longitudinal analysis, since there was data collected at two time points, 18 months apart. (Just a note here, that each supervisor will have a different approach to supervising their honours students. Some supervisors may give their students an existing project to work on, whereas others will ask you to come up with your own project). Since I didn’t have to collect data from scratch for my study, I jumped straight into analyzing the data. This part was a learning curve for me and one of the most valuable skills I learned during this project. I had to use SPSS Amos which is used for a specific type of analysis called structural equation modeling (SEM). The first few weeks of using SPSS Amos were all about getting the hang of it. My supervisor walked me through and taught me how to use it, and I also found it very helpful to watch YouTube videos and read articles on the software and analysis to get a better understanding of it. 

After completing my thesis, I got the opportunity to present my research at the Canadian Psychological Association’s Annual National Convention which took place in Toronto in June 2023 (pictured above). This was a super fun experience as I got to travel, share my research as a poster presentation, and meet new people at the conference. While working on my thesis, I also developed a specific interest in researching risk factors for internalizing disorders, especially in the younger population, which I hope to continue researching in grad school.

I could go on and on about my research interests, experiences, and the things I have learnt so far, so please feel free to reach out if you’d like to learn more or if you have any additional questions (my contact information is at the end of the interview)!

What advice do you have for students (especially high school + undergrads) who want to get research internships, especially if they don’t have any experience yet? 

A couple of suggestions I have about getting involved in research are:

1. Cold email professors - like I mentioned earlier, contacting professors directly for opportunities can be very beneficial. Sometimes they may have opportunities available that haven’t been advertised anywhere, and you may only learn about them when you contact them.

2. Go to your course instructors’/professors’ office hours - this is a great way to build a connection with your professors which may lead to research opportunities with them. This can also help you build references who can write your letters of recommendation which you will need for grad school if you choose to apply.

3. Reach out to your course Teaching Assistants (TAs) - most TAs are Master’s or PhD students who have their own supervisors as well, so ask your TAs if they have any opportunities in their lab or if they know of any other research opportunities they can connect you to.

4. For high school students: some universities have special research programs which allow high school students to conduct research with a university faculty member. For example, UCalgary has the Alberta Innovates High School Youth Researcher Summer (HYRS) Program.

5. You can apply for summer studentships at a university - these provide you with a stipend to conduct research during the summer with a university faculty member. For example, UCalgary has a variety of funding and awards available: https://www.ucalgary.ca/experiential-learning/undergraduate-research/summer-studentships

6. Don't limit yourself to just your university - reach out to faculty members at other universities to see if they have any remote opportunities available. 

Remember, you don’t have to know which specific area of research you’re interested in and want to pursue right from the get go. This is where experience and exploration comes in. Allow yourself to explore different areas and pursue as many opportunities as you can.

You’re about to start grad school this fall! Can you tell us about your aspirations for pursuing grad school, what the application timeline was like, why you chose this program, and if you applied to any other grad schools? 

During undergrad, I realized that I was passionate about research and it was something I wanted to continue pursuing after I graduate, especially research on internalizing disorders in children and youth. At the same time, I had a strong interest in working with children and youth as I had been working/volunteering in roles such as a community teacher, tutor, academic mentor, and behavioural aide since I was in high school. Additionally, I wanted to explore clinical work within the field of mental health, and this interest was further developed over the past year during my current job as a Clinical Research Assistant at UCalgary. In this role, I engage with inpatients and outpatients with a wide range of mental health diagnoses. Talking to research participants about their symptoms, diagnoses, treatment plans, and mental health struggles has been eye-opening and strengthened my desire to engage in the prevention, assessment, and intervention of mental health concerns. I also conduct clinical assessments with participants where some individuals may experience emotional distress when disclosing sensitive information. In these situations, I learned how to maintain a balance between professionalism and compassion, practiced active listening, and ensured that participants felt safe and comfortable. This job allowed me to get a glimpse of what it’s like to work with a clinical population, and made me realize that it’s something I want to continue doing.

Taking all my interests and experiences together, I realized that clinical psychology would be the ideal field to pursue, especially a graduate program that follows the scientist-practitioner training model. This model puts equal emphasis on research and clinical practice training in psychology. I also knew that pursuing further education and training would allow me to advocate for marginalized communities in mental health as a researcher and/or clinician which is a goal of mine, as mentioned earlier.

Navigating the application process was where things got a little tough - it was overwhelming at times, especially since I didn’t have any family or friends in the same field who could guide me. I went through the application cycle twice, as I didn’t get accepted the first time round (clinical psychology programs are notoriously hard to get into, with an acceptance rate of about 5-8%, which often leads people to go through multiple application cycles before getting accepted). However, looking back now, I think not getting accepted during my first cycle was for the best. Taking a gap year allowed me to gain more clinical and research experience, improve my application for the second cycle, become more familiar and confident with the application process, and have more clarity about my goals for grad school and future career. 

In terms of the application timeline, clinical psych applications typically open in early fall (September/October) and are due by the end of fall/early winter (anywhere from November to January) for the following academic year. So if you’re planning on starting grad school in Fall 2025, you will need to apply during Fall 2024. Based on this, I started researching different grad programs during the summer before I applied. What helped me was creating an Excel sheet to keep track of every university/program that I was initially interested in. I created a huge table and for each university, I noted the name of the degree/program, if it's CPA accredited, which faculty member I’d like as my research supervisor at that program, whether that faculty member is accepting students for the academic year I’m applying, admission requirements/criteria, application deadline, application fees, etc. This helped me compare the different programs and have all information compiled in one place. I then narrowed down this list to only include the programs I wanted to apply to based on factors such as: research fit with supervisors, availability of research supervisors, and geographical location of the university.  

By the middle/end of summer, once I finalized the list of programs I was going to apply to, I started gathering all the application materials - such as writing my statement of purpose (SOP)/letter of intent, reaching out to referees to request a reference letter/letter of recommendation, updating my CV, getting my undergrad transcript, etc. Throughout the fall, I spent the most amount of time drafting my SOP because this is the most important document of your application. I went through multiple rounds of edits and drafts before submitting it. I highly recommend having a current graduate student or supervisor review your SOP for edits too. Although this is a very iterative process, it will ultimately be a stronger SOP after going through all those rounds of editing and revising. After submitting all of my applications, I began to get invitations for interviews in January and continued to get them throughout February.

Overall, during my second application cycle, I applied to 8 graduate programs, received interviews from 5 programs, and got accepted at the University of Alberta (one acceptance is all it takes!). UofA’s School & Clinical Child Psychology program was one of my top choices due to the research fit with the faculty member I applied to work with, the program’s scientist-practitioner model, the unique (almost dual) specialization in school and clinical psychology, and the location being close to home. This is a 2-year thesis-based Master’s degree which allows you to apply to the PhD in the same program after completing the Master’s. Although I have yet to start my grad school journey, this program seems like a great fit for my interests and goals since it provides training in research and clinical practice with children, adolescents, and families, allowing you to work in a variety of settings after graduating (e.g., schools, private practice, mental health facilities, community organizations, and academia). 

Where can students go if they want to learn more about your experiences?

• Feel free to connect and reach out to me on my LinkedIn! Although not necessary, adding a note with your connection request may be helpful.

• You can also send me an email at [email protected].

• And if you’d like to learn more about the School & Clinical Child Psychology program at the University of Alberta, visit this website: https://www.ualberta.ca/educational-psychology/graduate-programs/school-and-clinical-child-psychology/index.html

Is there any final advice or resources that you would like to share with Invite Health readers?

For anyone reading this who is enrolled in a psychology undergraduate program or thinking of applying to one, just remember that there are a lot of different paths you can take with a psych degree. The degree is pretty much what you make of it and depends on the types of experiences you seek out and what you find interesting. Those four years of your degree are all about gaining new experiences, learning, and finding your path. At the end of your degree, you may realize that grad school is not for you and you want to apply to med or law school instead, or perhaps you want to go into HR or corporate psychology, or maybe you’re more interested in research/academia instead of clinical practice (or vice versa). Either way, from what I have seen and experienced, a psych degree can open up a lot of doors for you, contrary to popular belief.

Jobs, Opportunities & Resources 💻️ 

Most of these resources are reposted on Invite Health’s LinkedIn page

• Specialist, Strategic Research Programs - Heart & Stroke

• Applications open for the McCall MacBain Scholarship

• Research & Communications Specialist at Emerging & Pandemic Infections Consortum | University of Toronto

• You Go, Girl! Awards Nominations | Open to adolescent girls in Ontario 

• Research Assistant at Department of Psychiatry - Sunnybrook Hospital

• Research Scientist, Health AI | OpenAI | LinkedIn 

• Harkness Fellowships in Health Care Policy and Practice | Commonwealth Fund (open to professionals from Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, and the United Kingdom)

• Events & Communication Coordinator at CityLAB

• Applications Now Open for the 2024 Harris Scholarship! | Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights (actioncanadashr.org)

• Regional Youth Champions at Digital Transformation of Health Lab

• Knowledge Mobilization and Social Action Coordinator – Access Alliance 

• Excel to AI for Black & Indigenous Students - Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence

• Youth Micro-Grants Program | Frontline CC (fcccanada.org)

About Invite Health 💌 

I started Invite Health for my younger self who was trying to figure out what to do with my health sci degree that wasn’t a career in medicine.

Today, I’d say this quote is the primary reason I continue to build Invite Health:

The mission of Invite Health is to close this talent-opportunity gap for students in the life and health sciences.

Since 2022, we’re the leading resource for students figuring out what to do with a life sci / health sci degree. I interview students pursuing diverse careers in healthcare, and how they got there - no gatekeeping here. Every newsletter is rich with resources and insights.

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