Dr. Sharon Adusei earned a PhD in Psychology from Michigan State, specializing in Clinical Science. She is a Clinical Strategy Manager at a digital health start-up, she works clinically with children and parents in her private practice, and she services on two boards. She shared recently about her time at MSU, how it set her up for success in her many roles today, and what advice she has for current students.
What are you currently up to?
Currently, I am a Clinical Strategy Manager at Modern Health, a digital health start-up that provides mental health care services around the world. I continue to work clinically with children and parents in my private practice, focused on early childhood anxiety disorders, challenges with emotion regulation, and functional pain conditions. I serve on the Board at Therapists in Tech, a global community of nearly 3,000 mental health professionals engaged or interested in the digital health industry and was recently elected on to the American Psychological Association Board of the Advancement of Psychology in the Public Interest (BAPPI).
What do you love about what you do?
What I love most about my role at Modern Health is leveraging technology to disseminate evidence-based practices around the world to youth and their parents. I work with cross-functional teams to develop scripts and record meditations for children of all different ages and have the opportunity to host a podcast called the Journey of Parenting that we're able to make publicly available and is full of actionable tips that parents can apply to their lives right away.
How did your education at MSU Psychology uniquely prepare you for your career?
I was given the permission by my primary mentors to say yes to a lot of different types of activities and interests at MSU Psychology, which allowed me to explore different clinical settings, research topics, and clinical populations - this was crucial for me to learn how to apply our clinical science knowledge flexibly within fidelity (which is what I do every day now!). Additionally, knowing how to translate research findings into practical takeaways (like you might learn how to do in a clinical setting) is key to my role now.
What are five words to describe the MSU Clinical Science program?
Rigorous, M&Ms (we ran a lot of delay of gratification tasks...), camaraderie, and supportive
What makes you proud to be a MSU Psychologist?
It was clear after mingling with other psychologists and trainees outside of MSU that the training we received in the MSU Clinical Science program left us well-prepared to figure out our next steps. This was certainly something to feel proud of.
Did anyone at MSU positively impact you?
For sure my primary mentors, Drs. Emily Durbin & Jason Moser, who taught me how to think critically about every aspect of the scientific process (the most important skill you may take away from your doctoral training) and how to translate all that we do in academia to the real world. Our Clinical Director, Dr. Natalie Moser as well as my clinical supervisors, particularly Dr. Timothy Goth-Owens taught me how to be clinically effective in both assessment and therapy and bring more of myself into the clinical encounter without crossing boundaries. And of course, making it through the MSU Clinical Science program would not have been possible without my cohort mates and other senior graduate students who were there to give us endless advice and recommendations.
Any advice to current psych students who are looking to make an impact?
Get clear on your why and use that as your guidepost...but along the way, keep an open mind about how and what your impact might look like. Focus on the intersection of your unique talents/skill set and what you're most passionate about.
Anything else you would like to add?
Hang in there and find the moments of joy and relief that you can. Grad school is so grueling, and there's no way around it but through. Invest in your own self-care whether that's going to therapy (which I have continued since grad school), working out, sleeping, etc. - take the same advice that we give to all of our clients since you deserve wellness too. Oh, and that thing that you keep putting off that you really want to do for your well-being that you say "until this next thing is done THEN I can do it" - just schedule it now and do it. :)