Andre Edmond, a psychology major with a triple minor in communicative sciences and disorders, cognitive science, and history, has been named the 2025 Outstanding Psychology Senior. Through a winding journey of self-discovery, Edmond found his fit in psychology with plans for a master’s degree in communicative sciences and disorders.
“I’m so honored to be named the PSY Outstanding Senior. It is really humbling,” said Andre. “I love the MSU community, and it means a lot to receive this recognition for what I’ve done here. I would love to see people continue that cycle of supporting other Spartans.”
Andre grew up in Grand Haven, Michigan with his parents who are Singaporean citizens. Upon graduation in 2020, he moved to Singapore for 2 years to fulfill government service requirement with the Singaporean Civil Defense Force where he was a fire and rescue specialist.
This experience gave him time to think more about what he wanted to do as a career and a real-world example of a work setting in which he excelled.
At MSU, Andre submerged himself in various working experiences. He worked for New Student Orientation and in the Engineering Science and Success Academy where he got to work with students as a mentor and tutor. He also works for the Office for Education Abroad, and as a Peer Advisor, continuing the cycle of studying abroad.
From these experiences, Andre realized that he enjoyed being on his feet and helping people. As a sophomore, he decided to become a psychology major so he could further explore this interest.
Andre began working as a student researcher in the Lip, Tongue, and Larynx Lab, a Communicative Sciences and Disorders based lab, where they are studying articulation forces and associated efforts with a goal of developing novel diagnostic and therapeutic approaches to improve communication in people with neurological disease or head & neck cancer. In one project, they measure the muscle exertion when people make lingua alveolar sounds, or when the tongue hits the roof of the mouth.
“I think it's important to understand people if you want to work with people,” said Andre. “In speech pathology, you’re helping people go through a variety of difficult things, maybe they are dealing with a stroke or a traumatic brain injury. My psychology education has helped me understand how people think and why they react in certain ways, which is something that will help me in my career. It’s made me more well-rounded for sure.”
Studying abroad is one thing that Andre recommends to every MSU student.
He first participated in a service-learning based program in Belize where he tutored geometry in a high school and did cultural immersions in the local community. He next went to Mexico where they did community service by painting playgrounds in an elementary school.
“During my study abroad experiences and my time in the military, I’ve learned so much both about the host country and myself,” said Andre. “To give service to a community while also learning about another culture is really humbling. The lessons that I gained overseas is something that I want to carry into my next experience.”
After graduation, Andre will be studying abroad to the United Kingdom where he will be able to go to different hospitals and do clinical observations of speech pathology. Upon his return, he plans to participate in a Fulbright English Teaching assistant award in Indonesia, then returning to MIchigan State to obtain a Master’s in Communicative Sciences & Disorders.
During his time at Michigan State, Andre has seized every opportunity that he can and hopes other students will as well.
“A lot of the time we’re given opportunities, but it is up to us to take that opportunity and jump on it,” said Andre. “Jumping into the unknown lets you meet different people and different perspectives, and helps you figure out what you want to do and the person you want to be. It’s okay to be afraid of the unknown but always take the chance. You never know what you can learn from it.”