Natalie Favorite is a graduate of UC San Diego with a degree in Psychology, and is a current Master's student of Marriage and Family Therapy at Bethel Seminary in San Diego. Her focus is on Bowen Family Systems therapy, paying attention to the interplay between the self and the environment over time, particularly in regards to the intrapersonal experience of anxiety and its influence on one's experience. She is also a staff member at UCSD in the Structural Engineering Department, which has provided her with a well-rounded perspective of the experience of STEM students and the ways in which functioning could be improved.
Graduate students are pulled in many directions during their time in school. They face intense workplace demands, social demands, personal stressors, and strive to do it all well. For many, graduate school is a time of intense anxiety rather than a time of personal and academic growth. This cycle of feeling overwhelmed can easily become too much to bear, and school becomes a time of intense pressure. What can be done to reverse the trend? Can things be done to improve anxiety, stress management, and one's subjective experience?
This presentation will discuss statistics on the graduate school experience of those in STEM fields, as well as what can be done to improve the graduate student experience while improving quality of work. From addressing myths and stigma to receiving help, to finding practical ways to improve functioning, this presentation will provide information relevant to all in the demanding academic field. There is no person who is exempt from the stressors of life in a demanding environment, but there are ways to optimize your approach to it.
Lindsay Walton
lwalton@ucsd.edu
(858)822-3273