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Awards and Achievements

 

AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENTS: PSYCHOLOGY MAJORS

Information will be posted as it becomes available.
Postings will be kept on this page for up to 12 months.

CONVOCATION NEWS - GENERAL INFO

For each of the last 15 years (1995-2009) in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Waterloo, more students graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Psychology than a Bachelor's degree in any other Major (e.g., Accounting, Economics, English, etc.).

CONVOCATION NEWS FOR JUNE 2009

 

MISCELLANEOUS GENERAL INFORMATON
(E.G., CONVOCATION DATES, GRAD PHOTOS, ETC.)

Click here for details.

PSYCHOLOGY CONVOCATION LUNCHEON (BA and BSc)

The Psychology Convocation Luncheon will be held in the Psychology Lounge (PAS 3005) on June 11, 2009 at 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.  Presentations will be made at 12:30 p.m.

Those graduating (BA Psych and BSc Psych) were sent an invitation to the luncheon in May for themselves and the guests that they will be taking to the convocation ceremony. Please submit RSVPs to Louise Porter (L2porter@uwaterloo.ca) by Friday June 5.  

HOW MANY PSYCHOLOGY MAJORS GRADUATING?

We extend heartfelt congratulations to 148 people who will be receiving Psychology degrees at the June convocation:

  • 99 Honours BA in Psychology
    (including those doing Joint Honours or Arts and Business)
  • 4 Honours BSc in Psychology
  • 5 Joint Honours Psychology (Home Faculty not Arts)
  • 23 Three Year General BA in Psychology
    (7 of these were Distance Education Students)
  • 17 Four Year General BA in Psychology

Additional convocation numbers:

  • 65 receiving Psychology Minor designations
  • 116 graduating with an academic plan (Minor, Option, or Specialization) in Human Resources Management (HRM).

The following photo was taken at the Psychology Convocation Luncheon. Congratulations everyone! Thanks for sharing your special day with us.

June 2009 convocation luncheon

 

DEPARTMENTAL AWARD FOR DISTINGUISHED ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT IN THE HONOURS PSYCHOLOGY PROGRAM

On an annual basis, each department in the Faculty of Arts selects the top graduating student from their Honours program for the Departmental Award for Distinguished Academic Achievement.  The Awards are presented at the June convocation. Those graduating in June as well as the previous October convocation are considered for the award.

The Psychology Department is thrilled to announce that Antonina Joukova is the 2009 recipient of the Departmental Award for Distinguished Academic Achievement in the Honours Psychology Program. 

Joukova

Antonina received 2 Departmental Scholarships (Bryden Scholarship in 2007 and the R.H. Walters Scholarship in 2008) for academic achievement during her undergraduate studies at UW. She graduated October 2008 with an Honours BA in Psychology, Arts and Business Coop and the Digital Arts Communications Specialization. Antonina currently holds a contract position on the Admissions team at the UW Registrar's Office.

Congratulations Antonina on your outstanding academic achievement and best wishes for success in your future endeavours! We look forward to seeing you at the Psychology Convocation Luncheon.

A list of all of the Departmental Award winners will be in the convocation program. 

SPECIAL MERIT AWARD - HONOURS PSYCHOLOGY

The Special Merit Award is given by the Psychology Department to an undergraduate student in Honours Psychology after the degree requirements have been completed.  The award is given to a student who is deserving of recognition for their strong contribution to the intellectual life of undergraduate psychology. Students receiving the award will generally be students who cannot be considered for other departmental awards (e.g., Walters, Bryden,  or Currie), most typically because of factors such as previous degree work in other fields or long interruptions to their academic careers.  The award is not given annually, but on an occasional as-merited basis at the discretion of the Psychology Department.

We are pleased to announce that Frank Preston will be receiving the Special Merit Award at the 2009 Psychology Convocation Luncheon. Congratulations Frank on your outstanding academic achievement in Psychology, and we look forward to your continued involvment in our labs during the coming year!

HONOURS THESIS AWARDS - 2009

Once a year, the Psychology Department recognizes the achievements of a small number of students who have produced the most outstanding Honours Theses (Psych 499A/B/C) over the past year (i.e., Spring/Fall/Winter).

35 of the 108 Honours Psychology Majors graduating June 2009 completed an Honours Thesis. Honours Thesis Awards will be presented to 6 of those 35 students at the Psychology Convocation Luncheon on June 11:

Kristi Baerg
Thesis Title: Communication in Children with a Diagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Supervisor: Liz Nilsen

Nicole Fernandes
Thesis Title: Feeling Truly Known: How Experiencing Authenticity Promotes Social Connectedness
Supervisor: Joanne Wood

Colleen Merrifield
Thesis Title: Is It All About Time? Investigating Why Right Neglect is Milder than Left Neglect
Supervisor: James Danckert

Frank Preston
Thesis Title: Numerical Number Size: Impact of Size Congruity
Supervisor: Jonathan Fugelsang

Leia Saltzman
Thesis Title: Teachers' Perception of High Risk Youth: The Transition from a Life Skills Classroom to the Workplace
Supervisor: Maureen Drysdale

Caylie Seyler
Thesis Title: Rules Guiding Ownership Inference: First-Controlling Versus First-Touching
Supervisor: Ori Friedman

Message from the Honours Thesis Coordinators:

'Congratulations to everyone who completed an Honours thesis. This is a big achievement! Most theses were of high quality this year and a few were really exceptional. We granted Thesis Awards for six truly excellent theses which we believed deserved a specific recognition based on the quality of their research and writing. We wish success to all the Honours thesis students in their future endeavours. '

- Dr. Roxane Itier and Dr. Erik Woody,

SPECIAL FAMILY EVENT - FATHER AND SON GRADUATING JUNE 2009

Congratulations to Frank and Brian Preston who graduated with Bachelors degrees in Psychology at June 2009 Convocation!

Frank and Brian Preston

ARTS GRAD CLASS CHALLENGE 2009

Click here for details.

JUNE 2009 CLASS COMPOSITES (PHOTOS)

For those of you who had graduation photos taken by Life Touch Photography, the company advises that they will be handing out composites at the convocation ceremonies. If you will not be attending convocation, please contact their office directly to make arrangements for your composite to be mailed or picked up.

Email: waterlooquestions@lifetouch.com
Office: Student Life Centre Room 104
Ph: 519-888-4567 Ext 37539

 

CONVOCATION NEWS FOR OCT 2009

 

Congratulations to 55 people who will be receiving Psychology degrees at the October convocation:

  • 18 Honours BA in Psychology
    (including those doing Joint Honours or Arts and Business)
  • 1 Honours BSc in Psychology
  • 2 Joint Honours Psychology (Home Faculty not Arts)
  • 19 Three Year General BA in Psychology
  • 15 Four Year General BA in Psychology

Additional convocation numbers:

  • 18 receiving Psychology Minor designations
  • 26 graduating with an academic plan (Minor, Option, or Specialization) in Human Resources Management (HRM).

RECIPIENTS OF THE PSYCHOLOGY MEMORIAL AWARDS 2008/2009
(announced April 2009)

Funding for the Psychology Memorial Awards (Walters or Bryden Awards) is possible thanks to the generosity of donors such as faculty, staff, retirees, alumni and friends of the Psychology Department.

Eight people (names below) received awards for outstanding academic achievement in Honours Psychology. Congratulations everyone and best wishes for continued success!

R.H. Walters Award

These awards are given in memory of Dr. Richard Walters who was the founding Chairman of the Psychology Department as well as a renowned scholar in the field of social development.  

  • Eric A. Irvine
  • Erin Kelly
  • Danika Lyons
  • Robert Moreland
  • Cynthia Shih

M.P. Bryden Award

These awards are given in memory of Dr. Philip Bryden who was a distinguished faculty member in our department as well as a renowned scholar in the field of human hemispheric lateralization.

  • Rachel Morrison
  • Samantha Stephens
  • Dylan Thompson

RECIPIENT OF THE CURRIE SCHOLARSHIP 2008/2009
(announced April 2009)

Funding for the Currie Scholarship, given in recognition of outstanding academic achievement in Honours Psychology, came from the revenue collected from an air hockey machine that was donated to the Campus Centre (now the Student Life Centre) by Mrs. Currie in the 1970s.  

The 2008/2009 recipient was M. Mackenzie Turow. Congratulations Mackenzie and best wishes for continued success!

RECIPIENTS OF THE NSERC UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH AWARDS IN THE 2009/2010 CYCLE
(announced Feb 2009)

Further details about these award.

We are looking forward to having the following 8 people working in our labs in 2009:

  • Wing Hei (Klint) Fung (supervisor: Jennifer Stolz)
  • Dushiyanthini Kenthirarajah (supervisor: Colin MacLeod)
  • Ivana Lizdek (supervisor: Erik Woody)
  • Leanne Quigley (supervisor: Dan Smilek)
  • Navaneethan Siva (supervisor: Jonathan Fugelsang)
  • Shelbie Sutherland (supervisor: Ori Friedman)
  • Amanda Tkaczyk (supervisor: Myra Fernandes)
  • Derick Valadao (supervisor: James Danckert)

FUTURE PLANS

A Bachelor’s degree in Psychology is a very practical undergraduate degree and the career paths of those graduating will be diverse.  Some will seek employment while others will further their education.

We would appreciate hearing about your plans for the coming year.  This information is very useful to current and prospective Psychology Majors who are seeking career advice. 

Please email your information to Heather Smith if you haven’t already done so.  Include in your message whether or not details can be included on this website.

PSYCHOLOGY BACHELOR DEGREE HOLDERS - EXAMPLES OF EMPLOYMENT AFTER GRADUATION

  • Erin-Lee Bresser - Records Assistant at the UW Registrar's Office (2009)
  • Danny Dakak - Research Assistant for the Evaluation Studies Unit at the University of British Columbia (2008)
  • Samantha Daniel - Project Manager for Dave Hammond's Research Lab, UW Psych and Health Depts (2009)
  • Brenda Fraser - Research Technologist, Defence Research and Development Canada, Toronto (2009)
  • Brian Preston - Claims Analyst, Sunlife in Waterloo (2009)
  • Frank Preston - lab manager for the ERP Lab (Fugelsang/Itier) in the Psychology Dept at UW (2009)
  • Elyse Redden - Academic Support Officer, St. Jerome's University (2008)
  • Christina Starmans - Lab Coordinator for the Infant Cognition and Communication Lab at New York University (2008)
  • Emily C. Webb - Residence Life Manager at the Univ of B.C. (Okanagan campus - Kelowna BC) (2008)

EXAMPLES OF THE VARIETY OF PROGRAMS THAT PSYCHOLOGY BACHELOR DEGREE HOLDERS PURSUE AFTER GRADUATION - START DATE OF FALL 2009

  • Arts, Masters of
    • Mark Laframboise - School for Interactive Arts & Technology at Simon Fraser
      University

  • Business, Entrepreneurship & Technology, Masters of
    • Philip Hatcher - Center for Business, Entrepreneurship & Technology (CBET) at UW

  • Child Studies, Masters of
    • Minella Rodrigues - University of Toronto

  • College Programs:
    • Michelle Lehmann - Autism and  Behavioural Science at Fanshawe College

  • Education, Faculty of


  • Education, Masters of Education
    • Carrie Crowther - D'Youville University

  • Industrial Relations, Masters of
    • Kathleen Schafer - Masters of Industrial Relations and Human Resources at the University of Toronto

  • Law School:
    • Dana Lue - York University, Osgoode Hall
    • Jenna Telesford - Queen's University

  • Library and Information Sciences, Masters of
    • Shant Alajajian - University of Western Ontario
    • Martha Stortz - University of Western Ontario

  • Occupational Therapy, Masters of
    • Meghan Watson - University of Western Ontario

  • Psychology, Graduate School in
    • Andrew Abela - McGill Univ (Behaviourial Neuroscience)
    • Kristi Baerg - University of Manitoba (School Psychology)
    • Michael Druker - UW (Behavioural Neuroscience)
    • Greta James - UW (Cognition)
    • Jesse Langstaff - UW (Cognition)
    • Ashley McKinley - UW (Developmental Psychology)
    • Zhaleh Semnani-Azad - UW (Industrial/Organizational Psychology)
    • Cynthia Shin - York University (Clinical Developmental)
    • Christina Starmans - Yale University (Developmental Psychology)
    • Cindy Ward - Wilfrid Laurier University (Social Psychology)

  • Science, Masters of
    • Kristen Blackler - MSc in Social & Personality Psychology at Queen's University
    • Matt Johnson - MSc in Anatomy and Cell Biology at the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry at the University of Western Ontario

  • Social Work
    • Alison Polan - Bachelor of Social Work Program at Renison College, UW
    • Leia Saltzman - Masters of Social Work at Boston College

  • Speech-Language Pathology, Graduate Studies
    • Kim Brittain - University of Western Ontario

  • etc (help us to add more names and fields to the list)

PRESIDENT'S CIRCLE AWARD WINNERS - PSYCHOLOGY MAJORS

Eleven Psychology Majors received the President's Circle Award for Volunteerism or Leadership in the past 6 years (2003-2008) including:

Congratulations everyone!

Click here for further details about the award.