Finding Your Fit in Clinical Psychology: Ashley Rodrigues’ Journey to Graduate School
Meet Ashley
Our latest guest in the Inside Clinical blog series is Ashley Rodrigues, a second-year Master’s student in the School and Applied Child Psychology program at Western University. Originally from Toronto, Ontario, Ashley completed her undergraduate degree in psychology at the University of Guelph-Humber before moving to London, Ontario to begin her graduate training.
Ashley’s interests in understanding people’s thoughts and behaviours started well before university. She loved to read as a kid, and also loved the idea of being able to dig into the characters’ minds. Taking the grade 11 anthropology, sociology, and psychology course solidified her interest in psychology which led her to pursue it in her undergraduate degree.
“The more I learned, the more I was like, okay, I just have more questions.”
Ashley is a big believer in early intervention, particularly when it comes to social-emotional development and trauma. Knowing she wanted to work with kids and teens, she was drawn to a program that combines school and clinical psychology. Ashley’s current research focuses on neurodivergent young adults' experiences with dating violence. She is also looking into youth resilience in the face of the environmental crisis, which is what she is considering for her PhD.
Throughout the conversation, she thoughtfully shared her experiences that led her to where she is now. Ashley opened up about her first application cycle, what she did differently the second time, and why fit mattered most.
Building Experience at Guelph-Humber
Ashley has lived in Toronto her whole life, so when choosing a university, she wanted to stay in the GTA. She learned about Guelph-Humber towards the end of grade 11 and felt that it was the underdog compared to other Toronto schools. When she started hearing more about how collaborative it is, and their focus on combining university coursework and college style applied experience, it appealed to her.
She loved how the class sizes were a lot smaller than a lot of Toronto universities, so she felt like she really got a chance to get to know her peers and professors very well. She thinks those connections are a big part of what led her to being in graduate school today.
“Just the kind of mentorship and networking I got that got me some really great experiences and some great advice”
Ashley started volunteering in research during her second year. She started by helping a professor with a project that entailed finding pictures of celebrities' faces in different lightings and settings, and preparing them to be used as stimuli in experiments. She emphasized how this role was important because it got her foot in the door, and it helped her learn more about how research projects run.
“Even those little menial tasks are so important. And like someone has to be doing the work.”
She later gained paid opportunities, got to lead studies, and wrote a manuscript that got published in her fourth year.
For clinical experience, through Guelph-Humber, she did a practicum placement at a psychology clinic in Toronto. That opportunity was valuable to her because she got to work not only with psychologists, but other mental health professionals. She saw what the psychiatrist was doing every day, and saw what the social workers were doing. That experience made her sure that she wanted to go into clinical psychology specifically.
Learning from Rejection and Trying Again
First Application Cycle
Ashley completed her first application cycle after taking a gap year to get more experience. Looking back she noted how a big mistake she made was only applying to schools in Toronto.
“Again, growing up in Toronto, like I mentioned my whole family being there. The first time I really only wanted to apply in Toronto. I was like, okay, like I've done all the work. I did my undergrad. I have this experience. Like I can just apply in Toronto and it'll probably be okay. Like naively thinking, it'll work out. There's three schools in Toronto. That's enough. So I think that's definitely looking back, a big mistake that I made. You probably want to apply more broadly, which is what I did the second time.”
The first time she applied, she was really nervous, just knowing that most people don't get in on their first cycle.
“I'm probably not gonna get in. I don't want people to really know because I don't want them to be disappointed when I don't get in.”
She explained that she was self-sabotaging by thinking that way. She also mentioned how she kept a lot of application materials to herself which ended up giving her a lot less opportunity to get advice on her application.
“I think I let myself miss out on a lot more by not pushing myself and being more confident the first time, even though I knew people don't normally get in the first time.”
Second Application Cycle
“I already felt that rejection, I felt that failure, and now I wanted to go hard.”
In her second application cycle, she made sure to be open to hearing different perspectives and to letting go of the anxiety of, “it's not gonna be a good enough application.”
Something she feels that she neglected the first time was fit in the programs.
“I knew what I was really passionate about and I think that combined with only wanting to apply in Toronto the first time meant that I wasn't really making the best match that I could in selling myself that way.”
In the second application cycle, Ashley applied to five schools and seven programs which were mostly throughout the province. In Ontario, she was only applying to schools, programs, and professors where she felt like the match was there. She thinks that combined with asking for people's perspective, saying, “Do you see a fit here?” meant that she was applying in a more targeted way which she believes is what made her successful. Ashley learned to research all the professors that she wanted to connect with, know exactly what they were doing in their research, and think about how she could contribute to their labs.
“I think shifting my approach to that just made it natural that my application stood out to those individual people.”
Choosing Western University
One of the main reasons Ashley decided that Western was the right fit was because of the initial interview. During her interview with her potential supervisor, she explained that it felt like they were on the exact same wavelength in the conversation.
“I think that was super important because you have to work with this person for a lot of years. So I like that the vibe was really similar from the get go.”
Additionally, she gave the advice to try and find someone in that lab, message them on LinkedIn, and see if they'd be open to talking. She did that for a couple labs and the grad students were really open to speaking. She felt that it was helpful for getting a better sense of what actual day to day life was like working with that supervisor as well.
Ashley also was drawn to Western because of a familiar sense of community, much like the one she found at Guelph-Humber. Additionally, the program sits within the Faculty of Education, allowing her to work alongside teacher candidates and curriculum developers, which gives her a fuller picture of how schools shape children’s lives. And, the in-house clinic adds another layer, with clinical psychologists offering mentorship and skills
sessions even before students start their practicums.
As a Toronto native, Ashley admitted that she worried London would feel small. Instead, she’s found farmers markets, vintage shops, and a good food scene.
The Importance of Networking
When asked what students should focus on besides research experience, Ashley stated that networking and building relationships with mentors is important. Building those relationships is important for reference letters and applications, but it’s also valuable in gaining opportunities in research or different areas.
Then also just guidance, whether that's trying to figure out what you're doing out of undergrad when you are taking a gap year or seeing if they have other connections in their network that they can help set you up with that you might not have known of in the first place. Ashley explained how those mentors made the difference for her.
“And those strong relationships, they take effort for you to make and they're a bit difficult. Like you're already balancing so much as a student, it can be really intimidating. But I think it's really rewarding in so many different areas.”
Staying Genuine and Being Yourself When Reaching Out
Ashley notes that reaching out to a professor or potential supervisor can be nerve-wracking especially when you don’t know them yet. She advises students to remember to stay genuine and have your homework done when reaching out. As opposed to sending something generic or trying to send the “perfect” email, being yourself and showing your interest sets you apart when trying to make connections with people you eventually want to work with.
Focusing on What You Can Control
Ashley made a point to remember what's in your control and stop worrying about things that aren't.
“I think I'd spent so much time worrying about the applications once they were already sent and rechecking things and being like, is there something I could have done better?”
Simply waiting, letting the process happen, and seeing what happens out of it is the best way to go according to Ashley. She believes that it's a lot of wasted energy when you could be doing things to improve, in case you have to apply for the next cycle, instead of spending hours checking and rechecking.
Fill in the Blank with Ashley
As part of our interview, Ashley played the Speed Round Fill in the Blank game, sharing some of her self-care strategies and advice for future applicants. Here are some highlights:
The best advice I got during my application process was …
“It doesn't really matter what cycle you get in, because at ninety all you're gonna remember is that you were a great psychologist.”
If I weren't in psychology, I'd probably be…
“Getting a PhD in something else because since I was little I knew I wanted to be a professor, which I think I'm still gonna end up being with my clinical psych PhD. I really want to teach, that's something that's important to me. But yeah, when I was little I actually wanted to be an English professor, so maybe that.”
On a stressful deadline day I always…
“I find time to take a walk because I get a little bit stir crazy and I find moving my body helps with that anxiety.”
Ten years from now I hope I'm…
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