Cassandra graduated from UConn in 2016 with a BA in Psychological Sciences.
What are you doing now? Why did you choose to go into this field?
I am currently working in the Aircraft Management field at Gama Aviation within the Human Resources Department. I am a Human Resources Assistant for the company and handle majority of the on-boarding of new employees including pilots, maintenance technicians, and employees hired at the main headquarters as well as other locations/bases of the organization. My first class was Industrial/Organizational Psychology course, which is similar to the realm of psychology behind employees in the workplace, and how psychological principles can be used to benefit the employees and workplace environment. I was very intrigued by this realm and since UConn doesn’t have a Human Resources Major, I decided to take the Psychological Sciences route into this field. I am also a part of the Masters of Human Resource Management Program here at UConn. I decided to pursue my Masters in order to gain educational background directly in Human Resources since I was not able to do so with my undergraduate career.
How has your UConn degree helped prepare you for what you’re doing now?
I believe my UConn degree has prepared me a lot for what I am doing now. In terms of having that Psychological Sciences background I better understand how people think and work in which I can use these tools to assist me when helping employees. I also think that even the general education requirements have helped me as well because I have found while in the professional field of work I can use the random facts I have learned in these courses to give me a better foundation for certain tasks or projects assigned to me.
What was one of your favorite things about UConn?
I loved the high energy and passion students felt about being a part of UConn. The school spirit is very high and I enjoyed all the love and support that the students provide one another. I transferred from Emmanuel College in Boston, MA and my top priority when looking for a school was that I wanted to love where I went. The best feeling is loving where you go and knowing that those around you love it as well and you all want to succeed.
What was your favorite psych course you took?
My favorite Psychology course was Abnormal Psychology taught by Dean Cruess. As much as the class was a lot of memorization I found lecture very interested and Dean was a great professor. He was very passionate about what he did which make me enjoy the course even more. I found learning about the abnormal behaviors and diagnosis of mental disorders very fascinating. The information I learned in this course I can still reflect on even to this day. Highly recommend!