With this scholarship, I plan to continue my education at Leeward Community College. I have
recently finished my first semester towards my Associates Degree in Liberal Arts. After I
graduate in 2023, I aim to further my education at the University of Hawaii to pursue
psychology.
This semester, I’ve taken Psychology 100 and Educational Psychology 289 along with my
required courses. In Psychology 100, I learned about the history of psychology and the different
views on it: biological, behavioral, cognitive, humanistic, and psychoanalytic. Between these
five views, I learned about the two forms of therapies, insight (psychoanalytic/humanistic) and
habit (behavioral/cognitive). Overall, insight was my favorite because it explores the
subconscious mind, teaches people to understand themselves better, and improves relationships.
This form of psychotherapy differs from habit therapy which is often biomedical but is equally
as intriguing in how it centers on why people think or act a certain way. Through this unit, I
enjoyed learning about psychological disorders, symptoms, and disorders on a molecular level.
Through mental health services, I plan on becoming a psychotherapist, psychologist, or school
counselor/psychologist. Many psychologists and therapists offer an eclectic approach, a
combination of insight and habit therapies, and I will most likely pursue this route.
Educational Psychology taught me different types of learning styles and how it relates to
psychology. It covered cognitive psychology, writing lesson plans, and how to utilize
conditioning and learning theories, which apply to students in a classroom setting or patients
through teaching them coping strategies or working through trauma. I am planning to get my
Bachelors in psychology regardless, but I am considering getting a teaching certification if I
pursue secondary teaching instead. Even if I choose to be an intermediate or high school teacher,
it can benefit the medical field. Teachers are mandated reporters and vital in detecting the mental
health and wellbeing of children. Noticing specific behavior can help a child receive a mental
health diagnosis or remove them from an unsafe or abusive environment.
Continuing my studies, I strive to better my knowledge of psychology and use my college
education to help the communities future through education or mental health help and awareness.