Why did you decide to do the IDA Master?
During my bachelor in psychology, I often found myself feeling left with more questions than answers. The knowledge gained from the bachelor started to feel relatively superficial. Henceforth, I felt that if I wanted to progress in my understanding of psychology, I needed to delve into research. Specifically, I chose IDA simply due to the most well-known answer in social sciences when asking a professor anything: “well, it depends…”. The IDA Master seemed to take seriously the nuance and complexity of the world rather than opting for a more generalized approach.
Looking at the schedule, which course excites you the most and why?
The traineeships are definitely one of the best features of the IDA Master. You are able to work very closely with academics on a wide variety of topics of your own interest. Whatever your interest is, there is a supervisor ready for your seemingly ludicrous ideas who is excited to help you.
Do you experience stress/pressure in your studies? How do you deal with it?
Pressure more than stress. I definitely experience a certain standard that is set by prior students that have done the Master. Often, you want to live up to that same standard, especially when talking with academics one-on-one, you really get confronted with the fact that you have a long way to go. I deal with the pressure by sometimes simply stepping away, by taking a walk, taking a nap under a tree, or by reading a book, anything to ground me and relax me a little bit. But, most of all, try to enjoy the programme. It can be pretty
overwhelming, but it can also be incredibly fun and exciting.
How can your knowledge from the IDA Master be useful for the real world?
The knowledge that IDA provides you with makes you think about the nuance in the world. Rather than generalization we opt to zoom in on contextual clues that would otherwise be glanced over or only be discussed in the limitation sections of other studies. The constructs we study in psychology are incredibly complex, be it personality or motivation, adopting multi-disciplinary perspective allows for us to view and study these constructs more holistically. I would say the IDA Master provides you with a critical view on research that is incredibly useful in a science such as psychology. This way of thinking could lead to the construction of for example more accurate and personalized assessments and treatment plans in settings such as the clinic.
Why do you think it is important to study what you study?
I firmly believe that the focus on complexity in the constructs we study in psychology has the ability to lead to more personalized and efficient treatment plans within the clinic. There are more people going into therapy than ever and the waiting lists are getting longer by the day. Many people struggle with finding the right treatment for them. After all, there does not seem to be a one size fits all treatment option for all individuals. Henceforth, if we somehow diminish the time spent looking for the best treatment option for an individual, we can help people more quickly and thereby reducing wait times for others immensely. I think understanding the nuance and complexity of how individuals differ from one another is an important stepping stone in realizing this.
What is the most fascinating thing you have learned?
The most fascinating and inspiring thing I have learned is applying ideas and frameworks of other scientific disciplines to psychology. Be it using computations and simulation studies to illustrate a panic disorder. Or applying the concept of complex and dynamic systems from ecology and physics to describe the individualized expressions of the constructs within psychopathology.
What motivates you to keep studying?
I originally wanted to do a clinical master with the intention of being able to help others that have a need for psychological help. I believe that adding any kind of progress or understanding to the literature of psychology can have that same effect in the long run. The idea that I am part of something greater, a small cog in a bigger science machine, I think is very motivating. Especially when it has the potential to lead to making someone’s life easier.
How are you experiencing the relationship with your teachers?
Very positively. Sometimes daunting. Most of all enjoyable and exciting. They are all inspiring people that I genuinely look up to.
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