Health Track Ambassadors
Nicholas Herzog
3rd Year | PsyD Program | Health Track
Email: herz3366@pacificu.edu
Undergraduate Institution | University of Colorado Denver
Hometown | Denver, CO
Why I chose Pacific | I chose Pacific University because of its track on training to work within an integrated healthcare team. The School of Graduate Psychology is housed within the College of Healthcare Professionals. This allows for numerous opportunities to work/ practice working on integrated teams. You can take classes taught by professors across the College of Healthcare Professionals to learn career competencies and the importance of working on an integrated team. There are many practicum opportunities to work on integrated primary care or specialty medicine teams. Pacific allows you to explore the role of a health psychologist on the theoretical and practical levels, which I believe is unique to our program.
Favorite PsyD course | Health Psychology Seminar: This course occurs every summer and fosters a community within the health track. It is taken by each health psychology student across cohorts and allows for mentorship and connection across years of experience. We cover a unique specialty related to health psychology and are provided with different opportunities within the field and specific interventions. This class allows time to practice different interventions, exposes you to topics of specialty medicine, and often has guest speakers working in that area who can provide first-hand experience and education and are always happy to answer questions and facilitate curiosity.
Hobbies | I love anything outdoors. I am an avid cyclist and have enjoyed touring Western Oregon on my bike. I love spending time with my wife, cooking, and hiking with our two dogs (Phil & Kona). I am a certified sommelier and love exploring Oregon's beautiful wine country. I enjoy escaping the city in the winter to go skiing or heading to the coast in the summer for a change of pace. The summers are beautiful in Oregon and provide the best climate to tend to our garden. We also love exploring restaurants in our neighborhood.
Ali Fisher
4th Year | PsyD Program | Health Track
Email: fish4657@pacificu.edu
Undergraduate Institution | CA State University Channel Islands
Hometown | North Bend, OR
Why I chose Pacific | I chose Pacific because of the emphases you could choose from, allowing for a more competitive specialty career. Another thing that sparked my interest at Pacific was its faculty. Each interviewer I spoke with further confirmed my appreciation for this school. Sharing similar interests and admiring how the program was organized, made me feel secure. Knowing that this graduate program offered a health psychology emphasis was really what made my decision. Being able to train and take course work related to integrated healthcare and collaborative teamwork is not something you get to experience in every PsyD program. The health psychology emphasis allows for students to become future Health Psychologists, which is hard to come by in most states. The beautiful forests, mountains, and waterfalls in OR and WA also helped! There is an abundance of activities to enjoy in this outdoorsy community.
Favorite PsyD course | Psychological Assessment & Management of Chronic Pain
This course has been my favorite class I’ve taken at Pacific. It allowed for an in-depth understanding into appropriate protocols to utilize when measuring severity and type of pain, as well as the important biopsychosocial factors that influence pain and pain behaviors. Additional topics covered throughout this course included self-management programs and strength-based approaches to improving day-day functioning of patients with chronic pain. As pain is one of my main clinical focuses, it was extraordinary to have the opportunity to enrich myself in this type of knowledge. It’s a must-take course!
Hobbies | Although I am originally from the OR coast, I lived in Southern CA for 6.5 years. While there, I took up Hunter/Jumpers and it became a progressive hobby of mine. I started competing and even winning in my division. Towards the end of my undergraduate career, I took Bee Biology/Apiculture, leading to the beginning of my other hobby as a beekeeper. Keeping bees brings me so much joy from knowing how beneficial eating organic unprocessed raw honey is, to watching my bees thrive and help their surrounding environments flourish. I also mentored local beekeepers on safe and effective beekeeping practices, such as hive management. However, I am also a homebody and greatly enjoy lounging around my house with my 2 cats (Beans, Olive) and 2 dogs (Maya, Dexter). It is important and much needed to find a balance between home life and school life, even if that means scheduling it in. If anyone has any further questions or just wants to chat about life, feel free to hit me up!
Stephanie George
3rd Year | PsyD Program | Health Track
Email: geor7190@pacificu.edu
Undergraduate Institution | The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Hometown | Chattanooga, TN
Why I chose Pacific | I chose Pacific University because of its emphasis on community, compassion, and discovery. In addition, I’d always wanted to live in the Pacific Northwest!
Favorite PsyD course | Clinical Foundations. I found the Clinical Foundations courses particularly useful as they helped me better understand the process of diagnosing, challenged me to build new skills, and allowed me to build confidence early in my clinical career through a process of collaboration and constructive feedback.
Hobbies | I enjoy hiking, camping, and playing indoor soccer for the Portland Potatoes. I love hanging out with friends, taking weekend adventures to coast, and relaxing at home with a good book. I have a German Shepherd mix named Stella – she’s my sidekick and she’s fall in love with the PNW too!
Sneha Parikh
2nd Year | PsyD Program | Health Track
Email: pari9919@pacificu.edu
Undergraduate Institution | University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ
Hometown | Phoenix, AZ
Why I chose Pacific | I chose Pacific University because of its track in both clinical training and research experience. Additionally, I knew the Health track would provide me with the opportunity and experience to work in an integrated care setting. The experiences I have gained from Pacific University’s program, thus far, have been invaluable. I am thankful to have received such support from my mentors, colleagues, and community. Finally, both the campus and the PNW area are absolutely beautiful.
Favorite PsyD course | Brief Psychotherapies: In this course, I gained so many clinical tools I was directly able to apply in therapy. This course allowed me to better understand the importance of being able to access mental health services through a person-centered, brief intervention model. Also, Dr. Antick’s passion for the subject makes it an extremely special course.
Hobbies | I enjoy spending my free time reading and painting. I also love exploring the city, including its adorable coffee shops. I’m excited to keep exploring and discovering its hidden gems.
Haila Rosero
2nd Year | PsyD Program | Health Track
Email: haila.rosero@pacificu.edu
Undergrad: University of La Verne, La Verne, CA
Hometown: Hesperia, CA
Why I chose Pacific: I chose Pacific University for many reasons. The first is the Health Track. I have very strong interests in Geropsychology, end-of-life care, and working in a health care setting. I knew that this track would effectively prepare me for post-grad training and work in these areas. Additionally, the sense of community really drew me to Pacific. The mentoring opportunities, student committees, and interprofessional opportunities within the College of Health Professions stood out to me. I also appreciate the strong relationships Pacific has built with its community.
Favorite PsyD course: Group Interventions: I'm currently taking this course with Dr. Hetrick who makes this class so fun and interesting. She teaches this course in an experiential way, which is something that helps me personally learn and retain information. Through this course I've developed a strong interest in group therapy. I'm excited to use the content I've learned in this class to lead group therapy with members of the community.
Hobbies: In my free time I enjoy exploring cute local libraries and coffee shops. I also enjoy creative writing, reading, and video games.
Erika Yindeemark
3rd Year | PsyD Program | Health Track
Email: yind7343@pacificu.edu
Undergraduate Institution | Loyola University Chicago
Hometown | Laredo, TX
Why I chose Pacific | The Health Track was why I chose Pacific University. I found the health track to be incredibly appealing because it offers opportunities to practice in interdisciplinary healthcare settings. I’ve always been fascinated in the mind and body connection and I found myself wanting to understand how biological, behavioral, and social factors can influence health, and illness. Another reason behind my decision to be part of Pacific University is its proximity to Portland. Portland, Oregon has a thriving food cart culture and a great food scene. Also, if you’re into coffee, Portland also offers an established coffee culture, which is a plus for me. I knew immediately that this school aligned with my values and interests in psychology.
Favorite PsyD course | Case Conceptualization: I love this class because you start to evolve as a future psychologist and incorporate theoretical orientations that are comfortable and effective in your practice. Taking this class with Dr. Schwartz has given me the opportunity to enhance my critical thinking skills which empowers me to assess complex situations and develop effective strategies for clients. Dr. Schwartz is an amazing professor who is passionate about the field of psychology. He promotes the importance of being a culturally competent practitioner and the essentialness of lifelong learning.
Hobbies | Trail running with my dog Louisa. Film, collecting vinyl records, checking out the local shops and restaurants in Portland, cult horror movies, and paddling Timothy Lake in the summers.