In this episode, Emma and Cadie are joined by Lillian Ryskamp to discuss the many facets of psychology research, imposter syndrome, and how you, too, can become a research assistant.
EMMA: Hello, welcome to CHSS Connection, a podcast where we interview different students about all things CHSS, from academics to careers to everything in between. This is a student success podcast for CHSS students by CHSS students. However, if you're not a CHSS student, welcome. We're so glad you're here. I'm Emma Howard. CADIE: I'm Cadie Junker. BOTH: And we're your hosts. CADIE: In this episode, we're discussing being a research assistant within the psychology program. Of course, we could not do this alone. So today we are joined by Lillian Ryskamp. Lillian, thank you so much for joining us. How are you doing? LILLIAN: I'm doing great. Thanks so much for having me on. EMMA: Of course, we're happy to have you here. So to kick things off, Lillian, what's your class and major? LILLIAN: So I am a junior at Mason. I'm actually a double major in psychology and religious studies. And this semester is my first semester with a double major. So I had started off as a psych major, and then I declared a religious studies minor. And now I do both as a double major. EMMA: How's that going for you figuring out the double major? LILLIAN: It's going really well so far. I mean, knock on wood, it's, again, only my first semester, but I've been really enjoying it. I really have found a passion for religious studies throughout my college career. So I have been really, I feel really thankful and lucky to be able to dive into it a little bit deeper in addition to my psychology major. And credits wise, it hasn't been too bad so far. I usually take summer classes. So it's been definitely doable. EMMA: We love summer classes, always helps us catch up and stay on top of things. LILLIAN: 100% CADIE: That we do. Can you tell us a little bit about your position as a research assistant? LILLIAN: Yeah, I'd love to. So I am currently working as an undergraduate research assistant in the psychology department. So I work under a PhD candidate in the industrial organizational field of psychology. So that's just kind of like one of the subgroups of psychology. And I have been working with her for, this is my second semester. And essentially we work on a study using eye trackers. So we use three different eye tracking machines that track participants' eye movements throughout the study session. And then we use that information to see where they have been looking and collect data and information about them on a Zoom call. EMMA: So you just alluded to that about the eye tracking. So is that the project that you're currently working on? LILLIAN: That is the project that I work on as a research assistant under that graduate student. So my own personal study interests are a little bit different. I kind of got into that because I had a connection with a researcher. She was actually one of my professors and we met and she needed a research assistant. Does that answer your question? EMMA & CADIE: Yeah. EMMA: Yeah. What, in addition to that, what are some other tasks or responsibilities that you do? LILLIAN: Me personally, I mostly help run sessions. It's basically just meeting the participants, explaining the process to them, making sure they understand how to use the equipment, making sure they understand what's going on throughout the process. And then there's kind of like the technological side of it, which is like the actual setup of the eye trackers. And then like the proctoring part, which is where I just give them instructions over Zoom essentially. And then we do have another undergraduate research assistant who is solely in charge of scheduling. So that is another big part of it. It's very hard to coordinate that. Luckily, I'm not the one who has to do that, but we have someone whose sole responsibility is to do the scheduling. CADIE: Very nice. You had mentioned earlier industrial organizational psychology. For anybody who doesn't know, what does that branch entail? LILLIAN: Yeah, that's a great question. So it's basically, I would say it's like workplace psychology from my understanding of it. Again, this is not my specific subfield, so I'm not the most well-versed. But it's essentially understanding like workplace dynamics, understanding how to improve relationships in the workplace, relationships between people, relationships between people and technology, things like that. CADIE: Gotcha. And I know you had mentioned that this was your past professor that needed a research assistant. LILLIAN: Yeah. CADIE: Is that how you found this position? And then how did you apply? LILLIAN: Yeah, that's a good question. I would say that my specific situation is probably a little bit unique. So I guess I'll just tell you kind of what my situation was like, and then I'll explain kind of what it usually looks like for an undergraduate looking for a position like this. So as I mentioned, this researcher, she was my professor in the spring of this year. So I was taking a class with her and she needed a research assistant. So she just kind of like asked our class, like, if anyone's interested in this, come talk to me. So it was a very informal process for me personally. We kind of just spoke about it, and I told her I was interested, and she kind of started doing the onboarding. So again, it was very kind of like casual and informal. I would say I'm pretty lucky in that regard. And then as far as like for a typical process for a position like this, it would be more probably like a formal application process. A lot of professors at Mason are like running labs all the time and will need research assistants. But it's usually you kind of have to apply at the beginning of the semester. Essentially, you can look on the Mason websites and see like what professors and what undergraduate students are running labs. You can look and see what research they're doing and see if it aligns with something you're interested in and then contact them to apply. CADIE: Very cool. Obviously, you've got a lot of experience and passion in research. What research have you done prior to this? LILLIAN: I really hadn't done a whole lot of research prior to this. I kind of found my passion for research a little bit more recently. The class that I met the lead researcher through that she was teaching was actually a research methods course. So that semester I was taking research methods in psychology and statistics in psychology, which are both really foundational classes for research in psychology. And I loved both of those classes and just kind of started to develop like a passion for research. And then also, of course, I did start the research assistantship that semester, which really helped me kind of get a little bit more familiar with the research process and what it looks like. And yeah, although I didn't really have a lot of research experience before that, I mean, I think it's not because there weren't opportunities. It just wasn't something that I had really started exploring until this year. EMMA: Yeah. I will say as someone who I mean, it wasn't until I entered college that I started to understand, even in the most vaguest sense, what is research? Because when I thought of research when I was young and even like in high school, I was like research, like tests and labs and things. And then I'm an English major. So now I'm getting into research about like archives and things and things like that. It's a very broad word in so many ways. And it can feel daunting and intimidating to like approach. What would you say to someone who is maybe hesitant to discover a passion for research or get into it? LILLIAN: That's a good question. I think one of the great things about research that I really love about research and that drew me to research is that you can just research anything you're interested in. Like you mentioned, Emma, there's just so many areas of research. It's such a broad field. And yeah, I think people maybe do have misconceptions about it. Like I guess before I was really getting into research, I would maybe just think of it in like a lab with like a test tube and things like that. But, you know, it covers so many areas. And I think that's what's so beautiful about it is you can find what's really interesting to you and just really dive into that. I do think it can be intimidating. But I also think for me personally, something that kind of made it more approachable for me was connecting with my lead researcher, because like I said, she's like a PhD candidate. So she's also just kind of I don't want to say learning the ropes because she definitely has much more experience than me. But, you know, we're figuring things out on the fly. And I think it just made it feel a lot more human and more approachable, I would say. CADIE: Yeah. And I don't think that really ever goes away. I'm also taking my capstone class right now, and it's also very research focused, research heavy. And even my professor, who's very knowledgeable in research, has published a bunch of papers, is still like, yeah, you just roll with the punches sometimes. You still learn things on the fly. You adapt. It's just a part of research, which I think is really interesting because I always thought of research, you know, as the scientific method. You have your hypothesis. You do your background and then you or you do your background and then you form your hypothesis. I don't know. I haven't I haven't been in seventh grade in a long time. Now I know a lit review and method section, not background and hypothesis. LILLIAN: Yeah, 100 percent. And I think that's kind of another thing I wanted to say is like, I think flexibility is such a big part of it, too. Just like being willing to roll with the punches and because you're going to have to at some point. No, no research project is going to go perfectly and flawlessly from start to finish. So, you know, it's a little bit of a double edged sword. CADIE: For sure. EMMA: It sounds like you've learned a lot about yourself and your interests through this position. How has being a research assistant helped your future career goals? LILLIAN: That's a good question. I have learned a lot about, like I said, just kind of what the research process looks like in psychology. I think that this position has also helped me narrow down my specific subfield of interest. So as I mentioned, my research assistantship is in industrial organizational, which is interesting to me. But it also kind of helped me narrow down my more specific interest in a different subfield, which is actually cognitive behavioral neuroscience. So I definitely have gained a lot of experience working with the industrial organizational research assistantship and also learning how to use the eye trackers is a really important skill that can be applied to a lot of subfields in psychology. But I would say it helps me learn a lot about myself in that it showed me a lot about what research is like and helps me kind of develop my excitement for research. But it also helped me redirect a little bit, if that makes sense. So I now am taking classes a little bit more focused in the cognitive behavioral neuroscience subfield because I've kind of narrowed that down as one of my more specific interests. EMMA: For our listeners who don't know, can you share with us what is cognitive behavioral neuroscience? LILLIAN: Yeah, absolutely. There are so many subfields in psychology that I love talking about it. So cognitive behavioral neuroscience, I mean, obviously the cognitive component. So it's more focused on the brain and like the processes that are happening in the brain in regards to psychology. So, for example, like I'm taking biopsychology right now, which is kind of a big one in the CBN field, and that just kind of explains like how biology and how brain structures affect like psychology and behaviors and things like that. So it's a lot of studies of the brain and kind of more of like the structural in relation to the behavioral, if that makes sense. EMMA: Yeah. CADIE: Yeah, for sure. You had mentioned earlier that this position has helped you learn a lot of things about yourself. And kind of going off of that, what is one thing that this position has taught you? LILLIAN: I think I've learned a lot. I don't want to beat a dead horse because I know we've kind of already talked about this, but I think it was just so eye-opening to realize that research is just such a flexible thing, and you really do have to just be flexible and be willing to make changes. I think that was just really eye-opening for me because I just hadn't really considered that aspect of it before. Again, I kind of know I know I kind of already mentioned this, but that was, I think, one of the biggest things I've learned. I think I've also just like been able to kind of develop my people skills a little bit more. I really enjoy connecting with people. I also enjoy teaching and things like that. And I think the person to person aspect of it has been, I guess, instructive for me. It's just kind of like learning how to do that in a more professional setting, if that makes sense. EMMA: It does. Yeah. What has been your favorite part of the job? LILLIAN: I really enjoyed all of it. I think for me, since I'm just such a big psych nerd, I have really loved learning how to use the eye trackers. It's so cool to watch them back and see like where, you know, the position of people's eyes. And it's just really cool because that can be applied to so many subfields of psych. That's definitely something that they use in cognitive behavioral neuroscience as well. So that has been exciting for me just because I know that it's like a skill that can be applied in the future. And I've also just met some amazing people I love, my fellow research assistants and the lead researcher. And it's just been really fun. CADIE: Yeah. I think one of the coolest things about being a research assistant is how intertwined within your program it is and intertwined even within your classes. And I was wondering, have there been things from your classes, perhaps the one that you took last semester, that you've applied here in your position? LILLIAn: Oh, 100 percent. I think that probably the most relevant ones have been research methods and statistics, because like I said, those are very foundational for research. So I would say those are probably the biggest ones, especially research methods, just learning what makes a good research study, even down to things like what makes a good questionnaire. I would say that has probably been the most applicable thus far. EMMA: You have shared a lot about your tasks, your responsibilities, the types of projects you're working on. What does a typical day on the job look like? LILLIAN: So like I mentioned, I'm usually running sessions. EMMA: Right. LILLIAN: I usually the sessions for this specific study are usually about two hours long with the participant portion of it. So for me personally, it's usually about a three hour time block. So, myself and usually at least one other research assistant will arrive about 30 minutes before participants do to kind of set up the equipment. And then as the participants start coming in, we'll kind of get them set up, make sure they know what's going on, have them fill out informed consent, things like that. And then we just start writing the session. So we get each participant set up on their eye tracker, and then they get on the Zoom call, like I mentioned. And then from there on out, we give them instructions over the Zoom. And then after that, we basically just wrap up once the session is finished, have them fill out an exit questionnaire, and just put away the equipment, make sure all the data was saved, and call it a day. CADIE: Where do you hold or conduct these experiments? Is there a specific place that people go to? LILLIAN: Yes, our lab. And honestly, most psychology labs are in David King Hall. So that's here on the on the Fairfax campus. A lot of people don't really know what's in that building. It's kind of just like randomly in the middle of campus. CADIE & EMMA: Yeah. LILLIAN: I've talked to so many people who are like, what goes on in there? And it's kind of like an old building, but it has a lot of charm. But yeah, it's in there. They have a lot of really cool psych stuff in there, like they have an EEG in there, which I think is really cool. I didn't know that Mason had that until semi-recently. I actually was participating in a study with an EEG, so I got to have the whole little EEG helmet on and they read my brain waves and stuff. So, oh, yeah, they do a lot of cool psych stuff in David King Hall. EMMA: What is an EEG? LILLIAN: Oh, you know, I have just recently learned what it stands for, but I couldn't tell you off the top of my head, but it's basically a brain imaging like system. They put little electrodes on your head and it measures electrical activity off of your scalp. So it basically is measuring the electrical activity of your neurons firing. CADIE: I would imagine it's pretty similar to an EKG, which essentially an EEG, but for your heart. LILLIAN: Oh, I didn't know that. CADIE: Yeah, you hook up from what it sounds like, at least you have little stickies all over your chest and then they monitor your heart activity. So I looked it up and according to Midwestern Career College, the main difference is that an EEG focuses on the brain's electrical activity while an EKG examines the heart rhythm and electrical patterns. LILLIAN: OK! CADIE: The more you know! LILLIAN There you go. I just learned something new. I didn't know that that's what an EKG was. CADIE: Oh, our final question, for Act One, what resources here at GMU have you utilized in your research? LILLIAN: Oh, OK. Like finding the research? CADIE: Yeah! Finding the research, what resources do you use, like when you're carrying out the research? Have you collaborated with OSCAR at all? LILLIAN: Yeah. So that's a good question. I would say I'm kind of just a cog in the machine of this specific project. So a lot of the the stuff on the back end is not really handled by me. So I don't know if I can really give you a great answer for this specific project, but I do know because I have been interested in research and looking into other research, like you said, OSCAR is such a great resource. When you think research at GMU, I feel like that's just like the first thing that you go to. I know they do a lot of funding for psych students. They will also fund for you to go to conferences, which I have considered, but I feel like that's a really good place to start. And I don't know if this is really if you'd really classify this as a resource, but I think that just like networking is so important. I think my personal experience really speaks to that because like I mentioned, my case was kind of like abnormal. I just happened to know someone who needed a research assistant. And through that, I have also met a lot of other people in the psych world. So I think that like just just networking and like introducing yourself to people and putting yourself out there is also a good resource. And like just people, honestly, people in the psych department are great, especially, not to go on a tangent, but not that we haven't just gone on a tangent, but I feel like for a lot of psych students at Mason, their professors are graduate students. Like, well, I think I've only had. One professor in my in my psych career here at Mason who was not a grad student. CADIE & EMMA: Oh, wow. LILLIAN: So there's so many like. CADIE: And are we talking like going to get their master's or going to get their PhD? LILLIAN Both. I've had both, I think. CADIE: Interesting. LILLIAN: I'm almost positive, yeah. Maybe it's mostly PhD. Now you have me second guessing. I think it's both. I'm fairly certain. But yeah, a lot of times like they're running their own research, they're writing their dissertations, whatever. They're, you know, interested in like talking to people about what they're working on. And they're not that far removed from like an undergrad. You know what I mean? CADIE: Yeah. LILLIAN: And so I think it's like such an underutilized resource to just like talk to your professors and like be friends with them and just like learn what you can from them. And a lot of times they'll also like be able to point you in the right direction for things. And I have like talked to a lot of people and like learned a lot of things from just like cold emailing people and just being like, hey, I heard that you do XYZ and I'm interested in that. Let's chat sometime or whatever. Or like, hey, I heard that you're directing this program that I'm interested in. Like, do you have time to sit down with me for 10 minutes and like discuss more details? So, I don't know. That's my tangent. I think it's just like connecting with people is so important, especially here at Mason. EMMA: I wouldn't call it a tangent. I'd call that advice and good advice at that. And a great way to close out Act One. CADIE: Absolutely. EMMA: All right. So listeners, we're going to go to our bulletin board now. You're going to hear from our career correspondent, Rachel Lindsey. You're also going to hear some CHSS announcements and some shout outs. We will see you in Act Two! CADIE: Don't skip this. This isn't an ad break. This is the bulletin board. In every episode, this is where we'll announce upcoming events and opportunities in CHSS, hear from correspondents and give shout outs to the resources that make this podcast possible. Today, we're hearing from Rachel Lindsey, who is the assistant director at Career Services. RACHEL: Hi there. I'm Rachel Lindsey, assistant director for career education at University Career Services, and I'm also a two time alum of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences here at George Mason University. You can always reach me at R-L-I-N-D-S-E-Y at gmu.edu if you have questions. University Career Services is located in Student Union Building 1 or Sub 1, Suite 3400, right above Student Health Services. We're open Monday through Friday, 9 to 5, and we also offer virtual advising Sunday through Thursday evenings, 7 to 11 p.m. You can schedule an appointment with University Career Services through Patriot Connect. Here's a little bit about what we do at University Career Services. Our goal is to help you explore careers, build professional skills, connect with employers, and succeed after graduation. One of the ways that we do that is through career advising and one on one support. Career advising appointments let you talk through your goals, explore paths, or get help with job and internships. You can schedule that one on one career advising appointment through Patriot Connect. You can also visit us during a career studio or drop ins to get feedback on resumes, cover letters and other professional materials, as well as guidance using Handshake to find job and internship opportunities. There's no appointment required for this. University Career Services also offers skill building workshops and events. Workshops and events we offer include things like networking, the job search, and salary negotiation to help you feel more confident taking your next steps. You can also use interview prep, which is a free online tool that lets you rehearse answers to common interview questions and practice your skills anytime. Job, internship and networking opportunities hosted through Career Services include things like career fairs and on campus interviews to connect you with employers across a wide range of industries. We also offer networking events to link you with alumni and professionals who can offer guidance and open doors. And of course, Handshake is GMU's platform for job and internship listings tailored just for George Mason University students. Other resources that University Career Services makes available to you include career readiness guides and industry specific resources on our website, which is careers.gmu.edu. You can also use our website to access tools like Career Shift and LinkedIn Learning to develop skills and find opportunities. Some of the specific support that University Career Services offers for CHSS majors includes help for students studying psychology, translate your degree into careers in research, human services, counseling, human resources or graduate school. Find internships or research roles in behavioral science, nonprofits or health care via Handshake and get help preparing resumes and interview skills for clinical, administrative or program support roles. You can also meet with us to explore graduate or professional pathways with tailored advising and make sure to attend networking events and behavioral internship fairs. They're a great way to connect with labs, clinics and social services events. Let's scratch that tip and say, attend networking events and job and internship fairs. They're a great way to connect with labs, clinics, research opportunities and social service agencies. For students studying criminology, law and society, University Career Services can help you with advising on justice pathways like criminal justice, law enforcement, public policy, intelligence and victim advocacy. We offer job and internship search support for government roles, including intelligence positions and more. We provide resume and interview help geared towards legal and social science fields, and we offer ways to network with employers seeking graduates for public service analysis and compliance roles. We can also help you connect with local criminal justice agencies or nonprofits and help you figure out if security clearance preparation is a good opportunity for you. For global affairs students, we offer advising on international career pathways like diplomacy, NGOs, policy research and global development. We can also help you access curated career links such as USA Jobs, Idealist and International Job Boards, especially things like Interstride. We also offer support finding internships with international organizations, government agencies and global nonprofits, as well as networking opportunities with alumni and professionals in global affairs. You might also want to consider pairing advising sessions with industry events like nonprofit fairs or policy panels to expand your connections. And for all CHSS students, some really valuable best practices. Keep your Handshake profile updated to receive the most relevant job and internship matches. Attend career fairs and workshops early, much before your senior year, so you get familiar with how these things work. And make sure to combine career services advising with faculty and departmental resources for the most targeted support. To schedule virtual or in-person advising, use Patriot Connect. If you run into any issues, call us at 703-993-2370 and we'll help you get that appointment scheduled. We're excited to support you as you explore your career path, so don't hesitate to reach out. Go Patriots! CADIE: Thank you so much to Rachel for her insight. She's the assistant director with Career Services. Career Services offers not just advising, but also different job fairs, scholarships and plenty of jobs themselves. If you're not sure what career field you'd like to go into with your major or unsure which major is best for your career field, we highly recommend you check them out. Now on to some resources for you guys. Welcome to the Mason Innovation Exchange, also known as the MIX, George Mason University's Marketplace, Media Lab and Entrepreneurship Incubator. Located in Horizon Hall rooms 1408, 1410 and 2100, the MIX gives you access to cutting edge tools like 3D printers, laser cutters, CNC routers, textiles and electronics. We also offer pathways into advanced opportunities through our microcredential courses in blimp prototyping, drone prototyping, robotics and the NSFI core program for the student entrepreneurs. The MIX is always collaborating with student RSOs, academic departments and courses and events for the Mason community. Open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. the MIX hosts rotating workshops to help you kickstart your creative ideas. Learn more at the mix.gmu.edu or find us on Mason 360 under Mason Innovation Exchange. Explore your potential with the MIX. Now, next week is indeed spring break, Patriots, and I hope all of you have a wonderful spring break. As far as CHSS Connection goes, we will be updating next week, but it will be a little different from normal. Normally, every fourth Friday, we will be releasing two different episodes, our topical episode and then our special spotlight episode. However, because it's spring break and me and the team still want to have a break, we'll only be releasing the topical episode next week. And then that special spotlight episode will be released the following week, along with our first episode of the criminology program. So very exciting. And stay tuned for all of that. EMMA: Welcome back. You're now here in Act Two. As listeners know, act two is when we start to get into some deeper reflection. And to start that off, Lillian, what is one anxiety or worry about careers or about your career that this position as a research assistant has helped you overcome? LILLIAN: I guess kind of to touch back on the theme of people maybe having a misconception of research, I think I had kind of viewed it as such like a big scary thing that it's like you have to like have a super groundbreaking idea and super groundbreaking equipment and, you know, have just something really like bold and prestigious. Maybe I don't know if that's the right word, but I think that, I mean, not to say that the work we're doing here isn't interesting. Like I think it's super interesting and it's also really applicable. And I think that's what's, what's cool is that it's kind of made me realize that again, like I had mentioned before, research is kind of just like whatever you want it to be, whatever you make of it. And it doesn't have to be like something super groundbreaking. Like you can base your research off of, you know, previous research that has been done and just things that you're interested in. And it doesn't have to be some, you know, grand idea that no one's ever heard or thought of before. It's just what you're interested in and what you want to know more about, you know? CADIE: fFr sure. I think one of the big misconceptions about research that I've had to break is how broad it is. Like the amount of times that I've been told like, no, get more specific with your question, get more specific with your demographic, get tinier and tinier and you're narrow and narrow until you're asking a question so incredibly specific. I feel like like that's never talked about with research. It's always some big question. Like, I don't know, for COMMs, I'm doing a paper on the White House Instagram account and voter opinions, right? So the original question could just be like, oh, well, how does the account affect voter opinions? But then it gets into like, okay, well, what specific account are you using? What specific sites are you using? What specific posts are you using? And it takes something that might be very broad and very daunting into something very narrow. And I don't know, I like that. LILLIAN: Yeah, I like it, too. I think my brain kind of works that way, where I like to ask those like super niche and specific questions. And that's exactly what research is for. CADIE: Absolutely. EMMA: I'll add that in my experience, I echo everything both of you have said. But as I'm starting to get into research and whatnot in my writing, I've noticed now that like research is also maybe just like humanities on the English side of things. It's a lot of just like just engaging in conversation, in the case of an English major, like the text. For instance, I am intern at Folger Institute and we have programs for like Shakespeare in the publics or Shakespeare in performing arts or what have you, what have you, several things. And one would think that 400, 500 years of Shakespeare, like we've covered it all, right? No, actually, because it's like, there's so much to gain from just continuing to ask questions or even just make observations or pursue critical thinking of these texts. And that to a certain respect still counts as research because you're still interacting with the sources and you're still contributing fresh perspective to the field. LILLIAN: Yeah, 100%. And I think I've engaged with that style of research more with my religious studies with my second major, because yeah, like you said, it's more of like the humanities side than the sciences side. And it's like, yeah, you might not be like discovering new information necessarily, but even if you're just like aggregating existing information and giving new ideas about it and putting it in a different context, like that's also research and it's interesting and it's valuable, you know? EMMA: Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, for sure. CADIE: On that note, what's the most rewarding part of your job? LILLIAN: On a little bit of a selfish level, it's cool to know that I'm just kind of like starting to dip my toe in the waters of research and I'm gaining experience that I can put on a resume and that will benefit me in the future, which is rewarding for me on a personal level. And I think it's also just cool to be surrounded by people who are kind of doing the same thing, both like at the undergraduate level with my co-research assistants and also with the lead researcher who is writing her dissertation, things like that. To just be able to like be a part of that is really cool and it's really rewarding. EMMA: Yeah. LILLIAN: And I just like being part of a bigger network of people who are like just doing really cool and interesting things. EMMA: Yeah, I would not say that's selfish at all. That's a lot of, that's really something to take pride in. LILLIAN: Thank you. Yeah, it's great. I love it. EMMA: Yeah. What's one challenge you've had to work through as a research assistant? LILLIAN: It's such an interesting thing running the sessions because it's so specific, but at the same time, like I said, you have to be flexible. So like with research, you're trying to control as many variables as you can, but inevitably there's gonna be things out of your control. So trying to kind of walk the line between rolling with the punches and adapting to the situation while also being consistent from session to session, that has maybe proved to be a little bit of a challenge for me. I try to be as consistent as possible, but sometimes a situation comes up where you kind of have to adapt, you know? CADIE: Yeah, for sure. I know we were talking about earlier, like so much of research is just rolling with the punches. That's a very valuable skill to learn. LILLIAN: I think I've definitely had my fair share of that. It's been a good exposure. CADIE: How has this position benefited your life, both as a psychology student, as well as beyond? LILLIAN: I think it's just really cool to have my foot in the door. Again, I don't want to beat a dead horse. I think I'm kind of- EMMA: We do that a lot here. Don't worry about it. We've killed a lot of horses, so keep beating them. LILLIAN: Perfect. But yeah, it's just really cool to like have my foot in the door. And I think a lot of times I'm very much someone who I have big ideas and like big dreams, I guess I would say. And I just, I always love that feeling when like things that I'm working towards start to come to fruition. You know what I mean? I just love that, you know, one day I was like, I really love psychology. And then I started going to school for psychology. And then one day I was like, okay, I really love research. And now I'm like here doing research, and I'm looking into, you know, other research opportunities. I'm narrowing my research interests and focus. And I think it's just very rewarding for me to kind of see my hard work come to life. I do kind of sometimes have like imposter syndrome of like, do I belong here? Like, am I doing okay? Am I doing a good job? Like, do I deserve to be here? But I try to push that down and just remember that like I've worked hard to be here, if that makes sense. CADIE: For sure. I think like imposter syndrome is so common as we're moving through this period of adolescence because it's like in high school, right? We really didn't have that much control. Maybe we had a job and a car, right? But like, we didn't have that much control over what classes we took, when to take them. And probably for most of us, what we wanted to go into even like senior year isn't what we're going into here. So I think like that imposter syndrome is very, very common. I know I've definitely felt it. Like, who am I to be here genuinely? EMMA: Yeah. And I completely relate. And I think one thing I can share, something that has helped me cope with that is I try to, whenever I start to feel that sense of imposter syndrome, I try to trust the individuals that chose to work with me. And I, cause I trust and respect them, I should therefore trust their opinion and their judgment that I should be in this room with them. And that comes back to me and gives me a little more motivation or not motivation, but more, a better sense of self and about why I'm there. LILLIAN: Yeah. That's so true. I think that's a good way to approach imposter syndrome. Because yeah, you wouldn't be there if you didn't deserve to be there, you know? EMMA: Exactly. Yeah. Right. What is your favorite memory you have from your time as a research assistant? LILLIAN: I don't know if I have really like one specific moment that stands out, but I just, I love the other research assistants that I work with. And there comes a point in the session where like everybody's on their eye trackers and then the other research assistant and I just like go sit on the couch and basically chill for the rest of the session. After that point, it kind of just runs itself. And I just love being with them and chatting with them. And it's always just fun to like have someone who's in a very similar situation as you and can relate to the things that you're going through. A lot of times we'll just like complain about whatever classes or papers we're in the middle of at the time. Like we have all been about finals and stuff today, but it's just fun to have those people that you're close with, that you have that kind of devoted time to just like be with them and talk about your interests. And they're people who you know will really understand you because like they're in such a similar situation to you and they have similar interests with you. And I just think that's valuable as well. I really have talked about this a lot, but I just think that like the relationships aspect of it has been so important for me. CADIE: Yeah, being able to get along with your coworkers is amazing, fantastic. EMMA: It makes or breaks the job. CADIE: It does, 100%. As I'm sure listeners can tell, Emma and I absolutely despise each other. EMMA: Oh yeah, cannot stand her. CADIE: Just kidding. But I think like being able to bond and like you said, create those connections and network is so amazing. And it is an opportunity that we do need to take advantage of. And networking isn't all just boring like corporate speak. It's also complaining about your teacher or the classes that you have. LILLIAN: 100%. CADIE: What future research do you wanna contribute to the field? LILLIAN: I love this question. So as I mentioned, I am a double major in psychology and religious studies because I really think religion is so fascinating. I love, we were talking about this a little bit before, but I just really love hearing about people's experiences in religion. I think like people's experiences of lived religion is so interesting. There is kind of like, I don't know if it's necessarily an emerging field, but it's a small field that I believe is growing a little bit of kind of the neuroscience aspect of religion. So people will kind of like look at what's happening in the brain during certain religious experiences or when people think about their religion, things like that, which I just think is so interesting. That's totally my niche. And unfortunately, there's not really a lot going on with that specifically here at Mason, but that's definitely something that I wanna explore in the future, like maybe during a PhD program or even in just like a longer term career. I just think it's so fascinating and I think there's so much to learn. CADIE: Yeah, for sure. I'd be really interested in seeing differences in the brain with religion and death. Like if people have certain beliefs, talking about death activates a certain part of their brain because a lot of religions do have a very specific like afterlife belief to them. So that would be something really interesting. LILLIAN: I took a class recently called Death and the Afterlife in Religion, which is so interesting. You would love it, I bet, yeah. EMMA: When it comes to psychology, there can be a lot of bias against what is the field professionally, what it is. How do you think that stigma can change? LILLIAN: I guess, I think there's maybe multiple stigmas. I don't really know necessarily what you might be referring to. I feel like when people think of psychology, I think most people would assume that it's either like the clinical track or just like being like a social worker. Is that kind of what you're referring to? EMMA: Yeah, stigma was the wrong word, misconception. LILLIAN: No you’re good, I understand what you mean. Yeah, I think that's such a shame because I mean, we've kind of touched on a couple of the subfields in psychology like throughout our conversation, but there's like psychology is such a rich field. There's so much to explore. Like I mentioned, I'm really interested in cognitive behavioral neuroscience. You know, again, the neuroscience of religion is like a new kind of emerging field. There's just like so much that's under the umbrella of psychology. Obviously clinical is a big one. There's definitely a big need for people to be in that field, unfortunately. But I think that that is definitely a big misconception that people think that that's all it is. As far as trying to combat that, I think that honestly things like this where people are just like talking about their experience in other fields of psychology is really important because my personal experience, for example, I took some psychology classes in high school and it was kind of like overview, obviously. It's like a high school course, so it's kind of just like a survey. So we touched on some things from some different areas of psychology. And the thing that I loved and connected to the most was like the neuroscience aspect of it, but I just didn't know that that's what it was. You know what I mean? And so then when I rediscovered it in college, I was like, oh, this is what made me fall in love with psychology. So I think that just like having, like promoting a better understanding of what the different subfields are and just the fact that there are different subfields, like I think that there's a lot of people who just don't know, you know? I think that just spreading more awareness is a good place to start. EMMA: Absolutely. CADIE: How has your time here at Mason helped set you up for success post-grad? I know you had mentioned wanting to do a PhD. LILLIAN: Yes, so my long-term goal right now is to do a PhD program in psychology. Honestly, I feel like Mason is such a great school and doesn't get credit because it's like a state school. I think a lot of people maybe underestimate it a little bit, which I think is such a shame. CADIE: I'm gonna be able to graduate with my master's in four years. There's not any other school in the country that I think I'd be able to do that. LILLIAN: Yeah, it's such a great school and like all of the faculty here are amazing. Everyone I've interacted with here, like in terms of faculty and stuff, are just like so amazingly supportive and they just wanna see their students succeed and I think that's so valuable. And I also feel like there's so many resources here at Mason that people just don't take advantage of, maybe because they don't really know that they're here or I don't know why, but I just think that Mason is such a great school in that regard. Yeah, like you mentioned the BAM program, that's just such an incredible opportunity. That's something that I have been looking into as well for psychology and like I said, for psychology specifically, there's so much research going on here. Like I said, they have the EEG in David King Hall, they have those eye trackers, that's all going on and people just don't know about it. So I don't know, I think I have like, sorry, I'm kind of tangenting a little bit. CADIE: No, please. LILLIAN: But I think that a lot of the resources here have supported me. I think I have to say one of the biggest things for me has been my success coach, who I started meeting with like my freshman year I think and she has just been like life changing. She's so amazing and just like has helped me learn and adapt so much and like just helps me like overcome obstacles in my academic career. I recommend everyone to have a success coach that they connect with because like honestly, her help has just been so invaluable for me. I really appreciate her. And yeah, just reach out. There's always people that wanna help. That's been kind of what I've learned. EMMA: Yeah. As someone who also partakes in success coaching. Yeah, no, love my success coach. LILLIAN: Oh yeah. EMMA: Yeah, no, the best. LILLIAN: My success coach is awesome. Like I'll go in there and then just like rant to her about what I have going on and then we just talk about dancing with the stars and then I'm like, perfect. See you next month. And she's just awesome. I love her. So yeah. CADIE: I love that. EMMA: As we start to close out, can you share with us how you are working towards your future career goals? LILLIAN: Yeah, so I touched on, I kind of like mentioned it in passing, but we're currently looking into the BAM program. My long-term goal is to go to a PhD program and then like have a career in research and teaching after that. So I think right now I've just been really focused on what's gonna make me a good candidate for a PhD program. I think the BAM program is gonna be probably one of the next steps for me. Fingers crossed. CADIE: From what I've heard in my experience, the types of people who apply for it are people who are going to be let in. In all of the meetings that I've been to, and I hope this does alleviate some of your anxiety about it, in all of the meetings that I've been to with the band, like coordinator for COMM and the director coordinator for COMM everybody has given me indication that like once you apply, you're in. The way that they plan it out is under the assumption, oh, you are going to take these classes. You are going to get in. There's never an if. LILLIAN: I mean, I hope that's true. But if by the time this podcast airs, I haven't accepted, you'll have to cut this whole segment. CADIE: I'm sure you'll be accepted. LILLIAN: Thank you. So I hope so. But that's the thing I've been kind of focusing on. And then also just taking classes that I think will be applicable to research because I know now that's what I'm interested in. I'm also, like I mentioned, kind of shifting more towards the CBN stuff, just trying to take relevant classes for that. And just trying to kind of keep it in the back of my mind, just keep my goals in my mind and try to stay focused, and just, I guess, do the best I can with what I have now and always try to push myself to just do the next thing. EMMA: Yeah. CADIE: Yeah, for sure. And I can't believe this, but we've come to our last question. Lillian, it's been so amazing chatting with you and going on tangent with you. We like to ask all of our guests the same final question. That question is, do you have any advice for our listeners? LILLIAN: Yes, I think I've already spewed out a lot of advice, but I think it's just so important to stay connected to what you love. Just try to really stay grounded in that. And I think once you have that, everything else just comes naturally because it's so easy to work towards something that you love doing, you know? And that's just such a powerful motivator. So I think it's just important to keep that in mind and the rest will follow, I would say. EMMA: And I think that's great advice to close out this episode. Lillian, thank you so much for being here. Is there anyone or anything that you would like to shout out or promote where Kim listeners find you on social media or in CHSS? LILLIAN: I'm actually not on social media, so we're 0 for two. EMMA: No worries. LILLIAN: But my name is Lillian Ryskamp. You can, I don't know, email me. EMMA: LinkedIn, LinkedIn, do you have a LinkedIn? LILLIAN: I do, it needs to be updated. Hopefully it'll be a little more updated by the time this is out. But I think I'm just Lillian Ryskamp on LinkedIn. Double L, last name, R-Y-S-K-A-M-P. I go to Mason. I'm probably pretty easy to find. I work for the Religious Studies Department. I'm also, oh, I should plug this. I am one of the co-leaders for the Society for the Study of Religion, which is a club here on campus. It's a lot of fun. Like I mentioned, I'm really interested in lived religion and that's something we're really big on. So if you're interested in religious studies at all, come to our meetings next semester. We always have pizza and you don't have to be like a religious studies major or minor to go. It's a lot of fun and I'm always there. So you can find me there and just around campus, I guess. EMMA: Okay, well, beautiful, wonderful. Once again, last time, well, and forever more, Lillian, thank you so much for being here. We're happy to have you. Listeners, thank you so much for listening to this episode of CHSS Connection. CADIE: Hey, thank you for listening to this episode of CHSS Connection. This podcast is hosted and written by Emma Howard and Cadie Junker. Our audio engineer is Dennis Gavitov. Our supervisor is Eliana Velasco. This podcast is produced by George Mason University's College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Undergraduate Academic Affairs. Special thanks to the Mason Innovation Exchange for their recording studio. The podcast could not happen without them. This project was developed in collaboration with Career Services and the On-Campus Internship Program. If you love the show and wanna interact with more of our content, follow us on Instagram @chsspod or check out the CHSS website where there's an ongoing library of our episodes. You can also be a potential guest on our podcast. EMMA: If you enjoyed the show and would like to express your support, there are a few things you can do. You can leave a review wherever you are listening to this podcast. You can help by word of mouth, either by telling someone directly who might be interested in the show or posting about it on social media, tagging @chsspod. All these things help support the show and we appreciate anyone who has done it or will do so in the future. Again, thank you for tuning into this episode. We hope you will tune into the next episode where we are joined by Sam Subedi to discuss being an international student here at Mason. But until then, stay curious! CADIE: Stay creative! BOTH: And stay connected!