The Looking Glass: One day, you might be glad you missed that bus

Nida Ansari (she/her) recently completed her BA Hons. ('23) in Psychology (Co-op) with a minor in French Studies at The University of Guelph. Throughout her undergraduate degree she participated in extra-curriculars such as the Psychology Society and the Peer Helper Program, sat on the CSAHS Teaching and Learning Hub Committee, and supported research activities with the Child Emotion and Mental Health Lab, located at the Maplewoods Centre.  

Nida is passionate about all things: education, leadership, mentorship, and research. She is now an MSc student in Integrative Biology (College of Biological Science), conducting discipline-based education research in the BioM Lab and investigating contextual and community-integrated education approaches in STEM 

University can be an isolating experience if you don’t find a way to connect with others. 

Being a new student in 2019 who was also a commuter, I was worried about how to make friends and feel connected to the campus community. In fear of taking late-night buses, I didn’t stay back much after classes in my first month and keeping up with classmates often just meant asking about what’s due in class the next day. 

Psychology Society 

Then, a few weeks into my PSYC*1000 course, a student came to our class to promote elections for the Psychology Society - a student club dedicated to planning and hosting events for Psychology students. Having been extensively involved in my high school’s student council, this was an exciting opportunity to me, and I was intrigued to learn more.  

For elections, we were asked to present a speech to a group of upper-year students on the Society. It was a late and nerve-wracking evening, waiting outside a room with 20+ other intrigued students applying for the same roles. There were so many students that day that the speeches went on two hours longer than anticipated, and I ended up missing my usual bus to go back home. Once it was my turn, I kept my speech short and sweet, and told myself regardless of what the results were, that I would still try and be involved with the Psychology Society that year.   

Despite the anxiety I felt that day, I am glad I decided to apply, because luckily, I got the role of Marketing Coordinator that year! It was such a memorable year – Psychology Society’s presence increased on the social media map, which helped increase student engagement at our events. As a team, we bonded over Brass Taps dinners and Psychology-related inside jokes, and even when the pandemic made us cancel our events for the rest of the semester, I still managed to keep us all connected through the Society’s Instagram account.   

That positive experience in my first year left me wanting more. I stayed on the Society as Marketing Coordinator in second year, took on more leadership as Co-President in third year, and then took on the role of Chairperson in my senior year. 

The impacts of these experiences were both socially and professionally meaningful. The community I found with the Psychology Society allowed me to make lasting friendships with other members and helped me gain confidence with my public speaking and engagement skills. While I loved my classes in undergrad, it was through extracurriculars like Psychology Society where I found the chance to grow within the university environment and feel like I belonged; like I had a community of my own. 

I didn’t want to stop there. I am so thankful that I got to find a community where I thrived, but I wanted to help others find that kind of community, too.  

GetPsyched 

In my second year on the Society, I became interested in the idea to support students who wanted to learn more about scholarly writing but may have not had the experience or the access to publish formally just yet. Thus, GetPsyched was born: a blog I founded and organized with a (then) small group of Society members, which focused on amplifying student voices in Psychology in an accessible way. After a successful pilot of the blog, I opened the opportunity to write, edit, and create graphic designs to the entire student body, which resulted in a team of 15+ students interested in collaborating on weekly blog posts!  

Over two and a half years, the GetPsyched team was able to publish over 50 psychology-related blog posts, on topics like recent psychological research, tips for student success in the classroom, and wellbeing and mental health. Students did not have to be on the Society to submit something to the blog – GetPsyched was for anyone who was interested in Psychology and had something meaningful they wanted to share. 

I am so proud of the community I created through this blog and of the stories and knowledge that was shared, and I am happy knowing that this blog has equally helped other students refine their writing and editing skills, helping them become more active and efficient scholarly writers. Last year, a former committee member reached out to me after getting into a PhD program to share that GetPsyched was the way their supervisor found out about them and acknowledged their writing skills, which was such a rewarding and impactful comment to hear. It really proved how something as small as a blog can open doors for bigger and better opportunities. 

Looking Back 

Looking back at my undergraduate experiences with the Psychology Society, I can confidently say that the best thing I did while at Guelph was finding a community. And when I couldn’t find community, I made sure to create it, not only for myself, but for others looking for community too. My university experience was equal parts what I found for myself and what I made for others. 

University does not have to be an isolating experience. Sometimes you just have to muster up enough courage to believe in yourself and your place in this larger-than-life community that is the University of Guelph, and someday you may just look back and be happy you missed the bus that one day.