Senior Portfolios
The Oberlin Psychology major culminates in a Senior Portfolio. This course is taken in students’ last semester in residence. It is designed to help reflect on where they’ve been, where they want to go, take stock, and prepare for life afterwards.
It includes preparing a resume or vita, a LinkedIn profile, and a web-based portfolio highlighting their skills and experiences.
Meet some of our majors from the classes of 2020 and 2022.
Zach Arfa
“Throughout my time at Oberlin I’ve studied Psychology and Dance. while working as the Artistic Director for the Hilltown Youth Performing Arts Programs, an organization that specializes in working with teens overcoming trauma, addiction and other mental and behavioral health challenges. I worked as the Housing Coordinator for the cooperatives on campus, taught many dance classes in Contact Improvisation including at a Mid West dance festival, studied and practiced a collaborative, story-based songwriting method called Documentary Songwriting, started and led a movement program for elementary school aged boys in the town of Oberlin, and worked as a choir assistant in a men’s prison. Community building has been the core of each of these experiences.”
Runlin Li
“Being a double-major in Psychology and Music, I have experience in conducting qualitative and quantitative research, as well as working with clients in counseling/psychiatric clinics.
I’m thrilled to invite you to explore my skills and professional experience to know a bit more about me.
Dominic O’Connor
“I have experience working as a social media manager Free Lunch Academy in Chicago. . . . During my time at Oberlin I studied Psychology and Hispanic Studies. I became fluent in Spanish and taught myself to make beats on Fruity Loops Studio.
I am always looking for ways to help people and make their lives better if I can and I have a passion for music and learning.”
Charlotte Barbarinsa
“Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to work on a number of incredible projects that have allowed me to grow and establish myself within this competitive industry. I hope you’ll enjoy viewing my projects as much as I enjoyed working on them. Go ahead and explore, and don’t hesitate to reach out if you’d like to learn more.“
Max Kramer
“Max is an undergraduate student at Oberlin College and Conservatory in Oberlin, OH. He is a psychology major computer science minor with concentrations in statistical modeling and cognitive science. In the past few months, he has been hired on a grant to continue his research in computational modeling and machine learning. He is . . . “
Watson & Fulbright Award Winner Molly Gleydura ’22
Psychology major Molly Gleydura won both the prestigious Fulbright and Watson Awards.
She has chosen to accept the Watson award and will pursue independent research on parent bereavement in New Zealand, Senegal, El Salvador, and Ireland.
Fulbright Award Winner Ruth Beiber-Stanley ’21
Ruth Bieber-Stanley ’21 has German ancestors and relatives on both sides of her family, but never learned to speak German as a child. Today, not only does she know the language, but uses it to have an even deeper connection with her heritage.
“Learning German was a way to connect with a culture that intrigued me,” says Bieber-Stanley, a resident of Albuquerque, New Mexico. “I think learning a language is a way to access a culture and that’s what leads to cultural understanding.”
Although Bieber-Stanley was also able to take advantage of a study abroad experience in Germany, her time there was cut short due to the pandemic. She hopes her recent Fulbright Fellowship will grant her a second chance.
Read more . . . .
Goldwater Scholarship Winner Olivia Goldstein ’20
Olivia Goldstein is one of Oberlin’s three recipients of the Goldwater Scholarship.
The Goldwater is a competitive award program that supports students in the natural sciences, engineering, and mathematics.
Goldstein is a third-year psychology major with a concentration in statistical modeling. She is among the 396 college students across the United States—and one of only 11 pursuing psychology—who will receive up to $7,500 for tuition and expenses in the 2020-2021 academic year.
She . . .is a research assistant for Visiting Assistant Professor Kenneth Allen in the Cognitive, Affect, Self-Regulation, and Health (CASH) laboratory in the psychology department.
“We are interested in the relationship between mental illness and emotional response inhibition, which is essentially one’s ability to control their negative emotions . . . . My primary research focus is on nonsuicidal self-injury, which is the deliberate infliction of bodily harm (most commonly cutting) without any intent to die. Nonsuicidal self-injury is one of the best predictors of future suicide, which is the second-leading cause of death in American adolescents and costs the United States approximately $69 billion per year. I hope that my research helps people, specifically children and teenagers, alleviate pain and experience better well-being and more happiness in their lives.
Goldstein recently attended the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies in Atlanta, Georgia, to present the CASH laboratory study that examined how perceived criticism affects people’s decision-making abilities.
Read more about Olivia’s work here.
Brian Tom ’20 Wins AICUO Grand Award For Visual Arts
Studio art and psychology double major Brian Tom ’20 won the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Ohio (AICUO) Grand Award for Excellence in the Visual Arts for his 10-piece sculpture submission, The Rest In Pieces, which examines human responses to death through irony and humor.
The AICUO Excellence in Visual Arts award is an annual competition which accepts studio art portfolio submissions from these private colleges and universities across Ohio. After being judged in a blind jury pool made up of various professors, curators, and artists, the six finalists are narrowed down and a grand award winner is chosen. In the 12-year history of the AICUO awards program, an Oberlin College studio art major has won the grand prize seven times, and been represented among the finalists every year.
Oberlin Psychology 