Profile: Erin Peterson

Erin Peterson, Ph.D. COL ‘98
Clinical Psychologist

What is your current title?
I am a clinical psychologist at Georgetown University’s Counseling and Psychiatric Service (CAPS). At CAPS, I conduct evaluations, and provide psychotherapy, emergency coverage, and consultation and outreach programming. Additionally, I coordinate the group psychotherapy program and co-lead a women’s group. I also have a private practice in which I see patients for individual psychotherapy in Dupont Circle, Washington DC.

Can you describe your career path?
As early as middle school, I became interested in psychology. At GU, I majored in psychology and pursued numerous opportunities to learn as much about the field of clinical psychology as I could. After graduating from GU, I worked in the field for a year at a school for emotionally disabled children and adolescents, and I volunteered as a research assistant at the National Institute of Mental Health. The following year, I began a 5-year Ph.D. program in clinical psychology at Catholic University. After that, I took a one-year post-doctoral fellowship at CAPS, and then was subsequently hired on as a staff psychologist. It was a long road, but worth it!

What did you do as an undergraduate to explore career options?
Early on as a psychology major, I began speaking with professors about the field. Norman Finkel was a particularly useful resource. I pursued numerous experiential opportunities to learn more. I served as a Peer Educator for 3 years which allowed me to learn about mental health related issues and develop and present programs to large groups of people. Additionally, during the summer, I pursued volunteer and work experience that exposed me to various aspects of clinical psychology. Two experiences that stood out were work as a volunteer on a crisis hotline, and an internship in a psychiatric hospital unit in Bethesda, MD. Both of these experiences gave me some of the needed skills to become a psychotherapist, and a flavor for working with patients.

What is the best part of your job?
There are so many aspects of my job that I enjoy. Both meeting and developing relationships with interesting and diverse individuals, and helping them negotiate difficulties and learn more about themselves, is an honor.

What is the worst part of your job?
Paperwork!

What advice/resources could you provide for students interested in a career in psychology?
I would encourage students to talk with people in the field to learn more: professors, current grad students, and professionals. APA.org and psichi.org are great internet resources. There are numerous books available as well. Some that were particularly useful for me were Mayne, Norcross, & Sayette’s Insider’s Guide to Graduate Programs in Clinical and Counseling Psychology (2001), and the American Psychology Association’s Graduate Student in Psychology. To get a better understanding of the art of psychotherapy read Yalom’s Love’s Executioner. I would also suggest students identify specific areas that interest them and pursue volunteer/work opportunities. Make sure to experiment with different work situations (e.g. clinics, shelters, schools, hospitals, research) and with different populations to learn more about what interests you.