Samantha Stolker always wanted to pursue a career in healthcare, but her primary interest has always been with the brain. When deciding upon a career, Stolker decided to pursue a degree in mental health counseling because she liked the idea of improving well-being through better mental health.
“I love exploring the connection between thoughts, feelings and behaviors, as well as the situations that arise when these processes are maladaptive or dysregulated,” she said.
PCOM’s holistic approach to healthcare aligned well with Stolker’s interests.
“I like that PCOM emphasizes conceptualizing the individual through their mind, body and spirit,” she explained. “I also like being at a school with different types of healthcare professionals and participating in an integrated learning environment.”
During the second year of the program, Stolker completed her internship with the intensive outpatient program at Oaks Integrated Care, a community mental health setting located in Berlin, NJ.
The uniqueness of every client was the most interesting part of the experience, Stolker said.
“With every one of my clients, I have approached treatment very differently, even with two clients who have the exact same set of diagnoses,” she explained. “It was interesting to learn how much treatment needs to be individualized to be effective. I also found it highly interesting and enjoyable to see growth in my clients, and hear them tell me how much therapy changed their quality of life.”
While Stolker learned a lot during her experience, it was not without its challenges. In the beginning, Stolker felt unprepared for what awaited her.
“For a student preparing for an internship I would warn them that they are going to feel like they have no clue what they are doing for the longest time,” she cautioned. “Imposter syndrome is very real and somewhat normal for this step in your education. Embrace your lack of knowledge, but also be confident that our program has prepared you for this moment. You are going to make mistakes; embrace them, learn from them, and move on.”
Upon completion of her mental health counseling degree, Stolker plans to continue her education at PCOM. She will be entering the Clinical PsyD program in fall of 2023 and hopes to pursue either clinical forensic psychology or clinical neuropsychology.
Stolker, who plans to work in integrated care, said she has enjoyed learning how to collaborate with medical students and other psychology students. She also appreciates the cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) focus of the MS in Mental Health Counseling program. Her favorite aspect of the program, however, has been the interactions and collaborations with other students in the program.
“My cohort is a group of highly intelligent, highly compassionate, and highly driven individuals who inspire me to work hard and improve my skills as a counselor,” Stolker said. “I have thoroughly enjoyed learning from them, as well as the faculty.”
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