Hi! I'm Aashna. I am a fifth-year PhD candidate in psychology at New York University, where I work with Dr. Andrei Cimpian at the Cognitive Development Lab. 

I am interested in the psychology behind children's and adults' career choices. People choose careers based on their skills, interests, and goals. But these choices are not made in a vacuum. When deciding which path to pursue, people also consider who succeeds, where, and how. My research seeks to understand these complex choices by investigating the role that social group identities such as gender and social class play in shaping career choices across the lifespan.

Prior to joining NYU, I earned a B.A. in Marketing and Psychology from Singapore Management University and an M.Ed. in Human Development and Psychology from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. My PhD is supported by an IES-PIRT fellowship (2022-2026), an NYU MacCracken fellowship (2026-2027), and an APA Division 35 Geis Memorial Award.