Meet Mataea L.

Psychology Intern

Centennial Centre for Mental Health and Brain Injury

Summer 2019 (14 month term)

"My first nine months as a psychology intern at the Centennial Centre for Mental Health & Brain Injury (CCMHBI) have been hands down the most fascinating and rewarding months of my life. I have been so incredibly lucky to gain real-life clinical experience at this state of the art and internationally recognized facility. ⠀

Every day, I get to work directly with a phenomenal multidisciplinary team of highly-trained mental-health professionals. I run intake and discharge assessments, have one-on-ones with clients, co-facilitate groups, input data into statistical programs, help plan & update our program. Sometimes I even get to be a part of some intake interviews if I have time! I have loved every minute of it.

The amount of knowledge that I have acquired on numerous mental illnesses is extensive. I can now apply principles learned in textbooks and lectures to real life. I truly feel that I have found my passion and niche in life.⠀⠀ 

This internship has opened my eyes to just how diverse the scope of mental health and illness is. It has shown me the monumental impact that severe cases of mental illness can have on lives. I realize now how invaluable real-life clinical training is to being an effective and competent mental-health professional. The skills that I have learned in this internship will help me hugely in my future career in psychology. I still find myself in awe of the magnitude of empathy both clients and employees show towards the fight for mental health. I am grateful everyday for being gifted this amazing opportunity and can’t wait to learn more!"⠀

Mataea is a 3rd year B.A. Honours student at the University of Alberta. She is a Psychology Intern at the Centennial Centre for Mental Health and Brain Injury and is completing a 14 month internship. She looks forward to getting her degree and eventually her Masters in Psychology so that she can work at a facility like Centennial Centre in the future.