Colin Powell School
Psychology MA Graduate Adam Qureshi: It’s OK to Not Know What You Want to Do
Adam Qureshi, an alumnus of the Psychology MA program, is now a data analyst at Rockefeller University. In this interview, he tells about how he discovered his love for statistics, and how faculty at the Colin Powell School helped him make the career-altering realization that he wanted to be a researcher, not a clinician.
Tell me a little about your background.
I was born and raised on Long Island, NY, and I am half Pakistani and half Greek. Before I came to CCNY, I finished up my undergrad at Penn State and was dead set on becoming a clinical psychologist!
What brought you to City College?
City College was local to me, which was nice because I wanted to come back home and stay home. Additionally, different faculty and people I trusted told me that City College’s psychology program is great because of its faculty. So after some decision-making, I decided to commit to City College and I haven’t regretted it since.
How did you come to the decision to study Psychology at City College?
I had studied Psychology as an undergrad at Penn State, so it was a subject that I was really invested in. At the time, I wanted to become a therapist and earn a PhD, but my undergraduate GPA wasn’t great, and I felt that I wasn’t ready to go into a Doctoral program just yet, so I went to City College to complete my master’s degree in Psychology and figure out how exactly I wanted to contribute.
How has your career unfolded? How did City College and/or the Colin Powell School help you?
Funnily enough, my career has unfolded not at all how I intended it to. During my graduate career at City College, I figured out that I didn’t actually want to be a therapist. In fact, I figured out that I didn’t know what I wanted to be at all! It sounds scary, but it was actually really freeing. City College helped me realize that. Time and time again different faculty came to me and asked about my career path, and we’d talk about how I wanted to be a clinician. The more I talked about, explored, and learned about that path, the more I realized that it wasn’t what I really wanted to do.
Additionally, City College also helped me realize that I really enjoy scientific research. I realized this thanks to the really fun and invigorating courses in statistics and experimental research that I took at CCNY. So, since I didn’t know what I wanted to do anymore, why not start with what I’ve enjoyed? I now have a job as a data analyst at Rockefeller University and I couldn’t be happier right now!
Do you have a particular memory or accomplishment that stands out in your mind that you’d like to share?
A lot of my significant memories are conversations with faculty. One memory in particular was a conversation with Dr. Tartter. I had just given a presentation in our graduate experimental class and my presentation had a certain graph in it that she recommended me to do. Afterwards she mentioned how my face lit up during the presentation and she could tell how happy I was to present my findings. It seems mundane on the outside, but at the time it felt really nice to hear, when I was uncertain about so many things.
How have you been involved with City College since your graduation? Why do you stay involved?
Since I graduated, I’ve tried to keep in touch with professors that I felt had a big impact on me. I am also still involved with PSY215, Applied Statistics. I was a TA for it under Sophie Barrett during my last year of graduate school, which is something that helped me tremendously. It was really great teaching, speaking to the students and helping them in a topic that a lot of people aren’t fans of. Nowadays I still talk with Sophie and the other TAs, and I help them with some aspects of the class like labs and what not. I stay involved because the community around City College is nice, and the school gave me some great opportunities and experiences, so I want to give back.
Do you have any advice you could give to current or future students?
The biggest advice I’ll give to students is that if you don’t know what it is you want to do exactly, it’s OK! You don’t need a concrete five or ten year plan. Your interests change, and what you want to do may change as well. Don’t be afraid of thinking outside the box of what you want your career to be. I had a lot of anxiety deciding not to pursue being a clinician anymore because I felt that that was the only pathway I had. You have plenty of pathways, and plenty of avenues to go through. Don’t worry!
A second bit of advice is to find some faculty that you like and latch onto them for your City College career and beyond. The faculty can help you navigate while you’re in school, but also they can be really great resources when all is said and done and you’re out in the real world.