Teresa Ying, Maria Carr, and Kexin Yu completed internships at the USC Edward R. Roybal Institute on Aging this past academic year. They each received their MSW degree at the 2018 USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work commencement ceremony on May 11, 2018.
They shared their experiences working at the USC Roybal Institute.
Maria Carr, MSW
My internship experience at the USC Roybal Institute allowed me to assist Dr. María Aranda and her team on her research project looking at a culturally modified evidence-based program and its effect on depressed older Latino adults and their chronic conditions. I also had the opportunity to assist the research team with the Savvy Caregiver study with Alzheimer’s caregivers, which looked at the effectiveness of a shorter version of Savvy Caregiver that assist caregivers to better help family relatives and/or individuals in their lives with Alzheimer’s.
I was able to witness first hand the needs of minority ethnic groups and an aging population whose health disparities keep growing, but thanks to the research we continue to make a difference in the lives of those populations by developing practical programs and services. The internship opportunity inspired me to pursue a research career in the future that will allow me to continue pursuing research whose goal is to enhance optimal aging for low-income minority individuals in my community. I would also like to thank Dr. Aranda, Iris Aguilar, May Ma Ross, Mita Patel, and Vincent Lim for their dedication to the aging population as well as their mentorship and guidance.
Teresa Ying, MSW
Through the time I spent at the USC Roybal Institute, I learned so much about the research and initiatives being organized to support the aging population in minority communities. I better understand the importance of collaboration between the community, researchers, and policy makers to enhance the lives of aging individuals and their families. This experience has propelled my passion to continue my work in the field of aging.
Kexin Yu, MSW, PhD Candidate
My internship at USC Roybal Institute last summer was a valuable experience for me—learning to bring research and practice together. I was engaged in the design and implementation of a pilot study in Los Angeles that building off of the Intergenerational Mobile Technology Opportunity program led by Dr. Shinyi Wu in Taiwan. I’ve learned how approach to conducting community-based participatory research, and I’m appreciative of the knowledge and wisdom that I gained from working in the community. I have been taking MSW and PhD courses concurrently as part of the dual MSW/PhD degree program over the past two years, but I will be more focused on the research side now.