2024-2025 Board Members
We are a team of dedicated and talented individuals that will be managing the Psychology Student Association (PSA) at the University of California, Irvine. We are collaborating to foster an environment that promotes the goals of PSA: creating experiences and hosting events to connect people within the field of psychology. Say hello to us during the 2024-2025 school year!
President
Crystal Medina
Major(s): Psychology, B.S. & Minor in Biology
Hi everyone!! I’m Crystal, PSA’s president for the year and I’m so excited to meet you all :) If you ever see me on campus or at meetings please feel free to come up and say hi. I love to talk about music and pop culture. Recently I’ve been watching a lot of Breaking Bad, Succession, and silly romcoms from the early 2000s. You can always talk to me about my pet cat who I love more than anything else. I love to show pictures of him hehe. If you’d rather talk to me about something more professional or academic, I’m interested in pursuing occupational therapy after undergrad. My favorite part of PSA easily has been the people I’ve met. The sense of community is initially what kept me coming. and hopefully you all get to have a similar experience! If not for the academic and professional opportunities we offer, come join us for a fun time with an awesome group of people!!
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Vice President
Meghan Johnson
Major(s): Psychology, B.S.
Hi everyone! My name is Meghan and this is my third year working with PSA. I am also currently a Research Assistant in the Computational Cognitive Neuroscience Lab here at UCI. Some of my interests are crocheting, cooking, and trying new matcha places lol. I’m planning to pursue a career in clinical psychology after graduation. Please feel free to reach out to me via Instagram @meghanxjohnson or come say hi to me at meetings! I love the community everyone has helped build here at PSA. I have met some of my closest friends through PSA and I am forever grateful. PSA is a wonderful place to learn more about different career paths, on-campus opportunities, and meet industry professionals.
Secretary
Pamela Castillo
Major(s): Psychological Science, B.A. & Sociology, B.A.
Hi I’m Pamela the Secretary for PSA this year! I’m currently interested in pursuing a career in either Clinical Psychology or I/O Psych. Outside of academics, I enjoy reading (genres like romance, contemporary, and memoirs), baking, and being with friends. PSA is not only a great way to make new friends who share the same career interests as you but also gain helpful resources. I really recommend anyone who’s interested in the Psychology field to join or anyone who’s looking for a space to create friends and find their place on campus!
Treasurer
Nicolas (Nico) Lee
Major(s): Business Economics, B.A. & Minor in Psychology and Accounting
Hi, I'm Nico, the Treasurer for PSA this year. I am interested in pursuing a career in Treasury Management or Financing. I spend my free time at the gym where I weightlift or go rock climbing. I also like to watch movies, go thrifting, read, and hang out with my friends. A fun fact about me is that I have twin brother. One of the best things about PSA has to be the people I've met and the professional/academic connections that I have made.
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Intern Liason
Hendira (Kayla) Nababan
Major(s): Biological Science, B.S. & Psychology, B.S.
Hi! I’m Kayla and I love eating sweets and experiencing new things! Although I’m Indonesian, Thai food is my favorite food of all time! I have created so many friendships in PSA that I will forever cherish. I also learned so much on how to balance my pre-med life as a psychology major thanks to PSA. No matter what area of psychology you are interested in, in PSA you will most likely find someone who can help you throughout your time here at UCI!
Webmaster
Ameera (Meera) Odeh
Major(s): Psychological Science, B.A. & Informatics, B.S.
Hi! I'm Meera and I am the PSA Webmaster for this year. I love going on walks, listening to music, going thrifting, watching movies, and spending time with my friends and family. I am an ISTJ and hedgehogs are my favorite animals of all time. I want to pursue a career in Human-Computer interactions to become a Front-End Designer/Developer. Through PSA, I have formed some really great friendships, made incredible connections, and gained a lot of clarity into the career path that I want to take in life. PSA is a great place for anyone, even if you are taking a nonconventional approach to psychology or just have a slight interest in it at all.
Outreach Chair
Emily Piza
Major(s): Psychological Science, B.A.
Hi! I'm Emily and in my free time, I love running, reading, discovering new coffee spots, and watching film or movies. My all-time favorite films are The Perks of Being a Wallflower and Corpse Bride—I’m a huge Tim Burton fan! Fun fact: I read nearly 50 books last summer. If you have any book or film recommendations, I’d love to hear them! Looking ahead, I aspire to work in the Mental Health Care field as a clinical social worker, with a focus on supporting underprivileged communities that have limited access to mental health services. What I love about PSA is the amazing people and the strong sense of community that I felt when I first joined. PSA also offers great academic benefits, through career and professional building opportunities that help you determine what subfields of psychology you are interested in :)!
Community Service Chair
Elaine Nguyen
Major(s): Psychology, B.S.
Hi! I'm Elaine and I am a second year Psychology major that hopes to pursue a path in clinical or counseling psychology! I love going to concerts, listening to music, getting drinks at cute cafes, and hanging out with loved ones. I yap a lot, especially about blind boxes, and I'm always happy to meet new people! I love that PSA is welcoming to everyone no matter who you are. There's plenty of opportunities to meet new people and you somehow find yourself talking to new people every meeting even if it's Week 3 of Spring Quarter. PSA has a lot of different aspects to it, such as the internship, community service events, socials, and more that allows people to engage with what they like! We have both fun and professional meetings so whether you just want to meet new people or grow professionally, there's always a space for you!
Marketing Chair
Taylor Nguyen
Major(s): Psychological Science, B.A. & Public Health Policy, B.A.
Hello, my name is Taylor and I am this year's Marketing Co-Chair! I am a Psychological Science and Public Health Policy double major and hope to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology with a specialization in Neuropsychology! My favorite movies are La La Land and Pitch Perfect, and my favorite show is Adventure Time. I play guitar and violin and love to indulge in buying concert tickets to see my favorite artists (fun fact, I've been to over 10 BTS concerts!). Being a part of PSA has allowed me to form some of my closest friendships here at UCI! I believe PSA is an amazing and welcoming community that fosters genuine connections between likeminded students at our school. It's a great place to start if you're a person looking to find friends, get in touch with academic resources, and get involved on campus!
Marketing Chair
Jina Suhr
Major(s): Psychology, B.S. & Minor in Management
Hi, my name is Jina and I am this year’s Marketing Chair! In my free time, I love watching soccer, especially the Premier League. I also enjoy eating yummy foods with my friends and watching sunsets at the beach. Lately, I’ve been rewatching some of my all-time favorite shows, Modern Family and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. In the future, I aspire to work in the sports industry as a sports psychologist or as part of a marketing team. I’m looking forward to our meetings this year and am excited to see everyone there! My favorite thing about PSA is the atmosphere and how welcoming it feels. Joining this club last year not only allowed me to meet so many amazing people, but it also helped me learn tips about classes and career paths.
Project Coordinator
Zoya Sheikh
Major(s): Psychology, B.S. & Biological Science, B.S.
Hi everyone! My name is Zoya! I’m currently a second year at UCI on the pre-med track hoping to practice Psychiatry. I love a lot of different genres of music and I also love dessert and am always baking sweet things for me to snack on. Most importantly, I love spending time with my family and friends! (Fun fact about me is that I’m from Texas so I’ll go to the beach whenever I can! ). There are so many things I love about PSA but namely, I really appreciate the community and the opportunities that PSA has for students. Through PSA, I met a lot of people that I've created amazing friendships and gotten tons of advice on my classes, introductions to labs, and job opportunities that are provided at every single meeting. As project coordinator, I get to help create fun, educational meetings for students and I hope you’ll come check them out and join the club!
Project Coordinator
Megan Eng
Major(s): Biological Science, B.S. & Minor in Psychology
Hi I'm Megan! Some of my hobbies include watching dramas, listening to music (2000's & 2010's pop for nostalgia and kpop), and playing viola. I've also recently gotten back into reading and my favorite genre is romance. I am currently interested in pursuing a career in healthcare. PSA is a great club for people interested in psychology (not just psych majors!) to meet others with the same interests and get access to various professional and social opportunities!
Social Chair
Ivan Barajas
Major(s): Psychology, B.S.
My names Ivan and my favorite things to do are thrift, swim, and eat. At home I currently have 5 dogs that I personally gave birth to and love more than any man. As for career goals I’m currently looking towards clinical social work or psych IO but I’m still unsure. A fun fact is I’m double jointed on both my elbows! I think one of the best things about PSA is having the opportunity to meet many people who are taking the same classes as you, meaning you can help each other on anything you may be struggling with. For even more reason, most of the time these people end up being some of your closest friends!
Social Chair
Allison Hwang
Major(s): Psychology, B.S. & Minor in Biology
Hi!! I'm Allison and I'm so excited to be your social chair this year! I joined PSA to find more Psychology lovers and very successfully did so!! I met so many of my friends here through the socials and the internships so I hope you'll join us for those ♡ Feel free to come talk to me about kpop, khh/krnb, kdramas, sitcoms, psychology, or literally anything :) I'm currently planning to be a psychiatrist so feel free to ask me about any advice on that path as well. One fun fact about me is that I love going to concerts! By the end of 2024, I will have seen Taylor Swift (2x), keshi (2x), Stray Kids, Blackpink, ATEEZ, Seventeen and Colde!