Why I Chose Psychology: The Story Behind The Budding Psychologist

I did not choose psychology because I had everything figured out. I chose it because I kept coming back to the same questions: Why do people become who they are? How do early experiences shape us? What helps people heal, adapt, and move forward?

I think of these questions as my “series of whys.” They are the questions that have followed me through my academic journey, my research, and now my path toward becoming a clinical psychologist.

Over the last few years, I have conducted research on the influence of childhood adversity on young adults’ decision-making and emotion regulation. This work became the foundation of my MPhil in Population Health in the United Kingdom, where I completed an independent research project examining how early-life adversity between ages 5 and 11 may shape outcomes in young adulthood.

Through that project, I gained hands-on experience in study design, data collection, and statistical analysis. But more than that, I learned how to think critically as a researcher. I learned how to question assumptions, refine hypotheses, sit with uncertainty, and understand that research is not always about finding a perfect answer. Sometimes, it is about learning how to ask better questions.

That process changed me.

As I grew as a researcher, I found myself drawn not only to the literature but to the people behind the data. I became more interested in how research could inform clinical practice, policy, prevention, and the ways we support people across the lifespan. The more I studied psychology, the more I came to understand it as a field that sits at the intersection of science, lived experience, systems, and care. That is what led me to pursue clinical psychology.

But my journey into psychology has also been shaped by my personal experiences.

As a first-generation Nigerian immigrant, college student, graduate student, and now doctoral student, I have often had to navigate spaces where the rules were not always clear. I have attended predominantly white institutions across three Western countries, and those experiences made me think deeply about representation, access, and belonging in higher education and psychology.

There were many moments when I felt like everyone else had received a manual that I somehow missed. So much of higher education is hidden, unstated, or assumed. From applying to programs, finding funding, understanding academic language, asking for support, or simply learning how to move through professional spaces, there is so much that students are expected to know without ever being taught.

That realization is one of the reasons I created The Budding Psychologist.

I wanted to build a space for students who are still figuring it out. A space for undergraduate students, graduate students, future clinicians, first-generation students, students navigating predominantly white spaces, and anyone curious about psychology or higher education. While the name centers on psychology, many of the resources here will also be relevant to students in other helping professions, including medicine, public health, social work, counseling, education, and even law!

My goal is to make this space practical, honest, and accessible. I have spent years helping students with personal statements, scholarship applications, financial aid questions, graduate school decisions, and higher education planning. I have also worked in college access and student support, which has allowed me to understand higher education from both a student perspective and an administrative one.

Now, I want to bring those experiences together.

The Budding Psychologist is not about pretending to have everything figured out. It is about growing into the field while sharing what I learn along the way. It is about making the path a little less confusing for the people coming next.

So, welcome.

Here, you will find blog posts, podcast conversations, application advice, graduate school resources, reflections on psychology, and honest conversations about what it means to become a clinician, researcher, student, and person in this field.

I am so glad you are here. Please sign up for the newsletter to stay updated on new blog posts, podcast episodes, and resources as they are released.

We are all still becoming. That is the point.