Personal Narrative: My Interview With A Psychology Professor

When I was asked to interview a Psychology Professor in order to get to know the Psychology Department better, and to broaden my knowledge in the field of Psychology, I was very excited. Psychology was never offered as a class at my high school, and all that I know about Psychology I learned from my mother. As much as I was very excited to get to know about Psychology and a Psychology Professor, I was a little nervous about meeting and talking with a professor who I had never met before. I built up the guts and courage and emailed Professor McIntyre and asked her if she would be willing to meet with me. She was delighted to meet with me, but could only interview over the phone because she needed to be home with her new baby girl. I would like
to say that it was a complete pleasure speaking with Professor McIntyre. As soon as she answered the phone, all my nervous “butterflies” went away and we spoke about many different things. I am so very glad that I was able to interview her, and I am glad to have learned about why she entered the field of Psychology. It was a complete privilege to speak to her. Professor McIntyre is a Developmental Psychologist and an Associate Professor here at Russell Sage College. She teaches Introductory Psychology, Developmental Science, Health Psychology, Positive Psychology, and Psychology of Disability. Professor McIntyre completed her undergraduate (B.A.) in Psychology with a minor in French at the State University of New York and at SUNY College at Plattsburgh. She completed her graduate degree (M.S. and Ph.D.) at Syracuse University. Before coming to Russell Sage, Professor McIntyre taught at SUNY Adirondack. My first question for Professor McIntyre was “how did you become interested in Psychology?” She told me that when she was very young, she remembered going through her mother’s closet one day and seeing different Psychology books.
Even though her mother was a nurse and not a Psychology major, her mother used these books during college. Professor McIntyre said that she found these book interesting and it prompted her to begin to take an interest in Psychology. I found this very interesting because it was my mother too that helped to get me interested in the field of Psychology. I then asked “what would you be doing if you were not in the field of Psychology?” Professor McIntyre paused and laughed for a minute. She said she loved Psychology so much that she really could not see herself doing anything else, but if she had to choose she would have been a nurse because she loves interacting with others. I also asked her what she loved about Psychology. She told me that she loved teaching and educating others about it, she loved that it was always evolving, you can learn new things about it all the time, and she loved that it was a field that could always be applied to real life. I then asked Professor McIntyre if she enjoyed being a Professor here at Russell Sage College, I told her I would make no judgements regardless of her answer. She told me that she loved teaching here because the class sizes were perfect and they allowed her to interact with everyone on an intimate level.
My last question for Professor McIntyre was “what do you enjoy doing in your spare time?” She told me that right now, most of her time was devoted to her new baby, her family, and college. She said when she did have free time she enjoyed exercising, gardening, cooking, and baking. It was a complete joy getting to know a little bit more about Professor McIntyre and I look forward to speaking with her again.