Natalie Kelly
City of Hope, Department of Supportive Care
Duarte, CA USA
"Remember you can always do it differently."
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Natalie's work combines: Science, Medicine, and Helping People
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Advice for getting started
I had some self-doubt in grad school about my path. Once I realized the hoops I had to go through—defending this or writing that—I'd think to myself, "Is this really what I want to do?" I had a lot of support from friends through grad school. Even if we had different disciplines, we were all in the same boat together, so we leaned on each other for support. And when I actually got to do neuropsychology training, I felt very excited about the work. That reassured me that I was on the right path.
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Child Development
Vanderbilt University
Graduate Degree
Clinical Rehabilitation Psychology
Indiana University - Purdue University, Indianapolis
Doctorate
Clinical Rehabilitation Psychology
Indiana University - Purdue University, Indianapolis
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life has been direct
1.
I’ve been interested in science from a young age—I first thought I wanted to become a science teacher and later decided I wanted to become a doctor.
2.
I started college as a biology major but switched to child development after learning more about psychology and realizing that I wanted to become a neuropsychologist.
3.
I did two years of neuropsychology research to gain experience and then applied to graduate school.
4.
After earning my master’s degree in clinical rehabilitation psychology, I completed a year-long internship in clinical psychology at the Children’s Hospital of Michigan.
5.
I then went into specialty training and completed a fellowship in pediatric neuropsychology.
6.
After that advanced training, I went straight to City of Hope, where I work as a clinical neuropsychologist.
7.
I also train doctoral-level psychology students in conducting neuropsychological evaluations as the director of the Neuropsychology Clerkship.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Myself:
Is this really what I want to do? There are so many hoops I need to jump through. What did I get myself into?
How I responded:
I had some self-doubt in grad school about my path. Once I realized the hoops I had to go through—defending this or writing that—I'd think to myself, "Is this really what I want to do?" I had a lot of support from friends through grad school. Even if we had different disciplines, we were all in the same boat together, so we leaned on each other for support. And when I actually got to do neuropsychology training, I felt very excited about the work. That reassured me that I was on the right path.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
When I first started my career, I realized no one would be signing off on my documentation. I didn't immediately feel confident in myself. The feelings took a while to work through. The more patients I saw and work I did, the more my confidence grew.