May 27, 2009 By: yunews
May 27, 2009 -- The usual academic demands of graduate study were compounded for Younghee 鈥淔rida鈥 Seo, a South Korean native who recently graduated with a master鈥檚 degree from Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology鈥檚 Mental Health Counseling Program. She struggled with her English and with adjusting to a different culture; she was homesick for South Korea.
But Seo persevered, and thrived. Most notably, she established a new internship last June at the Asian Outreach Clinic of the Child Center of New York in Queens, doing much-needed work with Korean immigrants suffering from ADHD, depression and other mental health issues, and with children exposed to violence.
When Seo graduated with a bachelor鈥檚 degree in sociology from Ewha Woman鈥檚 University in Seoul in 2006, her professor suggested studying in the U.S.
鈥淓xperiencing the diverse culture in New York City sounded very interesting to me,鈥 she said.
At first, Seo lived in Little Italy in the Bronx, 鈥渆njoying the fantastic Italian and Mexican food.鈥 When she did her internship in Flushing, in an Asian-friendly neighborhood, she felt less homesick.
Professor William Bracero鈥檚 course on 鈥淢ulticultural and Diversity Issues in Mental Health Counseling鈥 opened her eyes, Seo said. 鈥淟istening to his lectures, I thought that I am not alone, as most migrant groups have undergone similar experiences in life--even harsher.鈥 In Professor Irene Javors鈥 counseling skills and techniques class, Seo found inspiration for dealing with her clients鈥 issues at the Queens clinic.
Now that she has her degree, she hopes to continue her training in this country and eventually return to Korea as a mental health counselor.
