Meet Nevicia Case: PhD Candidate in Psychiatry

Nevicia Case is a PhD Candidate in Psychiatry at McGill University.

Nevicia Case, PhD Candidate in Psychiatry (Picture courtesy of Nevicia Case)

So if you don’t mind, Tell us a little bit about yourself?

Yeah, of course! My name’s Nevicia Case. I studied psychology in my undergraduate and pursued a Master’s in medical sciences at the University of Calgary. Now, I’m doing my Ph.D. in psychiatry at McGill University where I’m researching cognitive and behavioural outcomes of depressed mood combined with alcohol.

Aside from that, I’ve also co-founded the Health Innovation Initiative at McGill. The purpose of it is to bring together people from academia and industry, specifically in the health industry. Students are equipped with the skills and resources to take their university research to take it to the next level where it can have an impact on the real world and industry representatives are made aware of the cutting-edge research being conducted by students. This way, they also have an opportunity to collaborate.

Another project that I’ve started with the Mindfire Foundation in Switzerland is developing a standardized neuropsychological testing framework for robots in an effort to work towards human-level artificial intelligence This project has allowed me to apply my knowledge of neuropsychology in a very innovative way that steps beyond the boundaries of psychiatry.

What made you want to study psychiatry?

I always knew I had a general interest in the field of psychology, but that’s very broad. There are so many different directions you can go with that. I didn’t know specifically what aspect of that I wanted to pursue. I had general interests in areas like psychosis, mood disorders, and addictions, but I didn’t know exactly how I wanted to use that in the future. I just had a very vague idea, nothing clear. Through the process of going deeper into these research areas while in academia, I was able to clarify a lot of that and narrow down my research interests. For example, I discovered that I prefer doing research that’s more quantitative than qualitative.

Have you faced any obstacles being a woman either in academia or industry? Or would you say that has not really been an issue?

Academia has been quite amenable in my experience, whereas the tech and industry worlds are a bit harsher. I go to a lot of events and sometimes I do feel either intimidated or excluded from certain conversations. However, what I have noticed is that in many conversations where I have been completely ignored, once people learn that I’m a Ph.D. candidate, suddenly my presence and contribution is of value. But a doctoral level of education should never be a prerequisite for being heard.

That’s all the questions I have! Thank you so much!

Of course, anytime. Thanks!