Alumnus: Charles Fitzsimmons

Conducting an undergraduate honors thesis project has been the most rewarding learning experience I’ve had at the University of North Florida. I began working with Dr. Katherine Hooper shortly after she recruited me to become a teaching assistant in one of her psychobiology courses. I was able to conduct my research project on test anxiety in an applied setting, which aligns with my future interests in psychology. With the support and guidance of my mentor, I learned how to write an IRB proposal, improved my APA writing skills, and learned about the collection and analysis of data. Since the project was conducted in a classroom setting during real course exams, I also learned important ethical skills to ensure we complied with laws such as the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). We attempted to replicate a method previously shown to reduce test anxiety and improve performance during real course exams in psychology courses on campus. I developed additional professional skills with the help of the Office of Undergraduate Research and presented our results at professional conferences. The research experience has been incredibly rewarding and I continue to conduct independent research even though my honors thesis requirements have already been met. With the support of the psychology department and guidance from my mentor, I have gained the skills I will need to continue on in graduate school to eventually reach my goal of becoming a research professor.