After several years in Montréal completing an undergraduate degree, Amané Halicki-Asakawa found themself longing for the landscape and community they had grown up with in British Columbia. As they began contemplating a long training path in clinical psychology, the pull toward home became even stronger. Choosing UBC Okanagan offered the perfect balance: a return to the province they loved and a chance to build a new chapter in a place that felt both familiar and full of possibility. What followed was an academic and personal journey shaped by meaningful mentorship, deep community connections, and a commitment to expanding mental health care in the region.
Why did you choose to study at UBC Okanagan?
I grew up in BC, but I spent about seven years in Montréal while completing my undergraduate studies at McGill University. When I started thinking seriously about pursuing clinical psychology and the reality of a long program, it became clear that I wanted to be closer to home and family. I also really missed BC, and UBC Okanagan felt like the right balance, as it let me return to the province I love while still giving me a new place to grow, both personally and professionally.
What program are you in and what specifically attracted you to it?
I am in the Clinical Psychology program, and becoming a psychologist is something I have wanted for a long time. I might be biased, but the Clinical Psychology program at UBC Okanagan is truly one of the strongest in Canada, and Kelowna felt like an ideal place to train. As a smaller city with limited mental health resources, the in-house Psychology Clinic plays a central role in the community, and trainees end up seeing a wide range of clients with complex presentations and very different life circumstances. This creates a feeling that, even as a trainee, you are doing meaningful work, and that your time and training are making a direct contribution to people who might not otherwise have access to care.
On the research side, a major reason I came here was the opportunity to work with Dr. Maya Libben. My research focuses on eating disorders, particularly on issues related to treatment access, and long waitlists are a challenge across BC, especially in more rural regions. I wanted to do applied research that would matter for the communities around me, and Dr. Libben created the space for that by offering trust, guidance, and a lot of room to be ambitious. For my master’s work, we developed a mobile app designed to support motivation while women wait for eating disorder services, and for my doctoral dissertation I am running a randomized controlled trial to evaluate how well it works.
What opportunities has the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences provided you with?
The Faculty has offered some really valuable opportunities, especially when it comes to funding support. There are several awards that are surprisingly accessible, and they have made a huge difference in my ability to attend conferences and workshops. For instance, the Workshop and Conference Awards have allowed me to travel, present my work, and connect with colleagues across Canada and the United States. This has been important for me, since UBC Okanagan is in a smaller and more geographically isolated city. These opportunities have helped me build the kind of academic network that is often easier to access in larger urban centers.
Have any specific faculty members or classes helped to shape your academic journey?
When I started the program, I had a lot of self-doubt around neuropsychology. I had come from Montréal, where the field has such a long and celebrated history, and it felt like a big area to step into. Working with Dr. Harry Miller changed that for me. He introduced neuropsychology in a way that felt practical and grounded in real clinical work, and he helped me think about it from angles I had never considered before. He encouraged me to keep going even when I felt unsure, and he taught me how to use imposter syndrome as something that can push learning forward rather than something that holds you back. A lot of my confidence and growing interest in neuropsychology comes from the way he teaches and supports students, and it has ended up becoming a major part of my research and training.
What has been the best surprise about UBCO?
The best surprise has been how much a smaller university can shape your experience in really meaningful ways. Because the programs are smaller, it becomes much easier to build genuine relationships with faculty and to feel connected to the people around you. That sense of closeness also carries into the broader community. As a queer-identifying student, I was nervous about moving to a smaller city, but once I found my community, the relationships I built here became some of the strongest and most enduring ones I have. The size of the campus also creates many more opportunities to step into mentorship roles. I have had the chance to work closely with honours students who are incredibly thoughtful and motivated and being able to support their growth has ended up being one of the most rewarding parts of my time at UBCO.
What advice would you give your younger self about the university experience?
I would tell my younger self to notice whether a decision is coming from fear or from genuine interest. It is easy to avoid an area because it feels intimidating or unfamiliar, and it is just as easy to talk yourself out of something you care about because you assume you will not be good enough. One of the most helpful things I learned, especially through working with Dr. Harry Miller, is that imposter syndrome is not something you need to push away. It can actually tell you a lot if you let yourself explore it.
If something feels overwhelming, break it down until you reach the point where it no longer feels threatening, and start there. Look at the topic piece by piece, figure out where the uncertainty is coming from, and then build up your understanding in small, manageable steps. When you approach it this way, imposter syndrome becomes less of a barrier and more of a guide. It shows you exactly where your learning edges are, and facing it directly often leads to much more growth than avoiding it ever would.
What type of career are you considering after graduation?
I plan to work as a clinical neuropsychologist, but I also really enjoy research, supervision, and teaching, so I hope to find a career that allows me to combine all of those pieces. I would love to be in an academic setting where I can continue my research program, mentor and supervise students, and teach in a way that supports the next generation of clinicians. At the same time, staying connected to clinical practice is important to me, so my goal is to find a role that lets me balance academic work with meaningful time working directly with patients.
What are some of your future goals?
I have many future goals, but they all connect back to the same idea, which is finding better and more accessible ways to support people with eating disorders. One direction I am excited about is finding ways to expand access to care within the Interior and reimagining what treatment can look like, especially for people who are waiting long periods to be seen. I want to explore supports that do not add pressure to already overburdened clinical sites, such as interim programs, digital tools, and peer-based services.
I am also interested in bringing neuropsychological thinking more intentionally into ED settings, since there is so much potential to understand how cognitive processes shape recovery and to tailor assessment and intervention in more meaningful ways. Alongside this, I hope to continue doing research with queer communities, who are disproportionately affected by eating disorders and body dissatisfaction and are often overlooked in traditional treatment models. Even though these goals span different areas, they all come from wanting to create care systems that are more responsive, more inclusive, and more grounded in the needs of the communities we serve.
Who have you learned the most from (professionally or personally)?
I have learned the most from the patients I have worked with throughout my clinical training and research. They have shown me what resilience actually looks like in real life, not in a theoretical or abstract sense, but in the day-to-day ways people keep moving forward. They have also taught me how much room there is for joy, humour, and connection, even during very difficult periods, and how those moments often become possible because of what someone has gone through (rather than in spite of it). Working with them has shaped the way I think about strength, growth, and what it means to support people in a meaningful way.
What do you do for fun outside of the classroom (special talents, hobbies, etc.)?
Outside of school, I spend most of my free time with my partner and my dog, Bella. I also enjoy music festivals and, in a very different but equally fun way, research conferences. Conferences feel a bit like the academic version of a festival, where the headliners are the researchers and clinicians you have been reading for years, and the free pens you get at the industry sponsor tables function like very niche merch tables. It is a fun atmosphere if you enjoy being around people who get excited about the same things you do.