Christian Brothers Academy seniors were able to gain some professional insight on careers in psychology from one of CBA’s own, alumnus Dr. Peter Economou ’98.

Economou is an Associate Professor of Psychology and Program Director of Applied Psychology at Rutgers University, specializing in sport psychology. He teaches in the graduate school, which primarily consists of doctorate-level courses. He runs his own counseling practice, which specializes in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and serves a variety of collegiate and professional athletes as well as business executives.

Participating in a Zoom conference with a senior psychology class on November 24, their discussion included his work as a counselor, the importance of mindfulness and meditation, pitfalls of social media, sleep hygiene, and the importance of being process-oriented over outcome-oriented.

“Nothing is really common, because every person is so unique,” Economou told the students. “It’s the art of what we do. While there is a lot of science that proves what we do works, there is an art that sometimes seems impulsive. Depression, anxiety and trauma are things we try to recognize and try to build relationships with behaviorally.”

Perhaps most importantly, the students had the opportunity to see what a career in psychology looks like, including both applied psychology and academia. Economou was able to answer any questions that the CBA students had about psychology and potential careers.

Economou provided excellent insight on life as a psychologist and what it is like working with different types of people. By the end of the 45-minute session, it was clear that Economou has a passion for helping people improve their livelihood.

“Our minds are really creative,” Economou said. “Our minds think of things like a movie producer. A lot of things we wouldn’t say out loud to other people, but the confidentiality piece [of psychology] is critical to why it works.”