Psychology Extern
Sangida Akter (she/her) is a doctoral student in Counseling Psychology at the University of Maryland, College Park. She has experience providing individual therapy, couples counseling, and crisis support to clients in a variety of settings – college counseling, private practice, and suicide hotline. Some of her salient identities include being a 1st generation college graduate, South Asian, and Muslim American.
Sangida believes therapy is a space like no other where clients can safely examine their inner and outer world, be accepted for who they are, and supported in becoming who they wish to be. Sangida aims to approach her clients with a genuine attitude, listen attentively, and honor their identities and lived experiences. In therapy, clients can expect that she will walk alongside them in exploring and achieving the goals they set, all the while cheering them on for their strengths and everyday wins. In her work, she integrates Humanistic, Psychodynamic, Multicultural, and Interpersonal theoretical orientations, as well as Dialectical Behavior Therapy. Her therapeutic approach is also influenced by her research training on how systems of oppression (e.g. Islamophobia, classism, racism) impact people with marginalized identities, and her experience with supporting college students who are children of immigrants, BIPOC, or 1st gen identifying.