Graduate Students
Note: The following is not a complete list of graduate students.
| MSc in Psychiatry Research | |
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Name: Bronwyn Inness Bronwyn is a MSc Psychiatry Research student at Dalhousie University. She completed her BSc Honours in Psychology at Mount Allison University. Bronwyn also volunteers in a developmental psychology lab at Mount Saint Vincent University. She loves working with kids and is interested in learning about their social, emotional, and cognitive development. At Dalhousie, Bronwyn is investigating the effects of parental smartphone use and addiction on childhood socioemotional wellbeing. This research addresses a relevant topic regarding the impact that smartphones may have on children when they interfere with parent-child interactions. |
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Name: Chelsea Ingham Chelsea is a Masters of Psychiatry Research student at Dalhousie University. After completing her BA in Psychology at Western University, she worked as a research assistant at a neuroscience lab and volunteered as a crisis counsellor for the Canadian Mental Health Association. Her research interests focus on eating disorder (ED) prevention, weight suppression, and the emerging use of psilocybin in eating disorder treatment. Currently, she is studying the feasibility and effectiveness of implementing the Body Project, an early intervention program for eating disorders, in Halifax schools. Chelsea is passionate about ED prevention and improving access to mental health resources. |
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Name: Daniel Basso Daniel is a MSc Candidate in Psychiatry Research. His thesis study, entitled Investigating the Substance Use Motives and Behaviours of Autistic Emerging Adults, was inspired by seeing a gap between research knowledge and his own lived experiences. Altogether, Daniel strives to create person-centred autism research in the field of mental health. Over the course of his MSc, Daniel has been designated as a Killam Scholar and has secured multiple grants to conduct his thesis research. In the future, he hopes to pursue clinical training so that he can provide specialized mental health care for autistic youth and transgender youth. |
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Name: Ian Armstrong Ian has come to Psychiatry Research by a roundabout path. Arriving in Nova Scotia in 2003 to study Music, Ian worked with special needs public school students from 2006 – 2025. Ian currently lives on a farm in rural NS with his wife, two children, dog, five cats, and quite a few sheep. As a Muslim, Ian is keenly aware of the mental health difficulties facing Canada’s Muslim community. He looks forward to using the skills he develops in this masters program to support future training, work, and research in Clinical Psychology to support his fellow Muslims and others in distress. |
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Name: Lilith Nosko After completing an undergraduate degree in psychology at the University of Alberta, Lilith moved to Halifax to work with the research team at the Nova Scotia Early Psychosis Program (NSEPP) and start a MSc in Psychiatry Research. Her work focuses primarily on the relationship between determinants of treatment engagement among individuals with early phase psychosis and their response to a brief engagement-focused psychotherapeutic intervention. Outside of psychiatry, Lilith is a budding seamstress, frequenter of the Halifax hardcore/metal scene, and enjoyer of the odd and macabre. |
Name: Maxwell Seward Max graduated from Mount Saint Vincent University in 2023 with an Honours Bachelor of Science in Psychology, minoring in Neuroscience. He started the MSc. in Psychiatry Research in September of 2024 under the supervision of Dr. Kara Dempster and Dr. Derek Fisher. His Master’s thesis will explore the association of glutamate levels in the ACC with the EEG derived mismatch negativity, and if abnormalities in these markers during the first episode of psychosis could predict how individuals respond to treatment. |
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Name: Nami Trappenberg Nami joined the Maritime Eating and Appearance Lab during her undergraduate studies in Psychology (Honours) at Dalhousie University and has continued her work in the lab as an MSc candidate in psychiatry research. Her research interests focus on eating disorders, improving access to care, and comorbid conditions such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Her current thesis project examines the acceptability of brief integrated psychotherapy for comorbid eating disorders and PTSD. |
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Name: Sarah Petkau Sarah completed her undergraduate in psychology at McGill University. Her research career began during her undergraduate degree where she studied mediators of chronic pain and opioid use. After graduating she transitioned to researching speech in first episode psychosis and clinical high risk populations. Sarah is passionate about improving mental health outcomes, with a current focus on utilizing speech as a biomarker to improve early detection and intervention of mental health risk and outcomes in youth. |
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Name: Somtoo Rita Henry Somtoo holds a BSc (Hons) in Human Physiology and is currently a MSc student in Psychiatry Research at Dalhousie University under the supervision of Dr. Ejemai Eboreime. She serves as the Research Coordinator for the EMBRACE Project, aimed at improving access to mental health services for Black and immigrant communities in Canada. In addition to her academic roles, she has held clinical positions in cardiovascular diagnostics and patient care across hospital and community settings. She also contributed to peer-reviewed publications and has volunteered in medical outreach initiatives. Her work is driven by a commitment to advancing health equity through research. |
| PhD in Psychiatry Research | |
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Name: Ashley Francis Ashley is a PhD candidate in the Psychiatry Research Program, where she studies the neural mechanisms underlying psychosis and substance use using EEG and neuroimaging techniques. Her research bridges neuroscience and mental health, exploring brain function in both clinical and non-clinical populations. Ashley has experience teaching at both the undergraduate and graduate levels and is an active academic contributor, with peer-reviewed publications and international conference presentations. Beyond her work with brain data, she is passionate about mentoring young and Indigenous women in science and contributing to her community by organizing local events through her two small businesses. |
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Name: Dr. Jasmyn Cunningham Jasmyn completed her BSc(Hons) in Neuroscience at Dalhousie University, followed by her MSc in Medical Science at the University of Toronto. She then worked in research at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) prior to completing her MD at McMaster University. She is currently a Resident Physician in the Dalhousie Postgraduate Psychiatry Training Program, as well as a PhD Student in Psychiatry Research. Her primary research interests concern the intersection of sleep, circadian rhythms, and mood disorders. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, knitting, and playing with her cat. |
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Name: Julia Fraiha-Pegado I am a first-year PhD candidate in psychiatric research at Dalhousie University, specializing in bipolar disorder. My work has been published in the International Journal of Bipolar Disorders, and I have presented at national and international conferences. Alongside my peers, I co-founded the Psychiatry Graduate Research Student Association, where I currently serve as vice president. |
Name: Samuel Obeng Nkrumah Samuel is a PhD student in Psychiatry Research at Dalhousie University. He holds a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBChB) from the University of Ghana School of Medicine and Dentistry. His research focuses on examining the relationship between adverse childhood experiences and adult psychiatric symptoms within community mental health settings. Samuel has a strong interest in digital mental health and innovative, technology-based approaches to improving access to care. His work aims to help address gaps in mental health service delivery. Outside of academia, he enjoys playing board games and watching soccer and tennis. |
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Name: Zachary Hubshman Zachary is from Virginia, USA. He attended Virginia Tech where he researched addiction and intimate partner violence before moving to Nova Scotia, Canada to pursue researching how sleep impacts a variety of mental health outcomes in high risk youth. |