Saying Yes to Growth

For Hajar Ismailzada, education has always been more than a goal—it has been a source of purpose. A graduate of Montclair State University’s Master of Arts program in Clinical Psychology, Hajar is currently completing her internship year toward School Psychology certification, a path that blends her long-standing love of learning with a commitment to supporting students’ academic, social, and emotional well-being.

As a student, Hajar initially imagined a future in teaching. That changed during a high school psychology course, when she became fascinated by how students learn and grow—and how psychological insight could support that process. Discovering school psychology felt like “a perfect blend” of education and psychology, setting her on a path she has followed with intention ever since.

One of the most formative experiences in her graduate program came during Practicum in Psychoeducational Assessment I and II, where she served as a graduate clinician in the university’s Psychoeducational Services Clinic. The practicum marked the moment when theory truly met practice. Working directly with students and families helped the work feel “real and meaningful in a new way,” she says. Under the guidance of Dr. Lauren Schaible and Dr. Julia Coyne, Hajar learned to look beyond test scores and use data to tell a fuller story about a student’s learning, behavior, and lived experience.

Outside the classroom, Hajar spent two years as a graduate assistant with the Office for Faculty Excellence, an experience that reshaped how she views higher education and her own potential. Mentored by Emily Isaacs, she contributed to initiatives focused on student belonging, retention, and success, and engaged with faculty development and academic leadership work across campus. “From day one, I felt welcomed, supported, and encouraged to grow,” she reflects. The experience pushed her beyond her comfort zone and sparked an interest in academia that continues to shape her future goals.

Through her assistantship, Hajar also became deeply involved in research on student belonging among first-year CHSS students. She worked on a research team that implemented a belonging intervention in the GNED199 course, focusing on qualitative analysis of student reflections and connecting those findings to quantitative data. Presenting the results at the AAC&U Conference on Learning and Student Success in Puerto Rico, marked a defining moment in her graduate career and reinforced her confidence as a scholar. She later presented the work at Montclair’s Student Research Symposium.

Hajar is currently completing a 1,200-hour internship while preparing to earn her Nationally Certified School Psychologist credential. Looking ahead, she plans to continue working as a school psychologist while pursuing doctoral studies, with the goal of becoming a licensed psychologist and professor.

Reflecting on her time in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Hajar says she learned that education is not just about earning a degree, but about discovering how to use knowledge in service of others. Her advice to future students is simple, but hard-earned: say yes. “It may seem intimidating at first, but some of the most meaningful experiences I’ve had at Montclair happened because I did say “yes.”