Empowering student researchers through the Psychology Inclusive Excellence Student Fund.
For Jasmindeep Kaur (she/her), a third-year psychology undergraduate student, research is not just about experiments—it’s about belonging. As a first-generation immigrant and woman of colour who has navigated financial and systemic barriers, Jasmindeep has at times felt like an outsider in academia. Now she views her background as a strength, not a barrier.
Through the Psychology Inclusive Excellence (PIE) Fund‘s Early Research Award, Jasmindeep is able to dedicate herself to research with both financial support and confidence. As a Research Assistant in Dr. Joan Ongchoco‘s Perception and Cognition Lab, she investigates how subtle visual cues—such as the movement of a timer—can shape our perception of time and influence performance under pressure.
In this Q&A, Jasmindeep shares how this support has transformed her academic journey, what inspires her research, and why programs that champion inclusion are vital for the future of psychology.
How has the receiving the Early Research Award impacted or advanced your research career?
Receiving the Early Research Award (ERA) has been nothing short of transformative for me; both personally and professionally.
As a first-generation immigrant, a woman of colour, and a student from a low-income background, my journey through academia has often felt like walking through doors never meant for me. I’ve relied on loans, part-time jobs, and resilience to make my way through university. There were moments when I worried that financial instability would limit the kind of researcher I could become.
The Early Research Award changed that. It gave me the stability to devote myself fully to research in the summer. I was not just able to dedicate myself to running experiments in the lab but also present my work with the wider world by giving talks both locally and internationally. This award made it possible for me to present my work at three major conferences this year: NOWCAM in Victoria, BC Canada, the Vision Science Society at St. Pete’s Beach, Florida USA, and most recently, the Timing Research Forum in Tokyo, Japan.
“In addition to funding my research, the award has strengthened my belief that students like me belong in these spaces; and that with the right support, we can thrive and contribute meaningfully to the field. As a result of all the amazing opportunities I have landed through the ERA, I believe I now have a profound sense of empowerment — the confidence to see myself not only as a student of psychology, but as a growing researcher within it.”
Beyond all the professional milestones, the ERA also reminded me of the quiet sacrifices that made this possible; especially those of my parents, who have worked tirelessly so I could pursue an education they once only dreamed of.
In addition to funding my research, the award has strengthened my belief that students like me belong in these spaces; and that with the right support, we can thrive and contribute meaningfully to the field. As a result of all the amazing opportunities I have landed through the ERA, I believe I now have a profound sense of empowerment — the confidence to see myself not only as a student of psychology, but as a growing researcher within it.
What are your research interests and what led you to pursue this research?
My research interests lie in how subtle visual cues can have profound impacts on our sense of perception – especially when it comes to our perception of time.
This fascination began in a very ordinary moment: staring at a timer while doing laundry. I realized that depending on how the timer looked or moved, I felt different – sometimes calm, sometimes more urgent. That small observation spiraled into a bigger question: Why does the way we perceive time feel so different based on how we see it move visually?
That curiosity brought me to Dr. Joan Ongchoco, whose mentorship and support has been deeply formative for me and solidified my passion for research in psychology. Together, we began exploring how perceptual cues – like the motion of a timer in a continuous or discrete way – can influence our sense of urgency and further, influence our performance under time pressure. This has led me to work on my first authored project – Discrete vs. continuous timer bars: How visual segmentation shapes the perception of time “running out”.
This project eventually grew into a series of in-lab experiments that I designed and ran with the guidance of Dr. Ongchoco, and the findings have been both surprising and exciting. Through this work, I am also fortunate to collaborate with Dr. Jiaying Zhao, whose research I also deeply admire and whose support and guidance I truly appreciate as well.
How do these awards like the Psychology Inclusive Excellence Fund help increase diversity and inclusion in the field of psychology?
Awards like the Psychology Inclusive Excellence Fund help make invisible stories visible. For many students from underrepresented or marginalized backgrounds, academia can sometimes feel like a space built for others. These awards do more than fund research; they affirm experiences, nurture confidence, and open doors for students like me that might otherwise remain closed.
When institutions invest in students like me – those who may not have generational wealth, connections, or a traditional roadmap to academia – they aren’t just diversifying who gets to do research but they’re also transforming what research gets done! Supporting students from non-traditional backgrounds can bring in new perspectives, introduce new questions, new methodologies, and new insights that can help the field evolve in more inclusive and imaginative ways.
“Supporting students from non-traditional backgrounds can bring in new perspectives, introduce new questions, new methodologies, and new insights that can help the field evolve in more inclusive and imaginative ways.”
I believe that the Psychology Inclusive Excellence Fund reminds us that our backgrounds aren’t barriers but strengths. Each awardee becomes a reminder that psychology grows stronger when more voices are heard – voices that are shaped by different stories, struggles, and ways of seeing the world.
