Shining Education Graduate Pragya Varma

Pragya Varma (MEd '24) is an inspiring advocate for prioritizing well-being and self-care within the educational realm. Her Master of Education project examining burnout in immigrant early childhood educators is uncovering insights on an understudied area, and she has no plans of slowing down. In just a few weeks after crossing the stage, she will be presenting her findings at the Canadian Ethnic Studies Association conference, a nation-wide gathering devoted to the study of multiculturalism, immigration and the cultural life of ethnic groups in Canada.

"At the risk of sounding cliché, it is the journey that matters most. You will ultimately reach your end goal, but the process of getting there will be your greatest learning experience."

Meet Pragya: Resilient. Hardworking. Dedicated.
Hometown: Edmonton, Alta.
Program: Master of Education | Major: Counselling Psychology

Why did you choose to pursue graduate studies at ULethbridge?

When I was applying to graduate programs for counselling and clinical psychology, I heard from various sources that the University of Lethbridge's Faculty of Education is well-reputed, especially its MEd Counselling Psychology program.

What is your most memorable ULethbridge experience?

My most memorable ULethbridge experience was connecting with my MEd cohort for the first time. It was interesting to hear about my colleagues' motivations for pursuing the path to becoming psychologists!

What do you like to do in your free time?

I like to cook, go out with my friends and play sitar, an instrument used in classical Indian music.

What does your research focus on? What do you hope your research will accomplish?

My final MEd project focuses on examining burnout in immigrant early childhood educators. Through my own experience working at a daycare, I observed that early childhood educators are quite susceptible to burnout due to the extensive emotional, cognitive and physical labor required for their jobs. Unfortunately, early childhood educators do not always get the necessary support and resources they need to cope with the stressors they experience at work. I specifically wanted to study how burnout presents in immigrant early childhood educators, because according to statistics, immigrants actually constitute a significant portion of the early childhood educator workforce. While studies do exist on burnout in early childhood educators, research on how it may present in immigrant populations is extremely limited. Immigrants often experience socio-economic and cultural challenges that may increase their susceptibility to burnout and ability to cope with it. Hence, through my work, I provide a comprehensive analysis and examination of burnout, as well as explore socio-economic and cultural challenges that immigrants experience that could result in increased susceptibility to burnout. Additionally, I list recommendations for policymakers, healthcare providers and other key stakeholders on how they can support those experiencing burnout. The recommendations are culturally informed and thus take into account, cultural factors that are important to consider when providing resources and healthcare services to this population.

As I mentioned before, there is little to no information on how immigrant early childhood educators' experiences of burnout in early childhood settings. I hope that my work not only prompts further examination and research into the experiences of immigrant early childhood educators, but also acts as a guide for healthcare providers, such as counsellors and psychologists on how to work with immigrant early childhood educators who are already experiencing burnout. My goal is to bring forth the experiences of this population so we can start a conversation on how to best support them.

What is the most important lesson you learned during your time as a graduate student at ULethbridge?

I learned the importance of prioritizing my well-being! As a graduate student, it is easy to forgo self-care and downtime when you have numerous academic tasks and stressors. However, I learned that allocating time for self-care is critical in preventing feelings of overwhelm and stress.

What are your hopes and plans for the future?

I will be working as a Registered Provisional Psychologist soon and will continue to work towards my full registration. I will also be presenting my MEd project at the 2024 Canadian Ethnic Studies Association (CESA) conference in Edmonton next month. I aim to continue pursuing further clinical training and research (eventually a PhD) to help me become a more competent psychologist and academic.