I’m Victoria, Ph.D. candidate and researcher at Columbia University specializing in child and adolescent mental health.
My clinical and epidemiological research focuses on the social, biological, and genetic underpinnings of mental disorders to develop new prevention, diagnosis, and treatment options that promote brain health throughout the lifespan.
Nairobi, Kenya
Current Work
I hold extensive training in culturally competent therapeutic care for underserved populations from Columbia University School of Social Work, as well as patient-oriented research and clinical science from Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians & Surgeons and Mailman School of Public Health.
I am a Kirschstein-NRSA Clinical and Translational Science Scholar for the Irving Institute for Clinical and Translational Research at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, which works in partnership with researchers and clinicians across NewYork-Presbyterian and the New York State Psychiatric Institute to support all phases of clinical and translational science. I also contribute to the Department of Psychiatry at Georgetown University School of Medicine on the implementation and fidelity of an intervention that seeks to support the mental health of children and staff (educators and admins) to improve the wellness of early learning settings. I am a Doctoral Research Fellow for the Columbia Population Research Center, a multidisciplinary group of research scientists addressing health in the context of local and global inequalities including HIV/AIDS, reproductive health, and migration.
Background & Other Affiliations
Before my doctorate, I accumulated a decade of experience working with NGOs globally, dedicated to developing and evaluating community-centered health programs in low-resource settings across East Africa, Northeast Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. Most recently, I served within the Research and Innovation Unit at the International Rescue Committee (IRC), working in close partnership with in-country teams to translate research into practice and scale health and education interventions in over 40 countries. Before the IRC, I was a Director at a rapidly-scaling community-led innovator affiliated with Vanderbilt University Institute for Global Health targeting the multidimensional drivers of maternal and child health in Western Kenya. I've also supported the implementation of the UN Millennium Villages Project, measuring epidemiological indicators towards the UN Millennium Development Goals and worked in multiple R&D roles within UNICEF, the Earth Institute at Columbia University, and more.
I am obtaining a Ph.D. at Columbia University specializing in child and adolescent behavioral/mental health, psychiatric epidemiology, and prevention and implementation science. I've earned a Master of Science from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
I am fluent in Vietnamese, English, and practicing French. I serve on the Global Translation Committee for the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, disseminating research and resource materials on traumatic stress science and prevention and clinical care in multiple languages.
I would love to connect at victoriaonguyenphd@gmail.com.