Germine "Gigi" Awad

Germine "Gigi" Awad, PhD
Associate professor, University of Texas at Austin

Interviewed by Isabelle Orozco

1. If you could give your younger self advice, what would it be?

Enjoy the moments. Enjoy your development and success. Pay more attention to the process and not just the outcomes. Take self-care seriously.

2. Can you tell us about a college experience that influenced your career?

In my sophomore year I decided to change my major to psychology while taking my introductory to psychology course. The topics were so interesting and I wanted to learn more. I enjoyed reading the text and studying so I tended to do very well on the exams. After one particular class where we went over our exams, the professor asked to see me after class. The instructor who was a woman, told me that I was a phenomenal student and that she hoped I was planning to go to graduate school for psychology. It meant a lot to hear that feedback from my instructor. It further cemented my plans to change my major to psychology. 

3. How has a mentor impacted your life, your career?

I had the honor of working with Dr. Sheri Young while I was at John Carroll University. She was a phenomenal professor and was so knowledgeable about child development. I was in awe of her.  I had never been taught by a woman of color and it was such an amazing experience for me to witness such brilliance and passion. After that experience, I sought out Dr. Young and asked her to be my advisor. Her guidance was critical for my development. 

When I first started the process to change my major to psychology, I had to meet with the department chair.  My grade point average was impacted by the poor fit of my old major, but I was optimistic because I had a perfect 4.0 in psychology and felt that I had found my calling.  I was excited to start the process to officially change my major by meeting with the chair.  When I mentioned that my goals included going to a doctoral program in psychology, the chair proceeded to tell me that there was no chance that I would ever get into a doctoral program with my current GPA. His comment did not deter me from working to meet my goal, but I figured that I would just need to go to a master’s program first before pursuing my doctoral education.

A couple of years later when I was talking to Dr. Young about graduate schools, she was confused as to why I was only applying to master’s programs. I told her about my conversation with the chair. She took a breath and then looked me in the eye and told me that I was such an impressive student and that I would definitely have a chance to get into a doctoral program. It was because of her that I applied to doctoral programs and got into one that gave me five years of funding. Her guidance and encouragement literally changed the course of my career. I will always be grateful that she was part of my life.

4. What words of wisdom did your mother/grandmothers/aunts share with you?

My mother always told me that “You can do whatever you put your mind to” and I believed her.

5. What are some ways that we can support our next generation of womxn leaders and can you highlight a young womxn advocating for womxn’s civic engagement we should all know about and support?

I think that we have an obligation to help womxn, especially womxn of color, understand the hidden curriculum. There are things that womxn of color need to know to navigate the academic arena and much of this information is not shared freely. 

One womxn that I believe is doing vital work is Dr. Lamise Shawahin. She is an assistant professor of Counseling Psychology at Governors State University. She is a scholar-activist who is constantly fighting for social justice. She is currently the Arab/MENA member-at-large for Div. 45 and has just completed her term as advocacy chair for AMENA-Psy. I am so excited to watch her career unfold. She is doing amazing work!