Pavitra Paramesuvaran, an international student, found a home working at the Heskett Center.

“My first semester here, we were looking for jobs, as we are international students, and my friends from Malaysia worked here so they helped me get a job,” Paramesuvaran said.

The transition from being an international student, to getting a new job was a big change of scene, and Paramesuvaran had to learn how to balance it all. 

“There have been a lot of transitions since I started, I was really terrified of my leads until we got closer to them,” Paramesuvaran said.

As time progressed she began to get to know her bosses and created friendships with many of the people that she worked with. She described the environment with her co-workers as very lively, with a strong bond that tied them together. 

“We started having fun, treating everyone like family,” Paramesuvaran said.

There have been times where she described the Heskett as being “chaotic” due to people trespassing, but luckily with the support of the staff the Heskett has done a remarkable job in keeping an orderly and safe environment. 

“It’s kind of quiet now, with a bunch of old timers coming in and out,” Paramesuvaran said.

She said that her community at WSU has built her as an individual, allowing her to develop new skills that she had originally thought she was not capable of.  By learning more about herself through her experiences,  it has allowed her to better prepare for future career goals. 

“I made a lot of connections through Heskett, becoming more of an extrovert, I was not this confident as a person,” Paramesuvaran said.

The constant interaction with many different types of people has given her confidence that she can present herself in a professional way, which will benefit her future endeavors exponentially. 

The staff has been very flexible and helpful in providing opportunities for work outside the Heskett along with activities that expanded her growth in her role currently. 

“I don’t think I would have gotten this opportunity anywhere else,” Paramesuvaran said.

Paramesuvaran said her passion for Psychology is what drives her efforts to finish school and work hard at her job. She plans on working with children that have special needs and working with them through their intellectual disorders, using therapy instead of medication.