Vadodara Psychology Club (VPC) is a venture started by Dr. Dhvani Patel, who has been in the field of education for the last 15 years. Truly an academician at heart, she constantly aspires to try out newer possibilities in the field of education. The Club activities are aimed to be student centric, attempting to address the needs of undergraduate and post-graduate students in their journey in academics and research experiences, and in their acquisition of practical skills. VPC also aims to provide a platform for student outreach activities and initiate various awareness programs. Collaborations are actively sought for training professionals working in the field of social sciences.
Vision
To create competent professionals by empowering them with the knowledge, ethics and expertise that guide them in their academic life and career path.
Mission
To enable students of social sciences, mental health professionals and other stakeholders to acquire additional knowledge about psychology and to equip them with the needed practical skills and an unfolding of an appropriate mindset for research.
About Us
Vadodara Psychology Club is an initiative to further the discipline of Psychological Sciences. Psychological Sciences has been defined as “the accumulated body of psychological knowledge (pertaining to brain, behavior, social or mental processes) that has been generated through systematic application of scientific method” (Hall, 2013). The past two decades have witnessed a surge in interest toward psychology as a professional choice. This is in tune with the growing need to address concerns raised over mental health issues in all spheres of life. Students from not only the field of humanities, but also with science and commerce backgrounds, are showing keen interest in pursuing psychology courses. While this generous flow of students is definitely a boon to face the age old problem of shortage of mental health professionals in the field, an important question is raised on whether the academic experience alone can qualify an aspiring student to fulfil his/her goals and move toward that direction which is best suited to the student’s requirements and capabilities.
Psychology is one of the most popular courses on University campuses, generating a large number of student enrolments. However, the vastness of the discipline makes it difficult to encompass all of the psychological knowledge into the courses offered in the UG and PG curriculum. It becomes almost impossible to provide for individualized attention and out-of-course knowledge that work as effective add-ons to the classroom experiences. The club activities are aimed at providing for more fuller, more detailed, more vigorous programs and a variety of courses and topic discussions that are ‘beyond the classroom’ experiences for a student as well as the professional from the field of psychology.
About the Founder
Dr. Dhvani Patel has been in the field of education for the last 15 years. She was awarded a Gold Medal for her Masters degree in Psychology from the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda in 2005. Her doctoral thesis in the field of Social Psychology gave her rich insights into leader behaviours and gender stereotyping across organizational sectors. She worked as an Assistant Professor at the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda from April 2008 to May 2020. Being highly passionate as a teacher, she believes that a positive student-teacher bond goes a long way. Her work experience at the Department of Human Development and Family Studies, a Centre for Advanced Studies, the Maharaja Sayajirao University in Baroda, helped her develop an interest in the field of Educational Psychology and this led her to design a new curriculum for Masters in School and Educational Psychology at the Department of Psychology, the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. She has recently contributed to content development of IGNOU course module pertaining to school psychology course at the undergraduate level. She also has a number of best paper awards at international conferences to her credit.
Collaborations
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On August 16, 2021, Vadodara Psychology Club signed a “Student Placement Agreement” with Western Sydney University for a period of five years, allowing Indian students enrolled for Masters program at Western Sydney University to work as interns at Vadodara Psychology Club under the guided supervision of inhouse experts of the Club.
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On September 26, 2021, Vadodara Psychology Club signed an MoU with O.P. Jindal Global University for a period of three years. The agreement allows for cooperation between the two institutions in joint research activities, participation in seminars and short-term programs, and providing for student internship programs.
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On February 21, 2022, Vadodara Psychology Club signed an MoU with CIDA (Children’s Institute of Development and Advancement) for a period of three years, agreeing to send inhouse mental health professionals for testing and assessment at CIDA centre on a weekly basis.
Ongoing Projects
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Mental Health consultancy project for teachers and students of Baroda High School, Danteshwar for the months of Nov-Dec 2022.
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Clinical Placement Contract with The Proulx Global Education & Community Foundation, CiiAT - The Canadian International Institute of Art Therapy.
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Shadow Teacher Assistance Program is offered to students of VIBGYOR High International School, Billabong High International School, and. D.R. Amin Memorial School.
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Internship program for IGNOU students pursing Masters in Psychology, UG Psychology students from Ahmedabad University and Amity University, Mumbai.
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Clinical Supervision by Ms. Nandita Sharma, for Indian Immigrants at a Canadian University.
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Psychology Enrichment Program for Class XI and XII at Nalanda International School, for the academic year 2022-23.
Past Projects
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Career counselling Project in October 2022 for Grade 11 students of Cygnus World School, Vadodara.
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Two Teens Clubs initiated as support groups for adolescents, facilitated by Ms. Kruti Bakshi, that were functional every second and fourth Saturdays of the month.
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Two Employee Training Programs conducted at VPC with employees of Balkrushna Group.
Testimonials
My internship experience with VPC has been diverse and very helpful to build my professional career. The training sessions and the supervision were amazingly organized and resourceful. The work that I did at VPC not only helped me to graduate from my course with good grades but also proved useful to help me land a job in Melbourne, Australia at a Government organization. I am very thankful to the founder, Dr. Dhvani Patel to keep the club alive and thriving in the difficult times of Covid and for giving me the opportunity to do my internship with VPC. I definitely recommend this place to all mental health students or recent graduates for your internships!
Shraddha Patel
★★★★★
Choosing to volunteer at VPC was one of the great decisions that I made. I got to understand the system, the process and also got to learn so much more about psychology. The atmosphere at VPC is very welcoming and positive. I loved working at VPC and would not miss a chance to work here again. Thank you team VPC for this amazing experience.
Aditi Tripathi
★★★★★
We are from the UK. We were referred to VPC by a well known child psychologist in Vadodara for an IQ assessment for our child. The Psychologist Ms Ankita Chavda carried out the assessment with great care and accuracy.She also went above and beyond the scope to alleviate all our concerns and queries while discussing the results. The Calm and friendly ambience of the centre made us felt relaxed while we were there. At the center we also met the founder Dr Dhvani Patel who was a pleasure to converse with. In all we can not recommend enough VPC for providing remarkablay ethical and professional Psycological services.
Anonymous
★★★★★
In the short time since its inception, Vadodara Psychology Club is making a name for itself. The range of workshops offered by the founder, Dr. Dhvani Patel and other guest. resource persons provide thorough training, academic engagement and practical insights into the field of Psychology.Having attended the 'Scientific Writing Workshop', I would recommend it to trainee researchers who want to start their research projects/dissertations. No questions or doubts are ever left unattended. Dr. Patel's eye for detailed nuances reflects in her style of teaching/mentorship in classroom, and otherwise. It is also commendable that the training workshops are being offered at student friendly prices which only goes on to show the vision and dedication Dr. Patel has for this field.Don't think twice before signing up! It's worth it; I promise!
Chirashree Manik
★★★★★
As a student, the club has helped me explore dimensions of my possible career in psychology in a way I couldn't have done just through my university course. In fact, it has activities for everyone right from a layperson interested in psychology to a professional with years of experience. Kudos to Dhvani ma'am for her initiative!
Garima Vyas
★★★★★
A extremely well equipped center with highly qualified, professional and polite staff. Dealing with all levels of mental health issues, workshops, training programs, psychological assessments, training programs.
Kamal Chhabria
★★★★★
Contact Us
Telephone
+91 9879304795
Address
4th Floor, Purv Prime,
Nr. Natubhai Circle, Gotri
Main Road, Vadodara - 390007
Gujarat, India