Meet Erin Kosloski

INDS B.A.: Psycholinguistics Applied to Autism

A young lady stand outside in the sun

Spring 2022 Capstone

My INDS Degree

During my college search, I found the field of Cognitive Science and decided that it was the best course of study to eventually help me achieve my goal of better understanding and supporting people on the autism spectrum. When I chose to come to UMBC, I was excited by the prospect of creating my own degree related to Cognitive Science, which I ultimately narrowed down to Psycholinguistics.

Degree Mentors

  • Dr. Mirela Cengher, Psychology
  • Dr. David Beard, Modern Languages, Linguistics & Intercultural Communication
  • Steven McAlpine, Individualized Study

Post Graduation Plans

I plan to enroll in a PhD program to study Cognitive Psychology or Speech, Language, & Hearing Sciences in which I will build upon the foundation laid by my INDS degree by learning more specifically about how the mind produces and comprehends language and apply that to clinical research with autistic people.

Courses In My INDS Degree

✅ Typical and Atypical Human Development: These courses will help me understand typical developmental stages and milestones across the human lifespan as well as physical and mental differences in development. (PSYC 200,365/SOWK 388,389)

✅ Biological Bases of Behavior: These courses will provide me a basic understanding of how the brain works at the neural level, which I can use when trying to pinpoint the cause of communication deficits in nonverbal autistic individuals. (HONR 200/PSYC 335,370)

✅ Language and Cognition: These courses will help me understand the structure of language and its components, leading up to two courses exploring the relationship between cognition and language in great detail. (LING 210,310,320,470/PSYC 316)

✅ Understanding Individuals Within their Communities: These courses place individuals within the context of the multiple systems that make up their lived experience. They also embrace a strengths-based approach in trying to alleviate difficulties that individuals experience, which will be valuable for my clinical work. (SOWK 388,389/PSYC 387/MLL 305/HONR 390)

✅ Individualized Study: These are the required courses for the Individualized Major which will culminate in a senior capstone project that will allow me to conduct research related to my interest area. (INDS 330H,335,410,480,490H)

5/12/2023