Marie Birkebæk Svendsen – Psychologist

Marie Birkebæk Svendsen did her internship within U-CARE as part of her Master’s studies in psychology at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Following the completion of her Master’s degree, Marie started a position as a psychologist in Copenhagen.

Marie Birkebæk Svendsen did her four-month internship within U-CARE in the fall of 2023. Duing her internship, Marie was mostly involved in the INVOLVERA research project, in which a support programme for people with dementia and depression is being developed.

Today, Marie works as a psychologist in geriatric psychiatry, in Copenhagen. Her clients are people over 65 with severe mental illness.

What was it like doing your internship within U-CARE?

– My internship was part of the INVOLVERA research project, says Marie. I assisted PhD student Oscar Blomberg in the work of a literature review of psychological interventions for people with dementia and depression. As part of that, I carried out literature searches and read several published articles. I also took part in journal club meetings and a course in academic writing.

How come you applied to do your internship at U-CARE?

– I wanted to do my internship abroad, and was interested in Sweden. So I googled something like ‘research, mental health, Uppsala, psychology’, and found U-CARE. When I read more about U-CARE, I found the research interesting to me. I liked the focus on Mental Health and Global Health, och I wanted to see if doing research was for me.

What was the best part of your internship?

– The best part was getting to know everyone within U-CARE. I’m also happy that I got the experience of being part of a research project. One event I particularly enjoyed was the U-CARE Venue. Even today, I sometimes think about the new perspectives I learned from there.

What has been the impact of your internship?

– I think my experience of having taken part in a research project about interventions for people with dementia helped me to reach my current position as a psychologist in geriatric psychiatry. The internship also provided me with an understanding of what it is like to conduct research. It opened up my interest in research!