Meagan Mason, who serves as academic advising and outreach specialist for UC Berkeley’s Cognitive Science program, is driven by a strong passion for helping students navigate higher education. In her role, she draws on her experience as a peer mentor, college advisor and academic advisor to provide one-on-one support to Cognitive Science students and help build programs that guide them in shaping their academic and career paths.
In addition to advising, Mason oversees key initiatives within the department, including their peer advising, summer internship grant program and career and alumni engagement. She frequently collaborates with her team to develop engaging, supportive programs and events that promote academic growth and foster a welcoming environment for all students.
Berkeley Social Sciences spoke with Mason about her work and her passion for supporting students. This interview has been edited for clarity.
Tell us about your background and how you ended up at UC Berkeley?
Meagan Mason: After transferring to UC Davis from Diablo Valley College, one of my first experiences advising was my on-campus job working as a peer mentor at the UC Davis Transfer and Reentry Center, where I supported community college transfer students applying to the UC System. This role sparked my passion for helping students navigate higher education, and I wanted to pursue a career in it!
After graduating, I worked as a college advisor at Pittsburg High School through UC Berkeley’s Early Academic Outreach Program (EAOP) and Center for Educational Partnerships. I then moved to the Midwest to pursue a master’s degree in higher education from the University of Michigan. During graduate school, I gained experience working as an academic advisor at the School of Information and as a graduate research assistant at the Institute for Political and Social Research – both of which are at the University of Michigan.
I knew I wanted to return to California and pursue a full-time career in higher education advising and counseling, and being at Berkeley has been a dream!
Tell us more about your job at Cognitive Science?
Meagan Mason: A large part of my role is providing one-on-one academic advising sessions for both current CogSci majors, as well as prospective students.
The other part of my role involves overseeing our peer advisor program and our new CogSci Summer Internship Grant program, building out our career events and workshops, as well as fostering equity-based partnerships on campus with programs such as EAOP and Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) STEM. Our team has held events such as a Transfer Student Appreciation event, a CogSci Alumni Career Panel and a Winter Wellness event for our CogSci students. In addition, I participate in campus yield events such as Cal Day and Golden Bear Welcome!
What do you like best about your job?
Meagan Mason: One of my favorite parts of my job is being able to help students from start to finish; from their beginning semester starting at Berkeley, to graduating and walking across the commencement stage. As an advisor, I really am inspired by our students and get to learn from them every day in our office.
In Cognitive Science specifically, it has been great to work in such a dynamic and collaborative environment. I love being able to work with my fellow colleagues, peer advisors and leadership every day on new and exciting ideas for our students and community!
What are some of your accomplishments?
Meagan Mason: One accomplishment I’m especially excited about is our new partnership with UC Berkeley’s Early Academic Outreach Program. During summer, nearly 20 EAOP high school students will take the course, “CogSci 1: Introduction to Cognitive Science.” This will enable them to enroll in college-level coursework and explore the field of cognitive science before they enter college. As a former advisor in EAOP, I’m excited to continue building connections between high school, community college and higher education, and have students explore the field of cognitive science!
In addition to this, our program is launching the Cognitive Science Summer Internship grant program this summer, providing an opportunity for Cognitive Science majors facing financial, cultural and other barriers to participate in career- or academically enriching summer internships through grant-based funding. As part of the program, I collaborated with offices on campus such as the financial wellness team to host a workshop on financial planning and budgeting for the summer and organized a welcome lunch before students begin their internships. I also led targeted workshops, including one for EOP STEM students, and we saw a record number of applications for the internship grant this year.
Outside of work, what are some of your hobbies?
Meagan Mason: Outside of work, I love to try new restaurants in San Francisco, travel, have game nights with friends (Wavelength is my current favorite game) and cycle! I am currently training for the AIDS Lifecycle Ride, a 545-mile bike ride from S.F. to L.A. to support the SF AIDS Foundation and LA LGBT Center.