Psychology student receives Vanier Scholarship research grant

By Dale Johnson Posted: September 3, 2015 3:15 p.m.

Sophie Duranceau says she felt "shocked, happy, and really humbled" upon hearing that she had been awarded a Vanier scholarship.
Sophie Duranceau says she felt "shocked, happy, and really humbled" upon hearing that she had been awarded a Vanier scholarship. Photo courtesy of Sophie Duranceau.

A University of Regina student has been awarded a prestigious Vanier Scholarship valued at $150,000.

Sophie Duranceau, a doctoral student in Psychology, will look at the impact of police work on the psychological, social and occupational development of Canadian police officers.

“I want to support the social and occupational development of police officers because they provide critical structure for our entire society,” says Duranceau who is working under the supervision of Dr. Nicholas Carleton.

“Our police officers are the basis for enforcing the rule of law, but in our modern world they are also highly visible agents of social change; as such, the more we support our police officers, the more we support ourselves,” she adds.

Duranceau majored in international law and international relations prior to studying psychology.

She’s honoured to receive a Vanier Scholarship through the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

“I felt shocked, happy, and really humbled. I have been thinking about all the great opportunities this would bring to me personally, as well as being able to showcase the excellent student support from the Department of Psychology and the University of Regina as a whole. Without such financial support, research would simply be impossible,”she says.

Duranceau also says this demonstrates that research at the University of Regina is recognized nationally.

“I think that this sort of recognition highlights the quality of the training at the University of Regina to the Canadian community. I am hoping that the Vanier scholarship program conveys the message that the U of R may have a smaller quantity of professors or students but that the people that are at the U of R are of excellent quality. The U of R can have a large impact on Canadian society despite the fact that it is not a large university,” says Duranceau.

“I am certainly hoping that it will draw attention to the excellent research that is currently being conducted by professors and graduate students in the Department of Psychology," she says.

This is the third time a student in Psychology has won the Vanier Scholarship. The previous recipients were Matt Fetzner and Michelle Gagnon.

Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships are designed to attract and retain world-class doctoral students by offering them a substantial financial award to help them during their studies. Vanier scholars demonstrate leadership skills and a high standard of scholarly achievement in graduate studies.

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