• Home
• meetourstarts
• Meet Our Students: Celebrating Success Stories – Bidushy Sadika

Meet Our Students: Celebrating Success Stories – Bidushy Sadika

By Diana Corredor
In our Meet Our Students: Celebrating Success Stories series, we continue to highlight inspiring students whose academic journeys reflect passion, resilience, and meaningful impact. Today, we’re proud to introduce Bidushy Sadika, a fourth-year PhD candidate in Psychology at Western University.

Sadika chose Western’s Faculty of Social Science for a compelling reason: the opportunity to work under the mentorship of Dr. Victoria Esses, a leading scholar in immigration research and Director of the Network for Economic and Social Trends (NEST). As an immigrant herself, Sadika found deep personal resonance in the themes of Dr. Esses’s work and was drawn to a program that could connect her lived experiences with transformative research. “Working in this area holds immense personal significance for me,” she shares.

Beyond her academic focus, Sadika has taken full advantage of the faculty’s commitment to interdisciplinary learning. Through NEST and the collaborative graduate specialization in Migration and Ethnic Relations, she has explored migration research across disciplines—broadening her methodological skills and enriching her academic perspective. “This interdisciplinary exposure has been essential to the development of my own research ideas,” she explains.

Sadika has contributed to numerous academic and community-based research projects. She co-led a systematic review on dehumanization during the COVID-19 pandemic, presented findings at major conferences, and is co-authoring a manuscript with her lab. Her collaborative work with NEST and the Mosaic Institute on Hate in Ontario expanded into a secondary analysis under Dr. Kaitlynn Mendes, Director of the Gender, Equity, Media, and Society (GEMS) Research Lab. This led to another forthcoming manuscript. Sadika has also partnered with the London and Middlesex Local Immigration Partnership (LMLIP) on community research related to newcomer settlement services.

These experiences helped her recognize the value of both academic and applied research. “Community projects showed me how research can directly respond to real-world issues,” says Sadika. “It’s rewarding to contribute to work that creates tangible change.”

Throughout her graduate studies, Sadika has found Western’s faculty and mentorship model to be both empowering and flexible. “My supervisor has been hands-off yet always supportive—available when I need guidance, but respectful of my independence.” Her broader network of mentors, including Dr. Mendes, Dr. Rachel Calogero, and Dr. Sean Waite, have offered consistent encouragement and opened doors to employment, collaboration, and teaching opportunities. “Their support helped me grow professionally while also allowing me to prioritize my well-being when needed.”

The sense of community within the Department of Psychology and across the Faculty of Social Science has also been a defining feature of Sadika’s experience. “I’ve always felt accepted, even when my research focus and methods differed from others. We learn from one another, and we celebrate each other’s wins.”

For prospective graduate students, Sadika offers thoughtful advice: ask questions, get involved beyond research, protect your time and well-being, and take advantage of professional development opportunities like Own Your Future. “And always build in buffer time,” she laughs. “It’s a simple way to make graduate school more manageable.”

One of Sadika’s proudest moments came when she received her first teaching offer in the final year of her PhD. Having struggled with stuttering and anxiety, she never imagined herself standing at the front of a classroom. But when she was offered the chance to teach Psychology of Gender, she accepted—with courage. “I cried when I read the email,” she recalls. “It was a powerful moment—proof that I could overcome self-doubt and share my voice.” Since then, she has taught the course three times and continues to receive positive feedback from students.

Sadika’s journey is a powerful testament to the value of mentorship, community, and interdisciplinary learning. Through her research and teaching, she’s not only contributing to academic scholarship—she’s helping shape more inclusive communities.

Stay tuned for more stories in our Meet Our Students series, and follow us on social media to discover how our students are making an impact in the world.

If you want to share your own story or know someone who should be featured, please reach out to us!