Picture Caption: Professor Loeckenhoff (second from the right) is pictured with students
We had the honor of sitting down with Professor Corinna Loeckenhoff to talk about her journey from being an undergraduate student at the University of Marburg, Germany to becoming the Director of Graduate Studies in Human Development at Cornell. During her time in college, she had the opportunity to participate in an international exchange program at Penn State University, where her interests in research blossomed. Professor Loeckenhoff later went on to earn her Ph.D. at Stanford University. As the Director of Graduate Studies in Human Development, she often gives life advice to graduate and undergraduate students. Here are some highlights from our conversation:
How did you develop your interest in gerontology (the study of aging)?
Professor Loeckenhoff says that gerontology found her when she was 15 and dying to buy a CD player. In order to earn money for her CD player, Loeckenhoff spent her summer working in a nursing home. Her friends felt sorry that she had to work with the older population, but to Loeckenhoff’s 15 year old self, the summer job was an eye opening experience. Through her job, she was able to learn things about the elderly population that the “rest of the world didn’t know.” She was especially impressed by the resilience of older adults and their ability to find joy in life despite physical and mental limitations. Specifically, she was able to see how older adults adapted to their environments in order to create a meaningful life.
This experience also made Professor Loeckenhoff realize that there was a lot to be done in the field of gerontology. She felt that it would be particularly important to answer questions such as how to help older adults age more gracefully and productively, especially in industrialized nations where the aging population was beginning to boom.
How would you describe your undergraduate self versus your current self?
For Professor Loeckenhoff, not much has changed! We’d like to say that Professor Loeckenhoff seems to exhibit the perfect example of high self-continuity (one of the main areas of her research). In terms of the direction and driving force for her life, Professor Loeckenhoff says that the research questions she is answering now were actually the same questions she wrote down when she was 17-18 years old. Other than a difference in how she approaches questions of aging (with an added scientific perspective rather than merely a philosophical one), her interests in understanding self-continuity– how connected people feel with their past and future selves– as well as time horizons continue to serve as the inspiration behind her work.
As an undergraduate, what did you see as your future career?
Even though she bore the nickname “Professor” in elementary school, due to a precocious love for teaching, Professor Loeckenhoff says that she didn’t see herself as a professor back in her undergraduate days. Growing up in Germany, it seemed to her that women needed to work harder than men to succeed in academia, since all of the top level positions in academia were overwhelmingly held by men. On top of this, success in academia and starting a family seemed to be mutually exclusive options for women, as female academics were often not well-considered if they had a family. Having seen and experienced the negative discriminatory effects of sexism as an undergraduate, Loeckenhoff decided to go into clinical psychology where she would be able to work with the population that she loved, as well as start a family.
Her career direction soon changed as an international exchange student at Penn State, however. At Penn State, she met mentors that took her seriously as a woman researcher, believed in her ability to pursue research, and invested in her success. Professor Loeckenhoff clearly remembers a time when she was introduced to a professor by her academic counselor. Despite not having a scheduled appointment, the professor was willing to talk to her about her research interests and at the end of the meeting, gave her a copy card, which allowed her to access the library to do research. With a team of professors supporting her, Professor Loeckenhoff went on to obtain her Ph.D. at Stanford, coming to a place where she finally believed that it might be possible for her, as a woman hoping to start a family, to aspire towards a career in academia.
What is your advice to international students who are making their transition to studying in America?
Professor Loeckenhoff says that the biggest advice she would offer to international students is to hang out with people who are not from their home country. She says that she often sees people making the mistake of hanging out with people from similar cultural backgrounds and speaking only in their native language. Though Professor Loeckenhoff believes that it is good to have friends from similar backgrounds and important to continue to talk in one’s native language so as to retain proficiency, she also believes that stepping out to interact with others different from oneself will help to widen one’s perspective on the world. When Professor Loeckenhoff came to America, instead of staying within her comfort zone and solely hanging out with other Germans, she went the opposite route and made an intentional effort to make friends with non-German students. She also forced herself to speak English so that she could improve her familiarity with the language.
What is your advice to undergraduate students on getting a Ph.D?
Professor Loeckenhoff says that students should only get a Ph.D. if they are crazy about research. She often sees students who are extremely bright pursue Ph.D.s simply because getting this higher degree may seem like the default step in career advancement. Professor Loeckenhoff cautions that unless students are “irrationally” excited about research, a Ph.D. may not be the best use of their time. Instead, these students should look for a career that intersects their passions, interests, and skills.
For students who know that they want to get a Ph.D., Professor Loeckenhoff says to approach a Cornell faculty member and get engaged in research as soon as possible! By becoming involved early, Professor Loeckenhoff says that students can better figure out if doing research is right for them. This was a mistake that Professor Loeckenhoff made as an undergrad. She believed that she needed to finish her first two years before she could reach out to join a lab. She didn’t realize that getting involved in research earlier was possible and hopes that students don’t make the same mistake as her.
For those hoping to start a family in the future as well as advance their careers, what would you say to students about maximizing family-life and work balance?
On the topic of work life balance, Professor Loeckenhoff says that marrying the right person is one of the keys to being able to manage this tricky seesaw. She says that people need to find someone who is able and committed to equally share the responsibilities of married life. As for future aspiring professors, finding a significant other who is flexible and willing to make sacrifices is extremely important. In her own life, Professor Loeckenhoff’s husband was actually tenured at another University when she was appointed to her position at Cornell. However, he was willing to give up his tenure and follow Professor Loeckenhoff to come work at Cornell, where he is now a Professor in Information Sciences.
Any last words for the class of 2019?
Professor Loeckenhoff wishes the class of 2019 good luck! She asks that students come back and keep in touch with the faculty at Cornell. For her, it is always fascinating and exciting to see where students end up and how each student is an ambassador for HumEc in their own unique way.
Thank you Professor Loeckenhoff for your advice to the Class of 2019! And thank you for sharing your insightful words of wisdom!