Meet the Mentor: Lamei Wang, PhD

Email: lameiw@bu.edu
Gender Identity & Pronouns: she/her/hers
Affinity Groups:  gGLOBAL
Race/Ethnicity and/or Nationality: Asian, Chinese
Languages: English, Chinese
Hometown: Nanyang, China
Education: B.S. in Informatics, Beijing Normal University; M.S. in Information Science, Peking University; Ph.D. in Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences & Saarland University, Germany.
Industry Interest: Mental Health Counseling, Higher Education

Personal Facts/Hobbies: I was born in a small town in middle China, the country’s oldest part. Growing up in a traditional 3-generation family, I gradually became rebellious and started to wonder what the world was like after reading books. Education has expanded my world from a small town to a big city and then to Europe and the U.S. I have lived in Beijing, Saarbrueken (Germany), Hong Kong, Taiwan, Oslo (Norway), and Boston, and have traveled around the world. I enjoy learning wisdom from different cultures and discovering cultural differences and the mechanisms behind them.

My first major was Informatics for my Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees, but I am much more interested in people than in coding, so my first job was as a journalist in a national news agency after my master’s degree. After exploring society for three years, I decided to pursue a Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology, which can satisfy my curiosity about human development and how cultural differences impact families and children. Then I worked as a professor(Assistant and Associate) in Psychology for ten years, teaching and doing research. I came to the U.S. in 2021 during Covid to be a visiting professor at Harvard University. There I decided to make a mid-career change from psychological research to clinical practices in mental health counseling. So here I am – back to school at BU for Mental Health Counseling & Behavioral Medicine MA program. I’ve been through plenty of cultural transitions and adaptations in academic settings. I’d love to use my experience and expertise to support international students to thrive in their studies and lives.

I currently live in Newton. In my free time, I like doing yoga, hiking, reading, watching movies, and spending time with my family and friends. I’m looking forward to making new friends at BU!