GASP

WHAT IS GASP?

GASP stands for Graduate Association for Students in Psychology, the wonderful family that comprises graduate students in the psychology department of USC. As the GASP executive board, we are responsible for helping organize student orientations, Town Hall, and community events. We also share resources for professional development and are the liaison between students and administrative staff. Most importantly, we build a community of friendship and support by organizing events and outings for students such as game nights, Halloween parties, and comedy events, with lots and lots of delicious food. As GASP, we are here for you, and strive to make your PhD experience as welcoming and enjoyable as possible. The GASP Mentor-Mentee Program has been a success in getting new students to feel welcome and helping them get oriented with the PhD program and life at USC. Every new psychology student that begins a PhD at USC gets matched with a current student and learns some tips and tricks for navigating the grad life from them.

Stay Connected!

Stay connected with your fellow graduate students using our Slack channel! Search for the #psychology-graduate-students channel.

You can also connect with us on IG @gasp_usc to stay up to date with social events!

Sarvenaz Oloomi

Co-President

I am a third-year PhD student in the Developmental and Brain and Cognitive Sciences areas, working with Dr. Santiago Morales. My research involves understanding the impact of biological, environmental, and cultural factors on different trajectories of socioemotional and cognitive development in children. I’m excited to be serving as GASP’s Co-President this year to advocate for student needs with the department and the broader graduate student community. In my free time, I enjoy exercising, reading at the beach, and exploring LA’s food and music scenes!

Contact: oloomi@usc.edu

Irem Kuyucu

Co-President

I am a third-year PhD student in the Social Psychology area, working with Dr. Norbert Schwarz. My research investigates how people make meaning from metacognitive and social cues like fluency, effort, and message framing. As Co-President this year, I’m committed to strengthening community in our department by promoting support, fairness, and collaboration and by creating fun, frequent opportunities for students to connect. Outside of school, I like reading, exercising, and travelling.

Contact: kuyucu@usc.edu

Margarid Turnamian

Climate Coordinator

I am a third-year PhD student in the clinical area working with Dr. Jonathan Stange. My research interests center around understanding how experiences in daily life, including emotion regulation, physiology, behavior, and cognition, interact and how these interactions influence the maintenance and trajectories of depression. As the CLIMATE Chair, I am excited to work with our students and faculty to continue to foster justice, support, and equity without our department! Outside of work, I enjoy going to the beach, spending time with friends, trying different matcha cafes, and exploring neighborhoods around LA.

Contact: turnamia@usc.edu

Begum Babur

Professional Development Coordinator

I’m a 4^th year PhD student in the Social area, working primarily with Dr. Elisa Baek. My research broadly investigates how people learn about others from social interactions, use them to guide their decisions to connect with others, and how unmet needs of social connection (i.e. loneliness) influences these processes. As the Professional Development Chair, I’m excited to support GASP members as they navigate career development at different stages, connect them with the broader Trojan alumni network, and create opportunities for students across years to share their experiences and skills they gained from the program. Outside of research, I enjoy attending concerts and live music events, dancing, cooking, and exploring good food spots in the city.

Contact: babur@usc.edu

Idella Smolyar

Mentor-Mentee Program Coordinator

Idella works with Dr. Sandy LaTourrette in the Child Learning & Development Lab. Her research interests are in further understanding children’s language and cognitive development. Currently, she is examining how children use linguistic context to learn new word meanings, as well as how children form their concepts of mixed emotions from the language they use and/or hear. She is interested in how exposure to other linguistic information, languages, social interaction, and even media potentially influences children’s word and concept learning. Idella graduated from UCLA in 2024 and served as Lab Manager for the CHILD Lab in its first year.

Contact: ismolyar@usc.edu

Yalda Daryani

DGSA Representative

I am a fourth-year PhD student working with Dr. Daphna Oyserman. My research is focused on how cultural and moral values change over time and how they shape intergroup relationships. I’m excited to be serving as GASP’s DGSA representative to be a liaison between our department and the broader graduate student community. In my free time I enjoy hiking and exploring museums and art galleries.

Contact: daryani@usc.edu

Co-Presidents: Meltem Ozcan & Yalda Daryani
Professional Development Chair: Yi Zhang
Mentor Program Coordinator: Jina Chung
DGSA Representative: Sarvenaz Oloomi
DEI Climate Officer: Aarthi Ganapathi
Co-Presidents: Meltem Ozcan & Jean Luo
Professional Development Chair: Adrelys Mateo Santana
Mentor Program Coordinator: Kira Harris
Dornsife Representative: Ellie Xu
DEI Climate Officer: Elayne Zhou

Highlights

Living in LA

Here are some helpful guides for exploring Los Angeles!
Life in LA: Information from USC Dornsife
TimeOut Discover LA Guide

Eating

On Campus:

Visit this website to find the closest food and caffeine to your office: Hospitality Site
Be aware that there are lots of opportunities on campus to eat for FREE. Yes, you read right. Like Wednesday morning coffee, Thursday afternoon snacks, and free lunches at select talks. Just make sure to keep abreast of talks and other GASP activities. You can refer to this department calendar of events.

Off Campus:

If the term “Off-Campus” seems mercurial to you, use this LA Eater guide to dining off campus.

On Campus:

In addition to our great GASP events, here’s some other fun things to do on campus:
Tommy’s Place, an underground spot for food, trivia, and other events.
Join a USC Intramural Sports team for some friendly competition.
Get discounted event and amusement park tickets from the USC Ticket Office.

Next to Campus:

If you ever need a break, visit one of the many attractions of Exposition Park, all within walking distance of campus!

Getting Around LA

If you don’t have a car (or even if you do!), consider purchasing the Graduate Student U-Pass. It includes unlimited use of the transportation systems in LA, the Santa Monica Big Blue Bus, and more.