Nicola Brennan

Assistant Psychologist 

Educational and Child Psychologist in-training

Nicola is a Trainee Educational and Child Psychologist completing a Doctorate in Educational Psychology at University College Dublin. Nicola initially completed a BA in Psychology from Maynooth University in 2014. After this Nicola worked for several years in various industries. She then went on to complete a Masters in Guidance Counselling and Lifespan Development from the University of Limerick in 2017. Nicola then worked as a Guidance counsellor in Dublin for a year. After this she worked and ran the Guidance Department in a DEIS secondary school in Meath. It was during her time working with young people she developed a passion for hearing their stories and supporting them in schools and preparing them for adult life. She worked closely with the special education team in the school to provide the most inclusive and supportive environments for all students so they can enjoy their education, learn about themselves and reach their potential. Nicola then moved on to work as an Assistant Psychologist with the HSE in a Primary Care team in Dublin. During this time Nicola gained experience with working with children from a young age and their families. She developed a passion for a holistic approach to supporting young people to become who they are. Nicola also worked as part of Silvercloud adult CBT programme where she supported adults with anxiety and depression through an online CBT programme.

In September 2021, Nicola began Doctorate training to become a child and educational psychologist and is going into her final year of this course in UCD. On the course Nicola has had experience is working with the National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS), HSE Children’s Disability Network Teams (CDNT), and as part of a clinical team supporting a special school. Nicola hopes to complete her research on exploring the role of educational psychologists in supporting gender diverse young people.

In her spare time, you will find Nicola enjoying some indoor or outdoor climbing or walking her two dogs!