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A Master’s in Kinesiology graduate and marathon runner is building a career to give back to the athletic community
Posted by D. Health communications On October 10, 2023 in the news
Kelsey Hogan runs in the 2022 Grand Raid.
Congratulations to the D. Health Class of 2023! To celebrate Fall Convocation, we spoke with students from across Dal Health. Kelsey Hogan graduates with a Master of Science in Kinesiology.
Conference Q&A: Kelsey Hogan
- Pronouns: She/her
- degree: Master of Science in Kinesiology
- Where are you from: (Study Brook, Newfoundland).
How important is it for you to get this degree?
It feels very important to graduate with a Masters in Kinesiology from Dalhousie. This degree represents a major milestone in my career and educational journey, and opens the door to exciting possibilities for what comes next. Going back to school after several years working in the non-profit sector was a big decision and I feel proud, grateful, and hopeful about where I am today. amazing!
What are the highlights of your testimony?
Lots of highlights! In particular, the people I was able to work with were amazing, and the most memorable moments were the ones I shared with others. I feel proud and fortunate to have had support from friends, family, faculty, and colleagues throughout my studies.
I am grateful for the kindness and guidance of my supervisor, Dr. Lori Dethurbide, who has been an encourager and mentor over the past two years. I have also had the pleasure of working with the team at the Atlantic Canadian Sports Institute and community sport coaches through a Mitacs Fellowship research project. I was inspired by my teammates on the Dal cross country team and I learned a lot from our coach, Rich Lyman. I shared many wonderful moments with my lab partner, Ben, who was with me on this journey the whole time (we did!). I am honored to learn from my dissertation research participants who shared their stories with me about their first ultramarathon experiences. Finally, I am grateful to my family, who offered their patience, vision, and unwavering faith in me from the beginning!
What will you miss about your time at DAL?
I will miss being immersed in the culture of exploration and learning. I loved being able to explore my passions and interests during my time at Dahl, and enjoyed the variety of activities that were part of my days as a graduate student. Being involved in a mix of campus and community activities was exciting, and I loved the interdisciplinary nature of the faculty that allowed me to be exposed to many different areas of research.
What was your journey to Dal and to this program?
I completed my undergraduate studies at the University of New Brunswick in Interdisciplinary Leadership and Psychology, then worked for several years in the non-profit sector in environmental communications and youth leadership development. During those years, I discovered track and ultrarunning and fell in love with a sport in which many people believe the mental aspects of performance far outweigh the physical aspects. My own experiences running distances ranging from 50km to 200 miles, and the conversations I had with people in the ultrarunning community along the way, inspired my interest in researching the psychological aspects of endurance athletes.
I was thrilled to find a program and mentor that supported me in pursuing my passion and researching the experiences of first-time ultramarathon athletes. I was attracted to the interdisciplinary nature of the Dahl College of Health and Human Performance, and it is the ideal place to further my development as a sport psychology researcher.
What topics/research/work have you become passionate about during your education?
Immersing myself in the growing body of sports psychology literature related to ultrarunning was exciting, and I was surprised by how much I loved reading each new study. As a marathon athlete, it is exciting to see new research developments that reflect the growth of the sport, and I believe we are only just scratching the surface.
Focusing on first-time athletes for my dissertation was exciting for me because there are so many individuals discovering the sport, but most existing research has focused on elite and experienced participants. I loved hearing about what individuals learned from sports and applied to other aspects of their lives, and I was particularly interested in hearing from women who are often underrepresented in the literature. Addressing gender gaps in research and understanding the experience of other diverse populations is something I have become more passionate about and would like to see advanced in future research. I hope to see positive changes in sport, informed by evidence, to support athletes of all ages, backgrounds and abilities to succeed and realize their potential..
What’s next for you?
I am working towards my Mental Performance Consultant (MPC) certification while also striving to achieve my goals as a professional endurance athlete.
In my work as a MPC member, I am passionate about helping people unleash their potential and achieve their goals in sport as well as other aspects of their lives. It feels like a dream come true to build a career that combines my passions and allows me to give back to the sports community that has taught me so much.
As a marathon athlete, I am always learning and growing. I have big goals that include competing in some of the most challenging mountain marathons in the world, while supporting the development of the sport locally. Next year, I will be focusing on the Ultra Trail Mont-Blanc (UTMB) 100-mile series finals, and I hope to compete as part of Team Canada at the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships in 2024. I am pushing my physical and mental limits, and I am learning that we are capable of Achieving so much more than we can ever imagine, and finding joy in the difficult moments that teach me more about how to be a better athlete and person.
