People like Eric McAlister make the world a better place. His gentle advocacy for connection is disarming.
Eric is a forty-four-year-old SACAP honours graduate with his career sights set on becoming a clinical psychologist or neuropsychologist. Classified as a ‘mature student,’ Eric’s avid passion for psychology culminated in him receiving the Dean’s Award for Outstanding Academic Achievements at his graduation in May 2024.
His path to psychology hasn’t been a linear one. Like all the best adventures, it’s the detours along the way that have ultimately shaped his direction. Keen to discover how, we caught up with Eric and asked him. This is what he has to say…
Connecting dots
“I love connecting with people and discovering what makes them tick,” Eric says. “I really enjoy quality, one-on-one time getting to know someone at the core of their essence.”
Additionally, Eric admits, “I am also an exceptionally patient person. I can spend time with just one person, and I can work with a diverse group. I love being around handicapped people – my youngest brother is autistic – and I’m comfortable working in those kinds of spaces, too.”
Flora fundi
Fresh out of high school Eric studied horticulture. “I love plants,” he explains. “I’ve travelled the country flat looking for flora and photographing it in its natural environment. The older I got, however, the more I realised I also had a profound passion for connecting with people and an increasing interest in psychology.”
Eric is an outdoor enthusiast and being in nature is intrinsically embedded in his soul, he says. “My work with plants connected me to the wide-open spaces I love so much. But I began to recognise that I was missing out on fulfilling my other deep-rooted passion, which is to connect with people.”
Changing course
Before deciding to study psychology, Eric ran a fire prevention company for 15 years. “I was on the electronics side,” he says, “I installed and maintained fire detection devices.”
Eric decided to change his career direction because he found more meaning in studying psychology, he says. He closed his company in 2022 to pursue his honours as a full-time student at SACAP. It was a nerve-wracking experience,” he admits, “it meant I could pursue what I really wanted to do, though.”
Veteran scholar
When we quiz Eric about what it’s like being a student again in his forties, he’s nonplussed. “I’ve got a real passion for learning, in fact ever since school I’ve been studying,” he says. “I’ve immersed myself in all kinds of mini-courses because I relish learning new things. For me psychology is the next big learning pool I’ve plunged into.”
Apparently, he’s glad he did, Eric says, because his experience as a mature student at SACAP has been a positive one. “I’ve made strong connections with the other students in my cohort, and lasting ones with my educators – likely due to the negligible age gap,” he muses.
Favourite feature
Eric completed his psychology undergrad at Pretoria University before pursuing his honours at SACAP. “SACAP has been an amazing journey for me. I’ve got no regrets about going the SACAP route. In fact, the experience opened a lot of practical opportunities I don’t think many other universities offer,” he says.
His favourite aspect of his SACAP venture? “I really enjoyed the interaction we had in the classes,” Eric says. “It was very intense, and very helpful to me. I took every exercise very personally and tried my best to commit myself wholeheartedly. I fulfilled all the reading requirements, and this really broadened my knowledge.”
“Being in an honours programme you’re in a really small group, and I enjoyed the intimacy very much,” Eric continues. “We could discuss controversial and sensitive topics that you cannot really talk about away from a setting like that. I loved the diversity in perspectives, too. They have helped me to become more sensitive to other peoples’ viewpoints.”
Solid stepping stone
Currently, Eric is in the process of applying for his master’s at various learning institutions and says SACAP has equipped him well for this articulation. “There’s a kind of transition that’s very supportive,” he says. “I feel my studies at SACAP have prepared me well. For example, I can understand what the application questions are about, which is helping me on so many levels.”
That’s not all. Eric says his SACAP experience has unlocked other opportunities, too. “I’m also trying to get into psychometry. It’s just a six-month course,” he adds. “Psychological assessment is a real interest of mine and it dovetails especially nicely with neuropsychology.”
Big picture
Eric’s ultimate career gameplan? “In an ideal world I’d like to be working in the clinical psychology or neuropsychology space,” he says. “For the first few years, I’d like to go and work in a hospital setting. Thereafter I hope to open my own practice.”
“As a clinical psychologist I’d be particularly keen to specialise in the areas of autism and infertility,” he adds. “If I do land up in the neuropsychology space, however, I will base myself in a hospital.”
Broadening perspectives
From plants to people, Eric’s penchant for connection has expanded his depth of experience and ultimately developed him as a person.
“As a mature student I’d like to encourage other people my age to start studying again,” he concludes. “Psychology has helped me become a better me. It’s highlighted all my blind spots and I have really got to know myself as a person. I’ve become much more confident as a result. I know what I want and what I want to say. Studying psychology at SACAP has fostered my sense of purpose, nurtured a self-driven attitude in me and encouraged me to excel in the academic environment.”
Eager to explore opportunities that nurture your own self-development and grow as a person, too? SACAP’s range of psychology programmes offer a myriad opportunities that will not only evolve you as an individual, but also cultivate your career path. Search our full selection of courses now.