Elisa Hernandez, Ph.D.
Dr. Elisa Hernandez (she/her) is a bicultural, bilingual, licensed counseling psychologist (PSY26012) living in Southern California. As a first generation college student, she knows first hand the challenges and triumphs that can be part of the path to success when navigating academia and the professional world. Elisa has devoted her career to working with college students at both public and private colleges and universities. Elisa specializes in the experiences of first generation college students and first generation professionals (resilience, self-doubt, family support and devotion, cultural conflict, imposter phenomenon, driven high achievers, etc.), identity transitions and growth, acculturation and inter-generational conflict, Latinx issues, multicultural counseling, and brief therapy.
Dr. Hernandez approaches her work from a trauma-informed, culturally responsive, strengths-based lens. She combines elements of evidence-based therapies (CBT, ACT, DBT), narrative therapy, and a humanistic (person-centered) approach to manage both the emotional distress a person may be experiencing and also facilitate growth and personal development. Elisa strongly believes that a collaborative approach that explores and understands thought patterns and emotional responses, and also recognizes the impact of socio-cultural and historical factors will lead to self-understanding and transformation.
Professional Background
Elisa is a daughter of immigrants (from Mexico and Guatemala) and grew up in a working class, predominantly Latinx community. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Stanford University and her Doctorate in Clinical, Counseling, and School Psychology from UC Santa Barbara. During her time at UCSB, she worked with the Santa Barbara County Department of Mental Health, Hosford Counseling and Psychological Services Clinic, and UCSB Career Services. Elisa conducted research focused on bicultural identity development, the role of social support in wellbeing, and the Latinx college student experience. She completed her pre-doctoral internship at Counseling and Psychological Services at CSU Long Beach and her postdoctoral training at Monsour Counseling and Psychological Services at The Claremont Colleges. She was later welcomed as a staff member at both institutions and served the First-Generation college student population by offering workshops/presentations, speaking on panels, and hosting support spaces.