Student Spotlight: Regina Choy Finds a Calling Supporting ‘My Brothers and Sisters’

As an intern in the Department of Veterans Affairs, Regina Choy understands what the agency’s clientele are going through as they transition out of the military and seek new careers. 

After all, the master’s student in San Diego State University’s rehabilitation counseling program has been there herself.

“I think there's this strong camaraderie among veterans, no matter which military branch you served in. I've always felt connected to those who have served their country, whether it be a shared military experience or networking to share resources to help one another,” said Choy, U.S. Navy veteran who recently earned the American Rehabilitation Counseling Association’s (ARCA) top graduate student honor. 

“I love helping people find their strengths and then using those strengths to find meaningful and gainful employment where they can grow and contribute to living a happier and healthier life.”

Through SDSU’s rehabilitation counseling program, which is ranked No. 3 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report, Choy has certainly found her own strengths.

A Long Journey

Choy joined the US Navy out of high school to follow in her grandfather's footsteps, becoming an aircraft mechanic, and was deployed twice to the Persian Gulf during her five years of active duty. After leaving the service, it was a long and winding journey to find her own path. 

She originally trained to be a dental assistant, but an acquired disability from her time in the Navy made this career unsustainable. She tried her hand at an embroidery business and later worked as a Park Ranger at Cabrillo National Monument. 

But her experience in San Diego State’s rehab counseling program helped her discover her true calling. Now in the last semester of her program, she’s interning with the VA’s Wellness and Vocational Enrichment (WAVE) Clinic, offering evidence-based job placement strategies to her clients.

“All of my jobs have been meaningful, but this one's a little bit more special because the veterans I am helping are like my brothers and sisters,” said Choy, who hopes to continue with the program in a permanent capacity after graduation. “A lot of the individuals that I work have acquired a disability from their time serving in the military, whether it be a physical or mental disability, I believe that despite their disability there is a job out there that is meant for them. Others, like in my experience, come out of the military and the work they did in the service is all they know. At the WAVE clinic we take the veteran's interests and transferable skills and incorporate that into a new career path with the goal to place them in a position they can potentially grow and thrive in."

“I feel when somebody gets actual gainful employment, it’s almost like their life does a complete 180, you can see a glow in them like they placed the last piece to complete a very hard puzzle.” she adds. “That's what I love the most.”

Graduate Student Honor

On March 31, Choy was named Graduate Student of the Year by ARCA during the organization’s reception at the American Counseling Association's conference in Toronto. Thanks to a grant she secured to send herself and nine of her rehabilitation counseling classmates to the conference, it was an even sweeter experience.

“The ACA Conference was such an invaluable experience and I cannot thank SDSU enough for the wonderful opportunity,” Choy said. “I’d never been to Canada, and I think the nine other students who went with me hadn't been either — most of us hadn't traveled since pre-pandemic. This experience widened our professional knowledge and was a very memorable trip.”

Choy, who earned her bachelor’s from SDSU in L. Robert Payne School of Recreation & Tourism Management in 2019, carries a 3.97 GPA in the master’s program and serves as president of SDSU’s Rehabilitation Counseling Student Association. When asked about which professors have impacted her the most, Choy quickly rattled off the names of the entire rehabilitation counseling faculty.

“All of them have passed down so much knowledge to me, so that I can be an exceptional rehab counselor, as well as inspiring me to step out of my comfort zone and advocate for others,” she said. “I wouldn’t be where I am today without them. They have equipped me with the skills and tools to be an impactful rehabilitation counselor and I wouldn't be working at the VA, doing a job that I love where I get to help veterans.”