Dr. Jillian Roberts
Psychologist, professor, author and CEO fighting to improve the mental health landscape.
Finalist for:
Emerging Leader of the Year
What brought you to Victoria?
I was born in Nanaimo and left early for university. I returned in 1999 after 10 years away to take up my tenure track educational psychology appointment at UVic. It was a dream come true to come back to the island to work and raise my family.
Where did you go to school and what did you take?
BA in Humanities at U. of Waterloo, BEd at Dalhousie, MA in Counselling at U of T and then PhD at U of Calgary and Management Development Program at Harvard.
What was the biggest obstacle to getting where you are now, and how did you overcome it?
I had very few role models growing up. I knew very few people who had attended university. The first psychologist I met was at university. I did not come from a family of means, so I paid for all of my own schooling through a combination of loans, grants, scholarships and part-time jobs. It was a long, hard journey but I am proud of being entirely self-made.
What are you most proud of in your career?
I am proud of many things. I am proud of being entirely self-made. I am proud that I have built a career that allows me to to make a social impact. I am super proud when a child I have worked with gets better and thrives after their live course has been positively altered.
Who has been the biggest influence on your life? What lessons did that person teach you?
My husband, Stephen, has been the biggest influence in my life. We married in the second year of my university studies and he encouraged and supported me all the way through. Without his solid foundation beneath my feet I would not be able to do the work that I do.
What’s something most people don’t know about you?
Jillian is an amateur gem hound, GoT fanatic and owner of one of the largest dog breeds on earth.
For a Colleague or Client to answer: What do you admire most about this finalist?
“Aside from Jillian’s excellence in her core discipline child psychology, she possesses an incredible ability and tenacity to understand and master completely new disciplines and skills which makes her a great Founder for a startup.”
– Hannes Blum