Cristina Soto Sullivan, PhD

Cristina grew up in the Milwaukee area before heading to UW-Eau Claire to complete her undergraduate education, and she received her PhD in Counseling Psychology from Purdue University. Cristina completed a pre-doctoral internship with Student Counseling Services at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities and post-doctoral work at Marquette University Counseling Center. She has worked with a variety of individuals across various settings, and a significant portion of her work has been with the college student population.  

Cristina primarily approaches her work with interpersonal and multicultural lenses, while also incorporating strategies and interventions from other approaches (e.g., solution-focused, CBT, ACT). She sees the process of building a strong, safe therapeutic relationship as critical in order for students to secure support, build insight, receive feedback, gain skills, and make changes in their lives. As a mixed (Mexican/White) person, Cristina is committed to serving students from a variety of backgrounds and considering a student’s experience in the context of their individual and intersectional identities. Cristina’s clinical interests include grief/loss (e.g., death loss, breakups), adjustment/life transitions, family and other relational concerns, career/vocational exploration, and identity exploration and development (e.g., biracial, bisexual).   

In her free time, Cristina is usually taking walks outside, catching up on her favorite TV shows, playing various board games, and pinning dream interior design ideas.