Personally The classroom and practicum have been instrumental to me in many ways including my recovery from cancer. When I was released to return to work after my illness, I received more than fifty rejections, most responding that I did not have a degree. Therefore I began my adult education with the goal of getting an associate’s degree. At that time I had no aspirations of going on to choose a major and graduate with a bachelors or masters degree. Little did I know where this journey would take me and the impact that it has had on my life. Being the non-traditional student has allowed me to view my classroom and practicum experiences from the perspective of someone that has had many years of life experiences. These life experiences have guided me throughout my life and career. They provided me the framework that formed my opinions and influenced my decisions. However being entrenched in my own past experiences my view of the world became narrow and extremely black and white. Since returning to school the world has …show more content…
opened up and now I can see more than just what is in front of me. A strength that I feel I will bring to the new career is that I have always had a high sense of personal moral values, which have been deeply rooted since I was old enough to understand right from wrong. However since going back to school I have learned that it is okay to have my own values but that I need to respect and allow other people to have theirs as well. Along with my upbringing and work history I felt that I was inclusive of all and did not believe that I had biases. I have since learned that everyone has biases and one needs to be able to acknowledge them so that they can be recognized and acknowledged. An example of a personal bias is my feelings and treatment for people who are on death row. I had never before taken into consideration a person’s background and how that influenced them. I also had not taken into account a person’s mental health issues. So when I began micro/macro human behavior class I was exposed to what other influencers should be considered when dealing with anyone even inmates. What I had not counted on was that the more I read and learned the more I could see that, my feelings towards inmates was beginning to change. In class I participated on a team that did a presentation on inmates that compared those in the states against those in other countries. I quickly learned that here in America we are concerned more with incarcerating people instead of educating and treating the mental illnesses that is in nearly half of all prisoners in the United States. A weakness that I have and continue to work on is my memory.
I have never had the type of memory that many others experience but since receiving chemotherapy for leukemia my memory recall has been affected. I experience both long and short term memory loss. For example, I can be speaking with my brother, discussing something from the past and I am having trouble remembering the incident. He is surprised because he feels that it was an unforgettable event but I remember nothing or very little. Regardless of my biases, weaknesses or strengths the classroom and practicum experience has allowed me to grow into a more understanding, considerate and confident person. I am able to recognize what issues may influence working with clients, which will force me to dig deeper. In regards to confidence, the experience of the last four years has given me a framework and foundation of knowledge that will allow me to help others, something I always strive to
do. As to areas that I would like to learn more about is a difficult question for me answer. With my new found enjoyment of learning and reading my future can be limitless. There is something exciting about being able to learn new thoughts and ideas. As for specific topics I would like to get out of my comfort zone and do more with mental health issues, working with children and families and working with juveniles in the justice system. By focusing on the medical model I realize that I will be dealing with all of the aforementioned and would like to learn more so as to be more versed and comfortable when speaking with these types of clients. Professionally Due to my past working history in the medical field I have had a different view and experience of what the role and job of a social worker is. Social workers from my past point of view did very little. Their responsibility as I saw it was to get patients placed into facilities or set up services to get them home, but it appeared to me that they drug their feet and would keep patients and families company or in other words be “social”. Since beginning school for social work, volunteering with different organizations and working in my practicum I have been given a clearer picture of what the role a social worker is. When I did my first volunteer hours of shadowing a social worker for perspectives class I chose Zennie McClintock LMSW at Holton hospital whom I used to work with. After finishing my day I spoke with Zennie and told her I owed her an apology because I had a new respect for what she does, for which she thanked me for recognizing her role and contribution in the process of helping clients. As for social work as a profession I had no knowledge of the values and ethics that this profession adheres to. Learning about the code of ethics (Code of ethics (2017)), was quite literally eye opening. The reason is that the code of ethics is fundamentally my own code, but on steroids. Integrity is very high on my personal list of values. For me this equates to having respect for clients, which can mean being on time and truthful. I feel that if my integrity could be called into question how can anyone believe in what I am saying. Another standard that I believe in is being competent. A person needs to know what they are doing or saying and if not, then say so, ask for help, there is no shame in not knowing. The last one I want to discuss is that I try to live by the golden rule. The client that you are trying to help despite what their issues are, they is someone’s child or parent. I try to remember if this is a family member of mine, how would I want them to be treated? This golden rule I feel is akin to yet another core value of the social work code of ethics which is, “dignity and worth of the person”. Yet I have witnessed these values being abused or ignored even by people in authority. I know this is cliché but, if everyone could learn to treat one another with respect the world would be a much happy place, but it seems that as human beings we need drama resulting in why social workers are needed. I have never thought of myself as a professional. I have been comfortable in my role of being the “grunt” or “worker bee” depending on the day and that my place was to be the follower not the leader. I was happy to be in that position because it meant my job was to take care of people, not get involved in the politics of work, or be a leader that makes decisions. I did not have the courage or confidence to work in that role. Since going back to school, my confidence has grown by leaps and bounds and now I see that not only can I take care of people but that I can affect change by being in a leadership role. Addressing the current assessment of my professional skills is an area of ongoing learning. One of the skills that I do have, which has been practiced throughout my working history and practicum, is being able to talk to clients. This is something that comes naturally for me now, but is something that I need to work on. I need to be able to encourage clients to provide more information about the issue that they are presenting with. I was brought up to not be nosey and for me to become a professional social worker I will need to ask follow-up questions, dig deeper and get nosey. If I am unable to learn to do this better I will not be getting all the information needed to make informed recommendations. This skill is one that I have been working on during my hours at practicum. I tend to ask questions and not dig deeper, then I find myself having to go back to the patient to finish with more follow-up questions. This is something that I realize I will not always be able to do and need to learn to be more thorough the first time. As for professional goals, my end goal is to work with cancer patients. My own cancer experience makes me acutely qualified to help patients going through their cancer journey. I have experienced hearing the words, “I am sorry to have to tell you that you have cancer”. This singular phrase is one of the most dreaded to hear and is something that I can relate to with patients. I have lived through chemotherapy, multiple shots, tests and procedures and the times when ones hope begins to wane. Being able to show patients that there is life on the other side of treatment would be yet another way of turning my illness into a positive experience
A look back at the institution of education over the past 20 years will reveal that once upon a time a bachelor’s degree was long since considered the marker of ultimate success, the highest level of achievement that one could make in their lives. In those days, if for some reason you failed to march across the stage on graduation day after an epic, four-year stretch of high tuition, long nights studying, and unrelenting professors that found great joy in riding your back, then you had indeed failed at life.
Over the past few years, people have begun to see going to college as a way to achieve the American Dream through career-readiness. People used to go to college, hoping to get a better well-rounded education. For most the well-rounded education, it usually came with the courses required for a liberal arts education. The courses would provide a level of analytical and in-depth understanding that would prepare the students for both life and whichever career path chosen. No matter the amount of money paid, parents would be willing to gi...
After over 15 years of working as a CNA and Caregiver, I decided that I wanted to continue my education in the medical field. In 2013 I took the first step towards gaining a better future with more experience as a medical professional. I enrolled into a Medical Assistant program at IBMC college of Longmont. It has been a long road and I am almost to the finish line having gained essential skills needed to move further into my career. It has been a grueling and eye opening experience for me being an adult learner returning back to school at 33 years of age. I persevered through these pass two years with courage and determination, never letting my short comings get the best of me. As I approach the end of my journey with IBMC I have realized that I have a passion for helping those persons who
Prompt: In 500 words or more, describe your collegiate experience thus far. How has this experience and the knowledge you've gained influenced what you plan to study? How have they influenced your decision to apply to St. Edward's?
An interest in the field of speech-language pathology was ignited in my mind and my heart at the young age of 9. It was career day in Mrs. Garrett’s third grade class and our school speech pathologist was speaking to the class about her profession. I knew at that moment that this was my calling. I was fortunate to have a support system that focused on helping my passion flourish, so my wonderful teacher arranged for me to spend a week with our school speech pathologist, during this time I was able to see how she helped students communicate. During high school, I was given the opportunity to spend two days per week volunteering with the elementary school speech-pathologist in our district. These experiences continued to shape my goals and dreams for the future. Unfortunately, my dreams soon came crashing down around me. As I prepared to apply for college, I realized that my parents had spent my entire college fund during a financial hardship. I was devastated by the setback, but decided to attend a community college instead, planning to transfer after two years. During my time at community college, I faced yet another setback, my parents were getting a divorce and soon I found myself without a place to live. Consequently, my grades and GPA suffered as I bounced
My freshman seminar class hitherto has been good. In this class I have been learning about various topics. These topics fall into helping us for high school and preparing us for the future. These topics was important and necessary because they helped us to avoid from not being successful. One of the topics we have recently accomplished was budgeting.
My journey to higher education spans 24-years and combines two passions, teaching and EMS (emergency medical services). This journey began in 1986 with a suburban kindergarten class of 25 in Memphis, TN. Eleven years later no longer am I teaching school-age children; instead, I am delivering training programs to EMS providers as well as the medical community. Today, I combine both passions to offer students authentic experiences through which to obtain proficient skills in written and oral communications, critical and analytical thinking, problem solving, as well as in negotiation and conflict resolution skills as they prepare for rewarding
The stereotypical version of the normal life of a teenager proceeding to college would include high academic standards met throughout their high school career and outstanding outside testing scores resulting in automatic entry into the institution of their choice. Many of these individuals have the support of their accomplished family members in the form of financial support. There are those who have not had the luxuries of any easy upbringing but forced to decide between a life with a college degree or full-time employment. For myself I want to have it all and to achieve that I have taken on both.
Developing confidence, and competence is a challenge faced by novice nurses (Morrell & Ridgway, 2014). Over the course of my nursing degree developing, and maintaining confidence in my clinical practice has always been a personal challenge. During my preceptorship placement, I have the opportunity to continue to cultivate my confidence, and prepare to begin my practice as an independent graduate nurse. In the reflection, I will discuss how I have gradually become a confident practitioner through my experiences in my clinical placement, and especially those in my preceptorship placement.
College success has become a most desirable goal. However, many students struggle through college. In fact, according to the Website Ask.com, approximately 15 percent of college students receive a degree. Because I’m willing to earn a degree like many other successful students, I find that college is the stepping stone to my dream goals. I know that college is difficult, but I realize that attaining my dream of a college education will require me to understand the benefits of what I’m learning, to prepare for obstacles, to seek advice, and to create effective and reasonable strategies will help me achieve my goals.
In high school, I was among those students who always indicated that I will be going college. However, unlike most people I seem to meet these days I did not know that I wanted to be a doctor. When it was time to head off to college, I was still unsure of what I wanted to pursue. As most college freshmen, I did not know what major best suits my personality. I desired a career that would define who I am and a career that is self-gratifying. However, the path that I should follow was unclear to me. Because of my uncertainty I failed to see that my parents dream became my reality. As I began my college experience as a nursing student, I felt somewhat out of place. I realized that my reason for majoring in nursing was my parents' influence on me. They wanted me to believe that nursing is right for me. I always knew I wanted to go into the medical field, but I felt that I needed to know how to choose a medical specialty that I feel is right for me. My first step was to change my major. I chose to change my major to biology. My love for science led me to this decision. I began to explore the opportunities open to biology students.
High school is supposed to be a one more step closer to college; it’s supposed to be preparing you for the future right? Wrong. My experience in high school was very different; I never quite fit in with anyone, the “friends” that I thought that I had used me for money. Let’s just say when I was a freshman I had a friend whom I knew from grade school, her name was Meghan Lawrence and she was the kind of person who I really believed I could tell her anything and she would keep it to herself. Once again I was proven wrong, I developed a crush on a boy and she knew that I had a crush on him; one morning before class both he and she went to the corner store, she thought it would be funny to tell him all about my crush, which he tortured me with, playing with my emotions, made me feel like he might actually like me back.
As a college student, who looking for building a career through higher education, decisions that I have made have had a lot of effect on my path. Decisions that mostly benefited me and sometimes had led me to tough situations and made me feel that I got burned out. This semester is going to be an example of bad decisions that I made in my entire college experience. I thought I can handle multiple courses and labs along with my working schedule. however I tried, but my plans did go as well as I expected. Although, dropping some of them, helped not to feel such a burden but it was too late. So I got behind but never gave up. Without a good spirit, I started back on. I did my best not to look back and just focused to move
At the age of 36, mom decided to return to college to obtain her nursing degree. This wasn’t a hard decision for her to make. In April before she enrolled in school, my great grandmother passed away. This major dilemma played a major role in mom’s return to school. She had taken care of my great grandmother for months before she passed away, and decided that she wanted to make an impact on the lives of geriatrics.
...new classes, I soon realized what would be the biggest challenge of college: deciding on a major. Yes, I am one of those people who started college without first declaring a major. I soon heard every question, suggestion, and response regarding possible options. I even began concocting false majors to throw some people off. Large-Scale Demolition was a crowd favorite.