Sunday, June 24, 2012

Cravens – Week 3 – MSU Housing and Residential Life


Activities:
-       Orientation Tours
-       MVNU2MSU Preparation
-       RD/RA Training Preparation

Reflection:
            Another week of Practicum is in the books and I cannot believe this experience is going by so fast.  This week in housing felt like a transition to me.  I’m starting to feel comfortable in my practicum role.  I’m getting to know the staff better and I feel more comfortable asking questions and giving my opinion.  With that comes the urge for more responsibility.  For me this is the difficult part of the practicum experience.  We are all tourist in our host department, spending a finite amount of time learning and participating in the office culture. This means we are limited in the amount of responsibility we can receive because some responsibilities exceed the length of our stay.  The positive side is learning the exciting professional opportunities waiting for us after graduation and the opportunity to soak up all the knowledge we can during the practicum experience.
            I was able to soak up quite a bit of knowledge in housing during the past week.  I attended both housing tour sessions this week, acting as a driver for visiting families.  I enjoyed having one on one contact with families as we scooted around campus to the residence hall.  Interacting closely with families is both exciting and scary because you never know what they are going to ask.  Calvin and I also went on a pricing mission for (and you can’t make this stuff up) post-it notes.  Not just any post-it notes, but neon, super sticky post-it notes for MVNU2MSU. Trips with Calvin are always a fun and informative way to learn about housing and gain valuable professional advise.  Calvin is generation with his time and honest with his thoughts and opinions.  As I move into my professional career, I hope to interact with colleagues and students with the same honesty.

1 comment:

  1. Emilie,

    You are correct. Your work now is very much like a paradox. In many ways it is like eating an apple. While you can count the seeds in an apple (a finite number) you cannot count the apples in a seed. Therefore, although your time in your practicum experience is limited, your learning will last a lifetime. Continue to challenge yourself and to determine what it is you want out of this experience both personally and professionally.

    Best,
    Dr. H

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