Amanda Alberti-week 7-career center

Activities:

·       Reviewed the syllabus and assignments for the career planning course

·       Worked on updates for the career center major list for the website

·       Attended a group Strong Interest Inventory review facilitated by Cassandra

·       Assessed my personal Strong Interest Inventory results based on the student meetings of Cassandra’s which I have shadowed over the summer

Reflections on Practice:

1.      As my practicum comes to a close over the next week and a half or so, I feel the need to discuss the things that I have learned from Cassandra as an individual who has heavily impacted my views of not only the Career Center and the work that is completed within the office but also my view of the student affairs field as a whole (which is ironic since she now technically works for academic affairs). Last week during our meeting I asked if Cassandra could email me my personal Strong Interest Inventory results which I completed through the Career Center during the spring semester. I followed along with my own results as Cassandra facilitated an interpretation with a small group of students. I sent Cassandra a text message following the meeting that read as follows:

“…thank you so much for letting me observe! I was looking over my results and realized career counselor is my #3 job. You have definitely provided me with a positive experience in the field and I appreciate it.”

Throughout the summer I have seen Cassandra go above and beyond for not only her employees but also for me. Chapter four of our textbook discusses the many aspects involved in serving as a supervisor (Schneider & Bailey, 2009). I have seen Cassandra reflect each of these in the Career Center and it has caused me to truly see her as a mentor and role model. For example, the book states that a supervisor should serve as a “catalyst” by encouraging high performance from employees through caring and understanding (Schneider & Bailey, 2009). Each time that I see Cassandra she inevitably asks me how I am doing. When I tell her that I’m doing well, she calls me out and asks if I’ve been sleeping, eating, and working out. I cannot put into words how grateful I am to have a supervisor (even if just for the summer) who genuinely looks out for my wellbeing. Cassandra and the textbook have both taught me a lot about what it means to be a great supervisor.

2.     A second lesson that I took away from practicum this week was a personal development one. By reviewing my Strong Interest Inventory results, I was able to see how student affairs fits into my career interests. My top nine career suggestions fell into the social category, the artistic category, or both. It is clear to me that student affairs falls into both of the categories. The field allows me to help students while also allowing me to express creative ideas and explore different outlets and goals. While I can see how student affairs follows my needs for a career, I can also see how my mind travels easily to thoughts of working in social work and education. I have struggled throughout my life, particularly over the past eight to ten years, with deciding what I want to be when I grow up. I struggle with never feeling like I am doing enough for others. While student affairs gives me the opportunity to help students, I don’t always feel like I’m giving enough. Logically, I know that the best way for me to solve this is to incorporate volunteerism and other “helping” activities into my student affairs professionalism. It is possible to find a university where I will have ample opportunity to become involved in the community which is something that I need to keep in the front of my mind as I begin my job search.

Reflections on Theory:

My week at practicum made me think a lot about Gilligan’s Theory of Women’s Moral Development (Evans, Forney, Guido, Patton & Renn, 2010). I have been able to see not only the way that I have traveled through these stages but also how Cassandra fits into the final stage of this theory. I feel that although I had made my way toward the end of this theory, in recent years I regressed and made my way back through each of the stages. About a year and a half ago, I went through a traumatic experience. This is the only point in my life that I can really relate to feeling as though I was self-centered or more worried about my personal survival than the needs of others (Evans et al., 2010). I recall that following this experience, I had trouble trusting people and being open with those around me (I still feel as though a part of me is in this stage) (Schneider & Bailey, 2009). I went back to keeping my opinions to myself out of fear of hurting the feelings of others which represents level two of Gilligan’s theory (Schneider & Bailey, 2009). The second transition stage of the theory can be seen in my recent struggles with work-life balance and motivation. I have had a very difficult time lately and have had a great deal of internal conflict with giving away too much of my time to others who are not willing to return the favor. In many ways, I have tried to incorporate the things that I believe will help my attitude into the different work that I am doing because I know that I am unable to remove these responsibilities in order to build time into my schedule for myself (Schneider & Bailey, 2009). I hope that I will soon find a way to reach level three of Gilligan’s theory. For quite some time, I have been seeking an understanding of self (Schneider & Bailey, 2009). Gilligan’s theory leaves me with hope that I will soon reach this stage in my life.

Schneider, R. S. & Bailey, K. W. (2009). Supervisory style: The photographer within. In M. J. Amey & L. M. Reesor (Eds.), Beginning Your Journey (3^rd ed.) (61-88). Washington, DC: National Association of Student Personnel Administrators.

Evans, N., Forney, D., Guido, F., Patton, L., & Renn, K. (2010). Student development in college: Theory, research, and practice. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.