Pursuing a higher education has always been my top priority, and I believe that University of Washington Bothell would help me achieve my aspirations. UW Bothell would not only allow me to expand my knowledge on critical thinking and literacy, but also become an empowering leader giving me the necessary skills to give back to my community and country. Growing up, I imagined myself becoming a nurse or a doctor, but that recently changed after reassessing my goals and passions. Making a difference in a person’s life has always been my goal, but instead of making a difference in those who are sick in the hospital, I find myself wanting to make a difference in those who are going through poverty, abuse, foster care, and many other life debilitating …show more content…
Over the summer, I volunteered at Tree House, a non-profit organization for foster kids. I had the chance to tutor a foster child, and this opportunity changed my mind about whom I aspire to be—a social worker. Being a tutor for a foster child open my eyes to see that I can make a difference in a person’s life just by helping them succeed. Volunteering at Tree House is just one of the many experiences I had with making a difference in people’s lives. I had the chance to obtain a NAC license. With this license I was able to care elderly patients. Caring for elderly patients made me realize the importance of a great support system. I also had the chance to feed the homeless through a non-profit organization, hastaglunchbox. Feeding the homeless opened up my heart to the everyday struggles of homeless individuals that many average people don’t go through. After feeding 400 homeless individuals, I was rewarded with the most amazing feeling—making a difference to those who are less fortunate. Many of these elders and foster kids do not have families, and being their support system allowed me to connect more with them individually. This involvement gave me the opportunity to talk to many social workers allowing me to see their challenging, yet rewarding
Currently, I am pursuing a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Interdisciplinary Studies with areas of study in Psychology and Criminal Justice. A Bachelor’s degree in these areas of study, can open the doors to many different career paths ranging from human services to research to counseling. Personally, I would like to seek a career that will allow me to have an impact on other people’s lives. For this reason, I choose to explore the career of a Foster Care Placement Specialist. To better understand the, job responsibilities, employment requirements and pros and cons of this career I decided to seek counsel from my friend, Rachel Zimmerman, a Family Services Specialist with the Virginia Department of Social Services.
Growing up in a public housing development, I longed to one day help individuals from an underserved community obtain care. At this soup kitchen, my responsibilities included welcoming guests, serving food, waiting tables, and cleaning trays. I empathized with their excitement when watching them receive a hot cup of tea on a sub-freezing day or a book bag with a built-in trench coat on a stormy day. Having an opportunity to spend time with and learn from the diversity of the population that we served was invaluable. Each person had a unique story to tell and just wanted someone to hear it.
During my field placements at the Boone County Department of Health and Human Recourses (DHHR) in my foundation level and the Davis Child Shelter currently in my advance level, I believe I have had a great idea of what the social worker profession is, understanding ethics, and working with populations who live in Appalachia. With both of my field placements, I see both sides of social worker, the “demander,” child protective services, and the “supplier,” Davis Child Shelter. Being able to experience both sides of this field, I have also worked with a wide range of different races, ages, sexual orientations, ethnicities, religions, mentally under developed, etc. Looking back at my field placement at the Davis Child Shelter, I have really enjoyed
The quality MSW program offered at Our Lady of the Lake will enable me to conduct research into, and increase my understanding of the diversity this program entails. I know that my adaptive personality will help me to form lasting connections to further build my professional goals. I believe that I my passion, drive, having an open mind and willingness to learn will grant me success as a Social Worker. I am determined to do all that I can to pursue a Master’s degree in Social Work and commit myself to improving the social and personal experiences of family’s, geriatrics, and children. After receiving my degree, I want to find a career in Child Welfare, while also servicing the geriatric
This child kept crying even after they nurses gave them medicine for pain. The nurses were concerned about the child always crying and called the social worker to come talk to the parents about the situations. I have tested my interest at Gateway Children’s Advocacy Center under Diane Rodgers. I loved volunteering at Gateway, it’s showing me the bad and the good side of social work. Gateway also helped point me in the direction of where I want to go in the social work
My why statement is something I desire in life and will accomplish with time. This three statement all have a impacted in my life, example being a leader is something I have always done when I was a younger girl,I never followed anyone choices in life I always had a mindset of my own and what I wanted to do for myself. Being a leader or just a role model in this industry is something I want to do with time. Following my dreams is a most in life, it's a goal I have to do with time no matter how many obstacles I face with time. Yes, I also want to make history be well known for the amazing impacted I have done as a role model in this industry with time, are the three why statements I will accomplish in facing many boundaries .My
My motivation to become a social worker began with an experience I had while working at my first social work job during my Sophomore year of college. I had recently begun work as a youth mentor at Utah Youth Village, a charity program that provides services to struggling youth who have been placed in either foster care or detention. My first clients were a 7-year-old girl and her brother who had been placed into foster care earlier that month. In my introductory meeting with their foster mother, biological brother, DCFS caseworker, and their family therapist, I distinctly remember her DCFS caseworker stating that they would not be placed back with their biological mother. This little girl, barely old enough to comprehend what that meant, knew enough to understand that her “real mom” would no
Furthermore, one activity that has had much significance into shaping who I am today is my involvement at Woodhall Park Care Community. Essentially, as a volunteer most of my tasks and duties included interaction with the residents such as setting up activities for them to participate in, listening and talking to them, assisting them in feeding, help them commute around the facility, guide and help visiting family members, etc. As I was thrown into a very different environment for the first time I found my self perplexed pertaining what or how to appropriately act with the older residents. Soon enough, I had discovered and grown attached to numerous residents and learned that they carry an extensive knowledge towards vast subjects. What shocked me the most must be the very difference in their entity as they had experiences and knew things I had never known.
By May 2015’s end, Operation Smile informed me that, though my skill set was desired, I had not been selected as a Program Coordinator. The difficult realization that I would not be able to achieve the career goal for which I had worked so hard left me devastated, wondering what to do next. I have always had a strong desire to help and care for people, and knew I had something to offer, but wasn’t sure where to channel my skills and
In five years I can see myself with a social work licence helping young adults and children who were like me to find themselves and take hold of the advantages and resources available to them. I understand the time demands of this program and the field training included. I am fully prepared to allocate all time and fully submerge myself in this practice. I am proud of the person that I have become and I can thank my life experience that I had growing up as the catalyst to my early success. I hope to continue to succeed by pursuing my goal of becoming a social worker and help others with the valuable skills that I will
As I reflect back to the days of my distant youth, my choices and paths previously taken have at times left me anxious and fearful, yet aware of the demand for continued perseverance towards my aspirations in life. Although, my once misguided motivation lead me astray, it also opened my eyes to the opportunities and trials that have made me the person I am today. Namely, my first attempt at college, as a first generation student I’d been extremely proud to push off into this new direction and take on new experiences and become more independent. However, my inability to ask questions and reach out only halted my progression and overall understanding of the college system, I hadn’t quite yet found my voice, so to speak. Originally, I’d opted
Seeing how excited my grandfather was to see me and my family and how bored everyone else at the nursing home was made me realize that the residents were yearning for social interaction and were not engaged with the outside world. From there, I applied for the E.E. Ford community service fellowship, pitched my project idea of using technology to improve these residents’ lives, and proceeded to work at Nathaniel Witherell the following summer. - Tell us about a particularly motivating or challenging moment you've had in doing this
While life-long learning exposes you to new possibilities of improvements, it also excels you in your areas of expertise. Knowledge is never enough and you can never be satisfied with what you learn because there is always new stuff to learn. It is never too late or too soon to learn. Whatever skills a person acquire can last for life-long, but the same skills will not be applied in the workforce for life-long. An article by Coleman supports that learning isn’t simply about earning degrees or attending storied institutions (Coleman, 2017).
Since an early age, I have always been enthusiastic about English. The books read to me when I was younger had a lasting impact, being the starting point for my love of literature. For me, the fascinating thing about English is how that through just words on a page, an author is able to manipulate and influence a reader's emotions through expression. This has encouraged me to want to continue further study into and extend my knowledge of English, providing a catalyst for my future career prospects. I have always considered myself academic, and for that reason chose to continue my studies with 3 A Levels.
A study trip to Denmark is a great opportunity to meet world class scientists and have a conversation with them. It would help me to gain a new perspective on things and open up to many possibilities within the scientific arena. This would be a chance to step out from the course books and get to know the creative world, opening up further questions and avenues of enquiry, enriching my stock of knowledge. Rapid development of science in Europe, nearly 400 years ago, when the working of the material world began to be clearly understood, created a great sense of confidence in human intellect.