Category: Career Choice

Deciding to pursue a career in medicine requires a great deal of dedication and passion for improving the lives of others. Among the many specialties in medicine, geriatrics stands out as a field that demands exceptional medical expertise and a deep sense of empathy and understanding. This essay delves into the myriad reasons why I am drawn to the specialty of geriatrics, aiming to become a geriatrician.

Personal Connection and Respect for the Elderly

At the heart of my aspiration lies a profound respect and affection for older people. The advice and tales of my grandparents had a big impact on me growing up. Their experiences and perspectives enriched my understanding of life and instilled a duty to care for the older generation. This personal connection has been the bedrock of my decision to specialize in geriatrics.

Holistic Approach to Geriatrics

Geriatrics is unique in the field of medicine due to its holistic approach. As a geriatrician, one does not merely treat diseases; one cares for the whole person. This specialty allows for integrating various medical disciplines to address the complex health needs of older people. It’s not just about prescribing medication; it’s about understanding the social, psychological, and physical aspects of aging. This comprehensive approach resonates with my belief in treating patients as whole individuals, not just as disease carriers.

Intellectual Challenge and Learning

Another intriguing aspect of this field is the intellectual challenge it presents. Elderly patients often present with multiple comorbidities, making diagnosis and treatment a complex puzzle. This complexity requires a broad knowledge base and the ability to think critically and make decisions that consider the multifaceted aspects of a patient’s health. I am drawn to this intellectual rigor and the opportunity it provides to learn and grow as a medical professional constantly.

Impact on Public Health

Furthermore, geriatrics offers the opportunity to impact public health significantly. With the aging population proliferating, there is an increasing demand for healthcare professionals specialized in treating older people. By choosing this field, I am positioning myself at the forefront of addressing a critical need in our healthcare system. This is not just a career; it’s a service to the community, ensuring that our aging population receives the care and dignity they deserve.

Meaningful Patient Relationships

Another reason for my interest in geriatrics is the opportunity for meaningful patient relationships. Geriatricians often have long-term relationships with their patients, providing care through various stages of aging. This continuity of care is deeply rewarding, as it develops trust and understanding between doctor and patient. These relationships are gratifying on a personal level and beneficial from a medical perspective, as they enable a more personalized approach to care.

Focus on Quality of Life

Finally, I am drawn to geriatrics because of its focus on quality of life. As a geriatrician, the goal is not just to prolong life but to enhance the quality of the years lived. This involves advocating for older people, ensuring they have access to the resources and support they need to live fulfilling lives. It’s about empowering them to maintain their independence and dignity in their later years. This aspect of geriatrics aligns with my core values and my vision of what medicine should be about – enhancing life, not just extending it.

Conclusion

In conclusion, my motivation for becoming a geriatrician comes from personal experiences, intellectual curiosity, a dedication to public health, the satisfaction of building long-lasting patient relationships, and a desire to improve quality of life. Geriatrics is not just a medical specialty; it’s a calling that aligns with my values and aspirations. It offers a unique opportunity to make a meaningful difference in the lives of older people, a population that deserves our utmost respect and care.

Introduction

Your professional growth is a lifelong process that began when you were born, whether you realize it or not. Your interests, talents, values, personality, history, and circumstances are all aspects that impact your job progress. Professional counseling is a procedure that will assist you in getting to know and understand yourself as well as the world of work so that you may make career, educational, and life decisions. Career development is more than just picking on a major and a job after graduation. It truly is a lifetime process, which means that you will change, events will change, and you will have to make job and life decisions all of your life. The purpose of career counseling is to not only assist you in making the decisions you need to make right now but also to provide you with the information and skills you need to make future career and life decisions.

Electrical Engineering as a Career

Nowadays, most of our gadgets rely on electrical appliances, and life would be unimaginable without them. The growth of the latter is a critical prerequisite for the rapid expansion of industry and agriculture. We can’t watch our favorite TV shows or go broadcasting without electrical engineering, and there are also challenges with telephone communication and telegraphy. Electrical engineering is an essential professional path in today’s technologically advanced world. Electrical engineering is not a new concept these days, since it is one of the more recent fields of engineering. It is one of the most important fields of engineering that mostly works with electrical technology. Individuals in this field work on a wide variety of components, devices, and systems.

Primitive batteries and static charges were used in early electrical experiments. The real design, development, and production of usable devices and systems, on the other hand, began with the application of Michael Faraday’s Law of Induction, which says that the voltage in a circuit is proportionate to the rate of change in the magnetic field through the circuit. This law governs the fundamental principles of the electric generator, electric motor, and transformer. The introduction of electricity to homes, companies, and industry heralded the arrival of the modern era, all of which were made possible by electrical engineers. Thomas Edison invented the electric light bulb, George Westinghouse invented alternating current, Nikola Tesla invented the induction motor, Guglielmo Marconi invented the radio, and Philo T. Farnsworth is some of the most notable electrical engineering pioneers. These pioneers transformed electrical theories and concepts into practical devices and systems that ushered in the modern era.

Job Scope

The field of electrical engineering has grown rapidly and spread out into a number of various and specialized categories such as power generation and transmission systems, motors, batteries, and control systems. Moreover, electrical engineering also includes electronics which has itself branched out into an even greater number of sub-divisions including radio frequency (RF) systems, telecommunications, remote sensing, signal processing, digital circuits, audio, and video optoelectronics. Electrical engineers design, develop, test, and oversee the production of electrical equipment such as electric motors, radar and navigation systems, communication systems, and power generation equipment. Electrical engineering is a branch of engineering that studies and applies electricity, electronics, and electromagnetic. It incorporates physics and mathematics, as well as subfields like electronics, telecommunications, control systems, signal processing, and computers. This technical field also includes power systems.

Electrical engineers operate in a broad variety of sectors, and the abilities necessary vary accordingly. These span from fundamental circuit theory to the project management abilities necessary. They use the physics and mathematics of electricity, electronics, and electromagnetic to process information and convey energy in both big and small-scale systems. Electrical engineers achieve this by designing computers, electronic gadgets, communication systems, test equipment, and electric power networks, as well as improving systems through problem-solving strategies. Individual engineers may require a variety of tools and equipment, ranging from a simple voltmeter to a high-end analyzer to complex design and production software.

Hence, to know the job scope of electrical engineering, we must know the differences between electrical engineering and electrical engineering. They are similar terms that cause confusion, although they are vastly different. Electrical engineering is the field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. However, electronic engineering is a branch of engineering that uses non-linear and active electrical and electronics components and devices such as electron tubes and semiconductor devices such as transistors, diodes, and integrated circuits, among others, to design electronic circuits, devices, and systems. The following is the primary distinction between electrical and electronic engineering, which prevents such a misunderstanding as they are slimmer words linked to one another but are not the same.

Skills requirements

It will require abilities in the areas of general skills, technological skills, and tool skills, much like any other vocation. As a result, electrical engineering has its own set of talents in each of these areas. As we all know, electrical engineers will mostly employ physics and mathematics in their everyday work, and they must be vigilant and particular in each project design. When you decide to become an electrical engineer, you’re committing to a career that entails creating, designing, testing, and managing the production of electrical devices and equipment such as navigation systems, electric motors, and power generation equipment. As a result, in order to manage such complicated concepts and theories and comprehend how to apply them to real-world tasks, you must have a highly specific and specialized skill set. Indeed, it is no secret that a substantial number of engineering students drop out or change courses, with a lack of preparation being identified as the primary cause of this exceptionally high attrition rate.

Some of the commonly required skills to immerse in electrical engineering is basic circuit knowledge because electrical design may be a very difficult issue, especially when it comes to huge installations such as energy grids or even highly advanced pieces of tiny gear such as those used in smartphones. As a result, if you wish to comprehend it all, you must first have a thorough understanding of basic circuit design. Next, engineers are not known to be only problem-solvers but also a pioneer, hence, engineers should also be innovative and creative thinkers. Whether on a large or small scale, the answers they propose affect the way we live, hence, in order to investigate and execute such radical ideas, you must be able to think beyond the box. Other than that, a sense of leadership should be acquired if one wants to be an engineer. Throughout the course of a project, engineers are frequently expected to operate in interdisciplinary teams. In addition to their basic technical responsibilities, they may be required to mentor their peers, make strategic choices, and optimize each step of an ongoing project. As a leader, you will be responsible for overseeing full product lifecycles, introducing new procedures, and defining team goals. Good project management abilities and the capacity to lead a team, if not an entire organization, may be required as you grow in your career and seek managerial chances in your sector.

To be an engineer, it is crucial for one to able to organize and manage time as much as the work will likely be time-sensitive or project-based, despite which area of engineering one specializes in. Moreover, these abilities will be useful outside of the office as well. They will also be useful during your studies since you will be studying and digesting complicated concepts on top of everything else that higher education requires. Being able to handle it all and keep on top of things, especially during test season, will serve you well.

Education Requirements

Regardless of one having so many skills to be an engineer, one cannot pursue this field without any official education qualifications. Electrical engineers are in great demand in Malaysia. Electrical engineering is a sector that will continue to grow in order to keep up with the country’s development. As a result, electrical engineering courses are becoming increasingly popular among students who have finished secondary or high school. Because of the increased number of students pursuing this path, most tertiary education institutions now offer electrical engineering degrees geared to give students a head start in this sector. The Foundation in Engineering program teaches you the fundamentals of engineering in general. However, if you are certain that you want to pursue a career in electrical engineering, you can enroll in a Diploma in Electrical and Electronics Engineering and begin working immediately after graduation. Alternatively, you might pursue a Bachelor of Electrical and Electronics Engineering with an Honours degree.

Many institutions in Malaysia offer Electrical Engineering degrees, including the University of Malaya (UM), University Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Monash University, and the University Malaysia Sabah (UMS). Electrical engineers with a master’s degree may usually work as lecturers at colleges and universities or in research and development positions. Furthermore, in order to work in the electrical utility field, one must be licensed through the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam, and in order to qualify for it, the applicant must have completed a four-year degree from Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) and earned flying colors on the FE. Engineers place a high value on mathematics and science, so students can pursue different engineering specializations, such as small-scale electronics or huge grids.

Electrical engineers operate in fields where expertise is prized, with many businesses searching for past experience in new hiring. Before joining the profession, electrical engineering students are highly urged to complete an internship to develop connections and enhance their practical abilities. Electrical engineers can take their Professional Engineer exam after four years of experience and following that, a Professional Engineer license can help them advance in their careers.

Workplace and work context

One of the most typical job tasks of an electrical engineer in the workplace is to design, develop, and test electrical systems. There are a few typical jobs and activities that they carry out on a daily basis, such as agreeing on project specs and budgets with customers and management, as well as conducting essential research on the design project. They also create production techniques by naming and modifying equipment, particularly for structures, and then assembling the electrical components from the operators. Aside from working with clients and project managers, they must also ensure product quality by creating electrical prototypes and testing system compatibility with their consumers. Hence, to conclude, electrical engineers, work on a daily basis to develop, install, maintain, or upgrade electrical instruments, equipment, facilities, components, products, or systems for commercial, industrial, or home use. They meet with engineers, customers, and others to discuss current or planned engineering projects or products.

An Electrical Engineer’s typical day will also include using computer-aided engineering or design software or equipment to perform engineering tasks, as well as directing or coordinating manufacturing, construction, installation, maintenance, support, documentation, or testing activities to ensure compliance with specifications, codes, or customer requirements. Electrical engineers execute thorough calculations to compute and develop manufacturing, building, or installation standards or specifications on a daily basis, as well as manage project production efforts to ensure projects are finished on time and within budget. Electrical engineers will also provide technical drawings, electrical system specifications, or topographical maps to guarantee that installation and operations meet standards and client expectations. Electrical Engineers check finished installations and watch activities to ensure adherence to design and equipment requirements, as well as compliance with operational, safety, or environmental regulations, in addition to their regular day. They may also directly or organize production, building, installation, maintenance, support, documentation, or testing operations to ensure specifications, codes, or client needs are met.

In the aspect of work context, as mentioned before that electrical engineer design, develop, test, and supervise the manufacture of electrical equipment. Electrical engineers’ working surroundings can potentially be hazardous, especially if they operate with live electrical equipment and systems. Electrical engineers may work at a desk producing designs, budgeting, and arranging project timelines. They do, however, spend a significant amount of time traveling around, supervising the work of electricians, scientists, computer programmers, and other engineers. They may also take time away from their usual profession to meet with clients, gather information, and research equipment. While some travel may be required, electrical engineers rarely spend nights away from home. Electrical engineers cannot work from home like many other professionals since they must work directly with clients and other personnel inside their firms.

Electrical engineers usually work 40-hour weeks during normal business hours. Electrical engineers are rarely required to work on public holidays, weekends, or late at night. However, extra hours may be necessary near deadlines or if problems develop that demand immediate attention. Some positions may also provide flexible working hours for electrical engineers who are unable to commit to full-time hours. The most flexible working schedules are enjoyed by electrical engineer consultants and contractors.

Salary

Individuals working as Electrical engineers in Malaysia generally make roughly 6,630 MYR per month, with salaries ranging from the lowest of 3,580 MYR to the maximum of 10,000 MYR. A month’s salary for an Electrical Engineer with less than two years of experience is around 4,160 MYR. Someone with two to five years of experience is projected to earn 5,250 MYR per month, which is 26% higher than someone with less than two years of experience. Moving forward, someone with five to ten years of experience earns 6,920 MYR per month, which is 32% higher than someone with two to five years of experience.

Additionally, electrical engineers with ten to fifteen years of experience earn 8,150 MYR per month, which is 18% more than someone with five to ten years of experience. If you have between fifteen and twenty years of experience, you can expect to earn 9,010 MYR a month, which is 11% more than someone with ten to fifteen years of experience. Finally, individuals with more than twenty years of professional experience earn 9,590 MYR per month, which is 6% higher than those with fifteen to twenty years of experience.

Tools and Equipment

In helping and optimizing electrical equipment systems, electrical engineers are supported by computer software. This is the most important aspect for an engineer to be good at because most of their work involves technologies, and here are some of the most important types of software skills that should be known such as computer-aided drafting tools specifically for circuit diagrams and electrical schematics, power system software and circuit simulators for analyzing and testing the design, project management software that runs for tracking tasks, and so on. Every sort of job will have its own set of tools and equipment that are only employed in that industry. Electrical engineers, in addition to employing software technologies, have their own tools that they must be familiar with in order to produce the finest design.

Test instruments are the most common and commonly utilized form of electrical tools and equipment. Electrical engineers are required to use testing tools and instruments in all of their duties. Electrical testing and maintenance of diverse power-based systems and equipment are critical to ensure optimum operational dependability and safety. It is critical to have the necessary electrical tools and equipment. There are several common test instruments used by electrical engineerings such as battery testers, continuity testers where this tool are used to assess if an electrical channel can be formed between points A and B, and multimers which are a sort of electronic equipment that monitors electrical voltage, current, and resistance. These are sometimes referred to as ‘VOM Meters.’, voltage testers, and wire tracers. Many electrical engineer positions need the use of a battery tester. This is a sort of electrical equipment designed for the purpose of evaluating the status of a battery. Most tests look for chargers inside the battery’s cells as well as total voltage output. Many will actually examine the battery’s condition, such as its capacity to acquire a charge and any defects that may have a negative influence on its overall performance.

In conclusion, electricians employ a wide range of electrical tools and equipment. Almost all jobs for electrical engineers necessitate the use of the tools described here. It is not always simple to use these tools. You must understand exactly how to utilize and interpret them. If you do not have this expertise, it is better to have a qualified electrician do the tests that need these instruments.

Conclusion

As we live in a world that is expanding human knowledge, the demands on engineering areas are growing, providing a glimmer of optimism for most engineers. In order to develop all elements of electric and electronic equipment, electrical engineers stress the concepts of electricity and electromagnetic. They are beneficial to us since they assist in the construction of power plants and new technologies designed expressly to harness and distribute electricity, as well as in the improvement of our telecommunications. It is hoped that many new advancements would emerge in the future setting. To put it briefly, electrical engineering is a branch of science that studies electricity, electromagnetic, and electromechanical devices. In order to tackle difficult issues, electrical engineers must be able to find their way through equations that define the rules and ideas of electrical engineering. There are many good reasons that one can benefit from pursuing the electrical engineering field such as this field of job is in high demand as finding a job in the electrical engineering industry is pretty simple, whether you are an experienced practitioner or a recent graduate and technology is continually evolving, the demand for electrical engineers is developing at a rapid pace. Also, electrical engineers are needed and demanded in almost every corner of the world. A lot of firms outside the nation require and are willing to hire electrical engineers from other countries. Hence, if one wants to work as an electrical engineer in another country, one will be surprised at how many options there are.

Growing up, I was always amazed by the power of electricity and all that it could do. The potential of electric power is always dazed and all I wanted to do was learn more about electricity and be able to stretch its uses. This is where my passion for Electrical Engineering was born.

Electrical Engineering is concerned with equipping learners with the knowledge of designing and developing equipment or products that use electronics. Examples of these products include computers, electric motors, lasers, machinery controls, television sets, radio, satellite systems, radar, lighting and wiring in buildings, telecommunication systems, aircraft, navigation systems, and power generators among others.

Electrical engineering is also concerned with lighter applications of electricity that control systems and process signals. This means the discipline is responsible for many applications of varied usage such as portable music players, mobile devices et al, to the global position system (GPS), Notably, there is a high number of electrical engineers who end up working closely with computers. Simply put, it covers a relatively large academic discipline base such as energy and power development, automation and telecommunications engineering, micro-electronics, and technical informatics.

Electrical Engineering as an academic discipline is carefully curated and constructed in such a manner that it provides the learner with mathematical, scientific, engineering, managerial, and application skills. These skills are ultimately intended to be employed by the student to further drive his or her career as an Electrical Engineer and work in different industries that design and produce electrical and electronic devices, systems, and services. An Electrical Engineering foundation also prepares an individual with the skills and knowledge that can be applied in large-scale industries and multinational corporations dealing with aerospace travel, automobile manufacturing, computer systems construction and design in both the hardware and software front, manufacture of hospital instruments and health services.

Electrical Engineers make it possible to harness electricity which has transformed human life since its discovery by Michael Faraday.

The Activities that Constitute Electrical Engineering

Generally, Electrical Engineers design and develop products and information systems using scientific methods and principles in conjunction with a purely natural curiosity for learning the unknown, a mindset geared towards solving problems, and an innovative mind.

This field of study expects one to be able to work collaboratively with others as part of a team and be able to research, design and develop electronic products. They need to work together with the Design Engineers, Marketing, and Sales department of an organization. They also have to work with clients so that they can discuss and work on a client’s needs. Mostly, the activities an electrical engineer undertakes daily are determined by his or her interests. There are those who prefer office work, others like being in the open for field work and getting their hands dirty, still, others prefer research and development while there are those who do a lot of fabrication and deployment of commercial and industrial systems. Electrical engineers can also be teachers or even consultants.

A lot of Electrical Engineers find themselves spending a lot of time in Physics laboratories and computer laboratories if they choose to work as Computer Engineers. Because the electrical engineering syllabus is heavily reliant on programming and computer science paradigms, Computer Engineers usually do a ton of work related to or are heavily invested in systems programming where knowledge of electronics and hardware is a must.

Electrical Engineering jobs involve operating complex instruments and equipment and systems close to every technology area whether it is biomedical, oil and chemical processes, aerospace and aeronautics, telecommunications and geospatial data et al.

Electrical Engineers use Computed Aided Design (CAD) software such as AutoCAD to produce images of electronic products that they are working on. They then build models of their product also known as prototypes in the lab and test its functionality and efficiency. After the model is completely tested and ready, it is an Electrical Engineer’s responsibility to produce samples of the new model in the laboratory so that his or her peers can also test the product before releasing it onto the market. The engineer, however, still has to deal with problems that may occur during production

Specialization Fields of Electrical Engineering

There exist several specializations that an Electrical Engineering undergraduate student may feel inclined to branch out into:

1. Micro-electronics Engineer – responsible for designing tiny electronic circuit components.
2. Signal Processing – the individual who deals with digital and analog signals.
3. Telecommunications Engineer – works in communications technology such as the internet, email platform, satellite, and cable systems.
4. Instrumentation Engineer – focuses on the designing of measurement instruments, equipment used for pressure, and temperature.

The Virtues of an Electrical Engineer

Personality Qualities and Skills

The following personality traits are essential for one to succeed as an Electrical Engineer:

1. One needs to have technical ability entrenched in their system and good knowledge of l Computer Science.
2. One should be willing to stay up to date with the latest technological trends so that they are not left behind.
3. One should learn how to work in collaboration with others.
4. One should have good communication skills needed when writing technical reports and promotes fruitful communication with other members of a project that they are working on.
5. Organizational skills – these help in the planning and distribution of resources for projects so that they are completed efficiently and on time.
6. One should be able to pay close attention to details because the difference in very small mathematical figures could result in big errors being made that might end up causing catastrophic damage.
7. An understanding of electrical health and safety regulations is also essential so that accidents are avoided especially in the library and on fieldwork duty where there are civilians.
8. Possessing an acutely analytical and logical mind is necessary as it helps electrical engineers solve problems in their workspaces
9. Being able to take pressure very well and staying calm during times of crisis helps not just engineers but scientists in general.
10. Electrical engineers should also be willing to take up more responsibilities and lead their teams.

Pay and Opportunities for Electrical Engineers

Electrical engineers are mostly employed in large industrial complexes and plants falling under various industries such as transportation (aerospace and aeronautical, automobile), distribution (conveyor belts), communications (satellite and media), and marine industries. Computer manufacturers and large telco operators also employ huge numbers of electrical engineers. There are also electrical engineers who choose to go the self-employment route and work as consultants

Electrical Engineer works about 50 hours a week but their schedules do change at times which means longer weekly hours. They earn between a starting salary of $23500 and a salary of $39600 in gross yearly income.

When my friend told me that they had applications for the moderator team, I was excited to see that I could get a chance to become a moderator and work at Soro’s again. However, the main question is why do I want to be a moderator here?

I have been inspired to become a moderator because of the wonderful community. I have had multiple experiences here that have made me seek more interest in the community. For one, I am in love with the professional staff members here. The staff team is full of qualified individuals who work diligently on a daily basis to support the structure of the group. The staff are very professional and set an example for individuals who wish to become a staff member in the future.

I am also interested in becoming a moderator here because I believe I have the necessary qualities to do so. I believe that I would be able to impact the moderation team and the group as a whole positively due to my assertive and optimistic personality. I have contributed to many groups across the ROBLOX platform and I have truly made a difference for many of them. With my work ethic, as well as the group’s beautiful environment, I will be able to help Soro’s maintain its good name and community.

In addition to that, I have also chosen to become a moderator at Soro’s because this group has very kind individuals that I feel as if I can relate to. Soro’s is a group that is all-inclusive and accepting of everyone, something that you cannot find in a lot of other groups. I feel that while being in the community, I can be myself freely without having to be judged. At Soro’s, many others and I can show our true colors without being pushed away or neglected.

Furthermore, I want to be a moderator in this group because I believe I can be someone who can set an example for others. I want to be someone people can talk to, to be able to assist anyone when needed.

Being in the community is great. I have chosen Soro’s instead of any other place mainly because of its wondrous reputation and image. I would be delighted to be enlisted into this community as a moderator. I want to be a moderator at Soro’s because I would like to be part of the inside operations and find out what really goes down here. I am always very elated to help out the community and keep members safe. I am a very kind person who believes in equality. Conclusively, Soro’s is a beautiful and populated community. I would like to be a moderator here because it will give me something to do as I am now getting back into working in groups.

By joining the military, it was a huge commitment for me to make it finally cementing myself into what is going to turn into a career and a lifestyle. I always knew that the military was going to be my choice for me, and on June 28, 2019, it became a reality. For my parents, college was always their dream for me, but for me, the sound of serving my country was just more appealing and approachable to me. When it came to choosing my branch, I was going back and forth between the Air Force and the Navy, and it was the most difficult decision I had to make as a young adult. But I narrowed it down and made my decision to join the United States Navy because of its job programs and special operations.

When I joined the Navy, I thought to myself is this for my parents or myself but it was more than anything for my country. I plan to be a part of the most elite of the Navy in preparing for Navy SEAL training after high school. Becoming a SEAL is a little more than just being a part of that elite group, it is about proving to the people that don’t have faith in me that I can do it and get the gold Navy SEAL trident pinned on me. The path I am going on is a lonely road that I will embark on and go through about a whole year of physical training and mental training. In that year I will be going through 3 months of boot camp and another 6 months of BUDS which is ‘Basic Underwater Demolition SEAL School’, and finally ‘SQT’, SEAL Qualification Training, in which most people fail and will never become a Navy SEAL.

When joining the Navy, it is more so of a long process than just signing up and not taking any test. Now you have to qualify for the Navy with a score of 31 obtained from taking the AFQT (Arm Forces Qualification Test), which allows you just qualify no guarantee of a job. The AFQT is composed of 4 different sub test such as Arithmetic, Word Knowledge, Paragraph Comprehension, and Mathematical knowledge, these are only 4 of the 9 portions of the ASVAB. After passing your AFQT the recruiter will then schedule you for the ASVAB which can be either in a week or a couple of days, my personal experience took a couple of days after so which then I could get my job by ‘mission day’ which is the day most future recruits are put in and get their job. When taking your ASVAB, you will arrive at the MEPS (Military Entrance Processing Station) where you will have 2 hours and 45 minutes to take the test. The ASVAB is composed of 9 different subtests, such as General Science, Arithmetic, Word Knowledge, Paragraph Comprehension, Mathematical Knowledge, Electronics Information, Auto Information, Shop Information, and Mechanical Comprehension. These subtests will allow you to get your job either if you get the line scores you need for your future job in any branch of the military.

You will get your test scores immediately after your test, and your recruiter will tell you yes or no if you qualified for the job you wanted. After taking your ASVAB, you will go back to MEPS in either a week or a couple of days to go back to see if you are physically fit for the military, and will choose your job and swear on that day. The day before you swear in, you will spend the night where all MEPS applications are and must be awake for chow at 3 a.m., be loaded on the bus by 4:45, and be on the way to start your processing. Going for the physical, it’s an extensive doctor visit of checking your eyes and hearing, a urine test, blood samples, and a hernia check, and if all pass through, you will go see your career counselor downstairs. As you see your career counselor, your recruiter is there with you, they will go over your contract and your ASVAB scores to see what jobs you can get. To qualify for the jobs, there has to be an opening for it, and you have to get your line scores which makes you able to apply for it. I was already dead set on what job I was going for and it was Navy SEAL ‘SO’. When choosing my path for SEAL, it was to be a part of that community, but I will also prove that I can be that 20 percent that makes it through SEAL training and by serving my country while doing it.

Every second week of each month, DEP applications meet and train with their recruits, which results in physical training and boot camp marches and learning your boot camp commands before you ship out to boot camp. When you ship out to Navy boot camp, you are going to Great Lakes in Illinois for 3 months in preparing for graduation and becoming a United States Sailor, which some do not make it. Boot camp consists of a PT (physical test) in which you do push-ups, sit-ups, a one, and a half-mile run, and in 2020 they will be implementing planks for 1 minute. When going to be a SEAL, boot camp changes for you in which you will be in a higher division such as the 800 division, but the lower the rank, the lower the division you are placed in. With SEALS at boot camp, you will be physically testing more often than everybody else and swimming a lot more. After completing graduation from Navy boot camp, you will be sent to your rate school, in which SEAL candidates are sent to Coronado, California for BUDS to begin a 6-month long training that 70 to 80 drop out of.

BUDS is the training ground to become a Navy SEAL and begin the rigorous training and path ahead if you pass it. Within BUDS there are three phases and INDOC, according to sealswcc.com, there is a three-week introduction period into BUDS which introduces the obstacle course and other calisthenics. If you passed through INDOC, you will start phase 1 of BUDS, which is 7 weeks long. During this phase, you will endure long days in the ‘grinder’ which is extensive amounts of calisthenics and physical training, and you will also be doing surf training which is loosely called ‘surf torture’ in which you will get wet and sandy all day. During the third week of the first phase, you will start a ‘hell week’, which is 1 week and you will run over 200 miles in a week get a minimum of 4 hours of sleep in a week, and most of your BUDS class will be dropping out in that week. After hell week, the men that make it through are the ones that pass through, if not, they will drop out towards the end of the first phase. With the first phase coming to a close about 30 to 40 guys are left, and with that there are 4 weeks left in the first phase, and you will transfer over into the dive phase, which is the second phase.

When the second phase starts, it is of water competency test. In doing that you will be swimming more and more every day and will still be running and physically testing to get the non-hackers out of BUDS. Through the second phase, you will be swimming 2-mile swims in the ocean with fins and without fins and getting used to swimming the naval combat stroke. Most guys will be going through a lot of mental weakness in that part of training because of the fact of swimming an underwater 50-meter test, in which most will not pass and get rolled back into the beginning of phase 2 or the end of phase 1. In the second phase, SEAL applicants will be learning the Navy’s scuba training, during which they will be learning to breathe with a closed-circuit air ratio and an oxygen tank. Candidates who are not comfortable in the water during this phase tend to drop out and will either be reassigned or rolled back into another phase.

Your last and final stage of BUDS is land warfare where you will be incorporating all the necessary skills learned from the first phase and the second phase and incorporate it into one. With the third phase started, your BUDS instructors are going to be the worst they can be on you because of how close you are to achieving the title SEAL where they don’t want any no hackers in their brotherhood. In the third phase, you will be getting hands-on training with guns and explosives and will be conducting land missions on Coronado Island. In those scenarios at BUDS, you will be swimming two miles running and then incorporating land navigation. With making it your last phase, your pt times will be increasing and increasing, in which you will be in the best shape of your career. The men who are in the third phase are the ones who will become SEALs, and your BUDS class is in its lower 20 to 15 students which, if they drop out, get rolled back they are due to medical complications and will continue training. What comes out of the third phase for SEAL applicants is the way of teamwork and what they instill in you for what is to come for SQT (SEAL Qualification Training). With that classwork is more instilled in training your teams to become more efficient and reliable of each other, which is required in SEAL Qualification Training and out in deployment. The instructions are not beating you just to beat you for 6 months, there is that purpose, and if you can’t handle it, there is no place for you in the SEAL community. With the long hours finally coming to an end, your last week of BUDS comes and now you practice and march for your ceremony. When graduating from BUDS, you have obtained the title SEAL, but you have not proved to others that you are one yet. So, from the completion of BUDS, you are on another journey to prove to yourself that you are ready to become a SEAL at SQT.

After completing BUDS, new Navy SEALs are on their way for training in which they will be qualified to get deployed and put in a team in which they will start SQT (SEAL Qualification Training). SEAL Qualification Training is a long course which is 26-week course in which you will go from a regular civilian to a Navy SEAL. In this part of the training, you will learn how to survive and become a weapon in earning a spot on a SEAL team. You will be sent to Fort Benning to learn how to parachute and basic airborne skills After further completing this, you will be sent to Alaska and be sent in with a team for your final task and survive out in the wild for a week. When completing the survival of our SERE, you are a graduate of SQT and will be sent back to where it all started Coronado, California for your graduation and pinning of your Navy SEAL trident. After graduation, you will be sent to either any SEAL team that is needing new members and will begin preparing for your first deployment.

The knowledge I gained from the senior project, further excites me to be sent off for boot camp 2 weeks after graduation and start my journey to become a Navy SEAL. I know what lies ahead of me, and thinking about it drives me to achieve and attain my goal. I have been enlisted in the Navy since June 28, 2019, and doing my senior project in the Navy excites me. Reading and researching my rate as SEAL pulls me and gravities me towards it and has me more and more eager to leave. When asked what I want to do in the future, I say Navy SEAL people are always cautious and surprised by it because they know what the training initials are. But the doubt that I know people have in me of not achieving it fuels me and pushes me towards it more and more. Imagine this saying you went to BUDS and saying you didn’t pass just brings disappointment to yourself and you proved the people that doubted you right. So, finally, I will become a Navy SEAL and be the first-ever in my family and be that 20 percent that gets the trident pinned on their chest, Hooyah Navy.

How strange, is it not, that two distant entities can engage in heartfelt exchange, often consumed with so little thought?

Growing up, a reciprocal longing has been cohering: I wanted to accomplish something in life that would make a difference in the lives of people around me. Yet, it was not until mid-adolescence did I find my calling – fortuitously, no less.

I was 16 then. Awoken by the agony of my chest flattening itself, I recall myself clutching it tightly as I desperately gasped for air. At the hospital, I was diagnosed with a severe primary spontaneous pneumothorax. Of the countless questions that ricocheted within my head, one was terribly turbulent: will I, too young to die, die?

Alternating between shudders of pain and of fret, my primary worry must have been apparent. With the doctor at my bedside, I felt my right hand interlock in a warm clasp. As our eyes met, amid the haze over mine, there was an unmistakable belief in his. It was magical how a brief gaze could transfuse strength, confidence, tranquility, and about anything equally abstract. Holding on to these intangibles, I live on, both in mind and body. In retrospect, that doctor’s gesture, though swift and decisive, could not have been executed so simply. Rather, it must have been prompted by experience, backed with empathy, and demanding conviction.

Amusingly, it was on April Fools’ Day that death tickled me. Though my body made a joke out of me that day, I got the last laugh emerging epiphanically: practicing medicine was one answer to my searching heart.

Volunteering at Ang Mo Kio Thye Hua Kwan Hospital, I learned more about the field of rehabilitation medicine and its importance in every society. I witnessed firsthand how doctors, therapists, nurses, and medical social workers all work together to deliver person-centered care to patients so as to integrate them back into their normal lives sooner.

It was also this time where I was able to interact more directly with patients from all walks of life. At the same time, observing doctor-patient relationships really allowed me to understand what it takes to listen, empathize, and maintain solidarity with a patient – incorporating these three into clinical treatment helps to evoke certain personal, emotional, or spiritual responses that serve as catalysts for patient empowerment and participation in care, as well as a positive outlook toward recovery. The key takeaway for me was understanding that a good physician treats the disease, while a great physician, on the other hand, treats the person who has the disease.

The steady string of experiences I have accumulated thus far has really changed my view of medicine and solidified my aspiration to become a doctor. I have come to appreciate medicine as not only a science but also as a form of art. One day, I hope to become a doctor who can touch the hearts of his patients with his dedication, his compassion, and eventually, his art.

My father. I know it’s a little of a cliche’- for which l apologise – but looking back, My father undoubtedly played a major role in sparking my interest in science. He was my tutor throughout most of my primary school year, he study science in his motherland but unpleasantly different factor stopped him from entering the scientific field completely. Instead he would teach me in his spare time .

Another person that particularly inspired me further my education in the scientific field is Marie Curie. I am particularly inspired by her impressive accomplishments and discovered her from a textbook. I didn’t become officially as stand intel l came a crows the movie radioactivity after that her research on her life become more fascinating.Upon research i started to become more and more empowered to study science.In addition she is now my role model in so many ways than what l can exempel.

Marie Curie is a Polish -born French physicist and was the first woman to win win a Nobel prize award in addition to becoming the first person to claim the award twice in different field, namly chemistry and physicist. She discovered two elements: polonium and radium and radioactivity.

Maria Salomea Skłodowska Curie was born at Warsaw,Poland on nov 7th,1867.Her parents were both teachers, her father a teacher of mathematics and medicine. However he was working in Russian Poland and being polish he wasn’t paid very well. As a young person Marie was very intelligent and eager to learn, having parents that encourage their children education Marie learned how to read at around the age of four and the age of 15 she graduated senior high school and was the top of her course.

Marie made a deal with and her sister Bronya, agreeing to fund Bronya medical degree in France by working as a tutor and a governess, in addition Bronya would later help Marie move to Pairs and enrolled at the Sorbonne University.In 1891 Sklodowska moved to Paris to the university where she studied chemistry, mate and physics.

While doing the postgraduate research at the lab and finding the Sorbonne University’ equipment and facilities inadequate Marie was in a necessary search of laboratory space and equipment. Her research lead her right to Pierre Curie, Marie Curie’s future husband, supervised. The two scientist quickly fell in love and a year later the pair were married in Scuaux, France,july 26 ,1895.

Curie discovered radioactivity together with her husband Pierre Curie. The pair worked on separate work intel the birth of their first born daughter.Pierre began to conduct research with Marie on x-ray and uranium.Fascinated by a french physicist Henri Becquerel, 1897, who came across uranium salts cast of rays that could penetrate objects. They took his work even further. Curie began studying uranium rays, where she made the claim that the raus remained constant no matter the form and condition on the uranium’s form instead on it’s atomic structure.Marie Curie theory created new field of atomic physics, study and the term radioactivity,where Marie herself coined the phrase, at the time describe the phenomenon of radiation caused by atomic decay. The idea became revolutionary and a new field of study ,atomic physics.

The pair spent time working with pitchblende and 1902, on April 20,successfully isolate radioactive radium salt from the mineral pichblad. Pitchblende is a mineral that is the crystallized form of uranium oxide and was used in the discovery of uranium 1789.

Together with her husband, both won a share of the Nobel Prize Award in Physics 1903, alongside Henri Becquerel, making Marie Curie the first woman to win a Nobel prize award. Based on research that almost didn’t happen, the Nobel committee wanted to honour Perrie and Becquerel, but Perrie went to complain in advance and then Marie’s name was added, making her the first woman to won the award.

On April 9th,1906, Pierre Curie was killed in a accident in the Paris street. Despite of being a mother of two and a widow, Marie vowed to continue her work and on May was took her husband’ set at the Sorbonne and officially become the university first female professor. In addition continued her research and teaching, she work on isolating pure, metallic radium and successfully for this achievement was the sole recipient of the Nobel prize award in 1911 in chemistry making her the first person to win two award in different fields.

Marie Curie later on started to focus on the medical field where she became interested in the medical applications of radioactive substance. Curis past research and upon the star of the world war one she work on radiology and the potential of radium as cancer therapy. What Marie curie did was by working on the X-ray machine that was discovered by German scientist Wilhelm Roentgen in 1895, and use the radium to be the gamma ray source on x-ray machine.It made it more accurate and gave them stronger x- ray. By creating smaller and portable x-ray machine to be used by medicine in the field, Marie Curie get aging made advance in this field.

Being the most famous woman scientist that paved the way for all female scientist generation forward, fighting her corner in the predominantly male -only field and fight stereotypes about women. Marie Curie is someone to be trulyreckoned with.

She may not be known as cute, terribly nice or even gentle, especially when everyone believes that a woman was too touchy-feely to get an education or respected even to this decade the assumed and sexesist stereotypes still exist and very well are present. In that time scencis was all about logic and women had too much hormones and feeling to study science, but Curie became a living example of that it wasn’t true.

The moviebiography of Marie curie’s life,” Radioactivity”, showed how deriment, focus and bravery she was to face discrimination every day and still prove every single person wrong. Marie Curie showed me no matter how hard or difficult life can be it does not mean that your dreams and future changes because of it.In addition, even if every person in your life does not believe in you to become succeed is unimportant because. Her actions make me wanna be the human that encourage others, and perhaps one day be as productive and half as successful as she was.

Life chances are given at the time you take your first breath. Depending upon which life chances those are can help determine what the future holds. Life chances are opportunities and those that are given range from education, environment, adequate and supportive families, employment, health care, and religion. Life chances can bring positive outcomes as well as negative ones. Throughout my childhood, I received positive outcomes that came mostly from a family-oriented background and with the influence of religion, my family was able to turn to a religious belief to get us through the difficult times. In comparison to those positives, I did have my fair share of negative outcomes. My mother lacked a higher education and in result struggled to obtain any higher employment opportunities. Living close to the poverty line forced us to live in bad neighborhoods and experience a tremendous amount of hardship that hindered out way to succession. We did, however, have a balance between the two that resulted from strong mentoring not only from my family but from others around, like my teachers and counselors. My mother made sure that our health was always above the normal standard mark and did everything in her power to keep us protected from the negative aspects of life. Not all children are blessed to have the same life chances because not all adults get the same benefits as others. With a wealthier lifestyle comes better experiences and higher chances in life. Parents must push in life to make sure their children are capable of surviving life without them once they transition into adulthood. Chances at life are based on a variety of different aspects that one will experience throughout their childhood. Those different aspects will come with positive outcomes and negative ones, solely based on the chances provided. Without good life chances one can expect to live their lives in low-income neighborhoods with a lesser chance of graduating to pursue a college degree. Without a high school diploma, you are denied access to college. If you have a diploma but without the source of income or denied on scholarship programs, the chances of going to college are slim. In the absence of a college degree it is difficult to find careers that are willing to pay more income so that you get a better chance at life. One must understand that the hardest things to accomplish in life will get you the best life chances you need.

Wealth and Education

Wealth and education are of the most positive outcomes of life chances one can be given. A wealthy family is a more promising family when it comes to a need or want basis. Growing up in a wealthy family is like having all your dreams come true. Throughout my own life, I had my fair share of times in and out of wealthy lifestyles. However, it was not consistent, and I had to live in what I would consider the worst times of my life. In my younger years of life my mother’s bad decisions reflected the low chances that my sisters and I received. We never experienced the want for something because we had mostly everything a child would need. Regarding education, as a child I did not receive the best education because we moved around and switched schools quite often. This caused a lower chance for advancement and unfortunately, I did not get the access to additional tutoring to help me advance. When this happens, you tend to lose the ability to learn at the same pace as your fellow peers. Education itself can help further a person’s success; it is just a matter of what chances you get throughout your childhood that helps that progression. For adolescents, they look towards a higher educational attainment and higher status occupations when they come from more advantaged families. (Johnson et al., 2017). Coming from a wealthy family a child does not have to grow up with worrying about their food, shelter, or education. They are well taken care of and standards are at a different level for them to survive. Their education is provided and if they are struggling with a subject, they have the financial stability to help their children with advancement. As for shelter, not till a certain age do children understand what bills are and how they must be paid in order to keep a roof over their heads. But for myself, I did not always have a home to go to. We went through some rough patches with some of my mother’s decisions and as a result we experienced homelessness for a few months. As a child I never knew exactly what was going on until I got older and started to realize that my experiences as a child was not of my own fault but of the life chances that were being provided. I learned to adapt to my environments since they changed frequently. Young adolescents who report at lower expectations for their lives come from a lower socioeconomic background which results in living in poorer neighborhoods. Education is a key factor to have success in life and without it, one may run into disadvantages and obstacles that have negative outcomes.

Neighborhoods and Poverty

The neighborhood a child lives in can contribute to the influences that they have amongst them. For children growing up in communities that are affiliated with gangs or drugs they tend to pick up on the negative behavior. Low income neighborhoods are not provided with the same resources that one would have access to if in a wealthy neighborhood. In my younger years of life, my life chances were not the best when it came to the neighborhoods that I had to live in. I had to tell myself that one day things would be different and that my life would get better. Kilewer (2013) found that parents living in under-resourced neighborhoods are faced with significant challenges including poor housing quality, victimized by violence in the community, physical and mental health problems, and low levels of education resulting in low job opportunities. With these challenges that the parents face it does become difficult for them to provide their children with these higher life chances. They still try to keep their children safe with their environments even if their community is not. Often when children are seen growing up in bad neighborhoods or bad environments, they have people among the community concerned about the well-being of the children which leads the state to get involved and a majority of these children get taken away. For some parents this is a wakeup call that pushes them to do better for their children so that they do not lose them. When kids get taken from their parents only one of two things can come from it. One being that they are given a better chance at life that allows them to get a better education and nourishment. Second being that they make the same mistakes as their parents with resulting in negative outcomes. As I got a little older my mother had started to figure out a few things to life and started making better decisions. With better decisions came better opportunities. Those opportunities led us to a nicer neighborhood where we attended a school with better resources and better educational options. We no longer were considered living at the poverty level, we had changed our course in life and with that we were given a different set of life chances that were changing to positive outcomes rather than negative. Early exposure to poverty in children results in a more negative impact with their development. Living in poverty puts your children at risk of behavior problems, a drop in academic performance, and self-regulatory skills. (Roy et al., 2014) These potential downfalls is exactly what hinders a child’s life chance to excel.

Family and Mentors

Dysfunctional homes with families that do not communicate thoroughly with each other are at risk of lesser life chances. A family needs a strong communication with a support system. A child learns from their parents and want to be accepted for who they are. Supportive parents create opportunities for their children to succeed and push them to make it further in life which is a life chance not all children receive. For my own life, my mother was supportive of my decisions but never pushed me to do anything. I had to make the better decisions on my own in order to succeed. Growing up with parents that are dysfunctional or non-supportive tends to create a distance between them. This often results in a negative outcome. Castro (2018) found that parents non-supportive emotion socialization behavior like punishing or minimizing reactions tend to serve a discouragement to their children’s display of negative emotions. Thus, causing the reactions to increase the child’s anxiety or arousal. Discouragement from a parent could also influence a child’s socioemotional competence. It is detrimental for a child’s success to have not only a support system but to also have a strong set of mentors in their lives. Not having a mentor is an invisible life chance because one might not grow up in a household with positive role models but more of a degrading one that puts them down rather than lifting them up. One thing I had growing up was the best mentors which were my mostly my teachers and counselors. They were a group of strong supporters that advocated for a better life and advanced future. Mentors play a critical role in the lives of adolescents and young adults, helping them navigate their identities and opening doors to educational and career opportunities. (Raposa et al., 2018) Also mentioned is regarding nonparental adults which are typically what older adolescents are influenced by the most. Mentors are a support system that helps education advancement which is positive life chance to make it further after entering adulthood. With education one can graduate with a degree and start their careers soon afterwards. Mentoring is one of the most positive outcomes of life chances one can get and it becomes a negative invisible life chance if you do not have one.

Religion

Not all children get the same chances it just depends on what lifestyle you are born into. For religious families, it can be a social factor or personal depending upon what your upbringing is. According to Lee et al., (2018) sociological studies of religion make evident that forming religious identities and patterns of religiosity are a part of a fluid and dynamic process. In most households’ parents start teaching their children about religion at an early stage in life. For myself, religion was very important in my home because it helped influence moral values for a better understanding of life. In dysfunctional families where there is negligence, kids turn to religion for help. Often when parents are too harsh on their children regarding religion and their beliefs it tends to have a negative effect. According to Lee et al., (2018) studies shown that adolescents who are religiously involved and transitioning into adulthood, religious activity is likely to decrease. Most times you see religious parents that are too hard on their children with their beliefs which can make a child go into a rebellious stage and make decisions that are against religion. Having religion in your life can create self-control and can be beneficial for a child’s development. As a child gets older it is very important for them to be able to know the difference between right from wrong. Self-control will help them to say no to the negative aspects in life which this will increase the life chances for development. Those without the concept of self-control tend to spiral downhill making negative decisions resulting in negative outcomes. Not all parents push religion onto their children but instead let their child gain the knowledge on religion through church or other forms. Religion is an influential aspect of life that puts forth rules and regulations that help to shape a child’s future to a more positive outcome.

Health Care

Health care is not always easy to access and for families that suffer with income may experience hardships without the care that they need. The ability to have health care is one of the positive life chances a child could get. For example, families that live in poverty have a lesser chance to a health care system so therefore are more at risk of outcomes of poor health. According to Zuberi (2017) low income neighborhoods can impede children’s health by exposing them to community violence, frayed social networks, and chaotic environments. Each one of these stressors can compromise a child’s wellbeing. This type of life chance is an obvious one due to living in an unsafe environment. Life chances are not easy to come by especially when you are not given the same opportunity as others in life. Thankfully, I have always had Medicaid health insurance that covered any of the health care coverage I needed so I had the better chance to survive my childhood. Given it came from a negative aspect, my father’s murder, we did not have to pay for any health care out of pocket. Elaborating more on the health care issue is that most often you see people go without the coverage and wonder why they would not want it; in all reality it is concerning on how difficult it is to obtain it. Without a health care system put in place, parents must not only worry about themselves but their kid’s coverage as well. Zuberi (2017) mentioned that in distressed neighborhoods there is higher risk of safety concerns when their children go outside. So as a result, the parents often keep their children indoors for their own safety. This however limits their physical activity and can increase exposure to additional risks inside like overcrowding, mold, and dampness. These are the health risks that parents may be unaware of and if they are living in low-income neighborhoods with no access to health care, they are more at risk then those who are living in nice neighborhoods. Health cases concerning those that are diagnosed with illnesses that are unrecognizable would be an example of an invisible life chance. For example, my aunt was diagnosed with HIV at age 38. She tried to locate the medications that was recommended to slow down the process of the disease, but without the funds or health care to cover the costs she had no luck. A few months later after getting the diagnosis, the entire left side of her body shut down. She was paralyzed and brain dead. She was put into a nursing home with very low chance of surviving. She died a few days later. Someone cannot expect this to happen in their lives but without the access to the right health care or the funds to cover the out of pocket expenses their chances of surviving the illness/disease tremendously decreases. In the world we live in today, it seems to be that the access to health care is more of a privilege rather than a right.

Different life chances provided are based on each unique chance to that individual based on their own life situations. That goes for personality, gender, culture, age, etc. just depending upon the upbringing and the environments a child grows up in. Chances at life in the early childhood is invisible to the children because their parents are the ones who must make the decisions. It is only when a child gets older that they start to understand what their life chances are. One must be understanding that not all parents can be of a wealthy class because it is not at all easy to get to that stage in life. Life chances are typically culture based on where you grow up and what your parents do for a living. Often you see where children who grow up in bad neighborhoods that tend to not be able to make it out. For teens in the bad neighborhoods where all they know is drugs and violence, they tend to fixate on a concept that because that kind of life is all they know it will be there future regardless of what life chances they are provided with. This hinders the ability for the child to make smarter decisions and to push themselves to their best ability. It is difficult to understand how it is possible that some children get more life chances then others. But to better understand that, is to think that the parents rely on their own life chances that they are provided with during childhood and not always do they have the opportunities that others may have. We must be able to see that they are only following the chances that they had when they were growing up. It is a cycle that continues through generations and only sometimes do those with the lower chances make it out and make a difference. I can say, I lived a full life before I made it to adulthood. I learned what to do and what not to do. I proved that just because my chances at a better life were slimmer than some, that it would not affect what I do in life. I make my own choices to succeed and the chances are now in my favor based on what I provide for myself. It is not easy growing up with the lesser chances of life, but it is possible to create your own life with those chances.

Growing up in a community where most of my relatives had occupations in the medical field played a tremendous role in my decision to pursue a career in healthcare. My mother is a registered nurse (RN) and periodically going with her to work as a child gave me the chance to get a glimpse of what being an RN entailed. As I got older, I was still a bit uncertain about what career in medicine I wanted to pursue. Like most freshmen starting high school, I went in with an open mind, eager to explore my options as I was in the ‘Health Sciences’ track. Everything changed when I was introduced to the field of pharmacy upon completing an assignment in my Principles of Health Science course during my first year of high school. After I finished the assignment, I concluded that pharmacists do more than just put pills in bottles all day. I instantly fell in love with the idea of being able to educate patients and healthcare professionals about the safe and effective use of medications and health issues, as well as the different areas in pharmacy. Being very accessible to patients, unlike other healthcare professions, was another aspect of pharmacy I admired. Without a doubt, I was certain this was something I wanted to pursue. I was in the Health Science Practicum course my senior year where I was able to get hands-on experience with patients in the clinical and rehabilitation center setting. It also allowed me to apply the knowledge I gained in previous Health Science courses during each rotation. Listening and engaging with patients as they discussed the treatments they received helped me realize I wanted to encounter similar interactions in the pharmacy setting. This program helped solidify my decision to pursue a career in healthcare, specifically in pharmacy.

As a freshman at the University of Houston (UH), I was originally an Exploratory Studies major, allowing me to use my first year to decide my major. With the help of my academic advisor, I discovered kinesiology in my second semester of college and instantly drew interest in what the subject entailed and how multiple courses within that degree plan could help prepare me for pharmacy school. My first few years at UH were not ideal as I experienced a few challenges transitioning to college, which as a result, impacted my grades. I did not use the best time management strategies as my time was not used wisely between working part-time and attending school full time. I decided to alter my approach to college after my sophomore year. That summer, I created efficient ways to succeed academically. The following semester, I went into each class with an optimistic mindset, certain to advance academically. I was also able to create effective ways to balance school, work, and extracurricular activities as well. As a result, I started to see an increase in my grades. I was more engaged in my science classes and I found myself enjoying what I learned. Joining the Pre-Pharmacy Association exposed me to many opportunities and guided me throughout my pre-pharmacy journey as well. My junior year helped me realize there is no deadline to make positive improvements in your life.

My decision to pursue a career in healthcare, specifically in pharmacy, was not solely due to my high school experiences. Understanding various medications and their functions in our body began as a child when my father was diagnosed with type II diabetes and hypertension. Being exposed to his medications allowed me to slowly begin to educate myself about the functions and potential side effects his medications had on his body. My father is fortunate to receive proper treatment, as this may not be the case for others. The interaction between my father and his pharmacist is something I desire to have as a pharmacist.

I aspire to become a pharmacist as I want to be in a position where I can use my knowledge in medicine to counsel and treat many patients with different health issues. Improving the health of patients has always been my dream since childhood. I hope to use my devotedness for helping others, and knowledge of medicine to become a pharmacist to continue to make a difference in many people’s lives.

Investigation

For my research professional investigation project, I was able to interview a clinical counselor who owns her own private practice in Gilbert, Arizona. She was referred to me through my sister-in-law, as her mother had graduated high school with Dr. Wyman and has maintained a friendship with her over time. Ideally, I would have loved to buy Dr. Wyman a coffee and sit down and chat with her, however, due to circumstances such as her busy schedule and my immobility from recent knee reconstruction surgery, we ultimately conducted the interview over a phone call one afternoon where she graciously made time to chat with me between appointments. Dr. Heidi Wyman has her own practice in Gilbert, Arizona, with over 17 years of experience in the field of psychology. She’s a marriage and family therapist foremost with an obtained Ph.D., however, she also specializes in a wide variety of sociopsychological disorders, such as ADHD, anxiety, depression, grief, trauma, and PTSD, to name a few. Her contact information which I used to conduct the interview is (480) 409-2383.

I was incredibly thankful for the opportunity to chat with her as it gave me an insider look into the world of private psychology practice, something that I strongly consider a developmental goal for my future career.

One of the more surprising things that I learned from Dr. Wyman was that if she could go back and repeat her education, she isn’t confident that she’d obtain her Ph.D. She noted that it was more of a personal achievement for her, however, she couldn’t pinpoint whether or not it highly benefited her career-wise. I was interested in her path as obtaining a Ph.D. is something that I’ve been thinking more recently about, however, I’m not wondering whether or not it would be worth, as Dr. Wyman would put it, the stress that comes along with it. It’s certainly something that I’ll continue to consider as I move forward with my graduate degree, perhaps more cautiously now.

I was also intrigued about how Dr. Wyman handles appointments when she herself isn’t having the best day or week. I think that at times, we forget that counselors or psychologists are in fact people too with lives and families outside of our own personal issues. She admitted to me that there have been times when she’s found herself spacing out during a session, deciphering when a patient is discussing something with her that’s vital to their treatment, or simply touching base on a preexisting problem. I imagine that’s not the answer that people would want to hear, considering that they may believe that their counselor is listening intently to 100% of their time together, however, I truly appreciated her honesty and bluntness because at the end of the day, counselors and psychologists are not immune to personal stress and worries. In actuality, it reinforced my confidence in the career that it’s genuine and not fabricated, that I’m allowed to have a life full of anxieties and worries, something even as simple as the grocery list that Dr. Wyman pointed out, but that doesn’t make someone any less of a counselor or psychologist, or threaten their ability to successfully perform their job. The way I see it now, it simply makes them more human and relatable, something that I’ve always thought to be important for me as I enter into the field.

A few of the questions that I thought to be important to ask Dr. Wyman are as follows:

1. How would you describe your work/life balance?

Dr. Wyman felt that her work/life balance was evenly distributed, however, not without a little effort and planning accordingly. She prefers to work longer, twelve-hour days and has the flexibility to take several days off during the week to have the opportunity to meet her children at school for lunch or be able to attend any important games, performances, or ceremonies. Having three children and a husband, she makes it a priority to be around for them to maintain a healthy marriage and relationship with her children. She told me that it’s important to look into what direction you want to take your career path based on what you want for your future, such as what paths make it easier for you to have a family and what paths demand more of your time, despite how you manipulate your schedule. (Wyman 2019)

2. How many patients or sessions do you typically schedule during the day?

On average, Dr. Wyman schedules anywhere from 15-20 patients a week, sometimes 30, depending on the demand. She’s quick to open up her schedule if a patient contacts her last minute and would like to get in to see her, as her primary focus has been and always will be on the well-being of her clients, something that I found very noble and inspirational. She likes to maintain a flexible schedule not only for her own sake but also for her patients, to be there when her clients need her most. (Wyman 2019)

3. What are some of the greatest challenges that you’ve faced when working so intimately with people’s vulnerabilities?

This question was an important one for me to get answered because it’s something that I often think about from my own perspective, as I tend to feel very deeply for other people and am concerned whether or not that will create a bias for me in my working relationships. Dr. Wyman admitted that there are some cases that absolutely break her heart and that’s simply a part of the career, however, she likes to think of turning it into something positive toward her own life, focusing on the blessings that she has and even teaching her children about perspective. Ultimately, she’ll ask herself, “What can I do with the time I have with this patient?” This allows her to maintain a clear plan of action to give her patients the most when she’s able to be with them, but, also ensure that they have other resources outside of her practice when she’s unavailable. (Wyman 2019)

4. What were your initial plans during the early development stages of your education? As in, did you always want to be a therapist?

Dr. Wyman always knew that she wanted to be a practicing therapist of some kind, but more importantly, she knew in what matter she wanted to do it. She knew that she was the kind of person that would rather work underneath her own belt than have to report to someone, other than her patients, every day. I found solace in listening to her discuss this component of her ultimate plan, as I’m very much the same way, where I thrive best in situations where I have the flexibility and freedom to move in whichever direction drives me. She gave me several different opportunities to consider when going into my career field post-graduate school, such as considering working for an agency to start out and get experience in the field, as well as working with the idea of contract work for a mobile crisis unit which gives you the flexibility to pick up shifts when your schedule permits and to handle issues on a smaller scale over a very short period of time to get the most variety in what kind of cases may come your way when or if you choose to go private practice. (Wyman 2019)

5. Do you often find yourself taking your work home with you or do you have a strategy for leaving it at the door?

With Dr. Wyman’s careful plan to leave her patients with outside resources once they leave her office, it gives her a sense of relief that if something were to happen between their scheduled appointments, they won’t feel as if they were alone. With that being said, having a family at home and a very busy life outside of her career, Dr. Wyman noted that she doesn’t find a whole lot of time to relax and that she tends to find herself in the dark when it comes to pop culture and what’s trending on the media circuit. It’s simply something that she doesn’t prioritize, finding her best time spent is either with her patients or doing activities with her busy family. (Wyman 2019)

As I continued my own individual research, I did a bit of digging into the path of a counseling psychologist and what that looks like in a broader format. The work styles very much lined up with the information that I gathered from my interview with Dr. Wyman, such as the deep concern for others and the need for sensitivity to others’ needs and feelings, as it’s a vital component of the job to be successful not only for your patient but also for yourself. There was also the factor of self-control which is required for maintaining and regulating your own personal emotions and thoughts on a matter to stay vigilant and neutral when discussing sensitive topics. This brings me to, I’ve also learned that it’s perhaps best to stay away from an area of expertise if you find yourself being personally triggered by it, as it has no benefit on you or your patient. It’s important to take cautionary measures with yourself to be the best that you can be while in session. One of the biggest complaints that Dr. Wyman told me that she hears about psychologists is that some tend to discuss their own private issues while in therapy with a client, rather than letting the client be the focal point. (Wyman 2019; Nicholas & Stern 2011)

Another career development that I’ve recently been introduced to through discussions with fellow classmates is the idea of forensic psychology. Before beginning my master’s, I hadn’t known that such a title existed. It’s intriguing to me as I find the law system quite interesting and the thought of a correlation between the two piques my interest. I think that it could be an exciting career path to go down by assisting in the courtroom with the justice system. I learned that their roles are primarily involved in the prison system, police work, as well as conducting research on criminal behavior. If I were to go down this career path, I think earning a PsyD would be the most beneficial, as my focus would primarily be on the treatment of subjects.

To be quite honest, I was very impressed with the lack of inconsistencies between my research and my interview with Dr. Wyman. The information that I gathered between both sources was something that I had a vague understanding of, however, it ended up lining up with my initial thoughts which created a sense of validity and confidence that I understand the career path I’ve chosen to pursue and am excited to continue moving forward with it. (Wyman 2019; Murdoch, Gregory, & Eggleton 2015)

A career in counseling psychology lines up with my natural instinct to help people, in any form or matter. I’ve stated before in conversations among peers that I’m at my best when I’m helping. It fuels a fire within me that leads to contentment and overall satisfaction with what I’m doing with my time. They also closely fall in line with my knowledge about myself that I’m the type of person who finds their job to feel less like work and more like a calling when I’m able to hold the ropes. A work/life balance is high on my radar and to be able to control my own schedule makes a world of difference.

A career in forensic psychology would challenge me in a way that I didn’t know was accessible until recently. I’ve notably become more interested in true crime over the last several years, watching documentaries that follow crime as well as prisoners and listening to daily podcasts about crime throughout history. I’ve thought it to be more so of a hobby, but am now considering turning that hobby into a pinpointed career in forensic psychology. (Degrees and Careers in Forensic Psychology 2019)

I’ve learned that although a doctoral degree is highly accredited and a major accomplishment to have under one’s belt, it isn’t necessary to fulfill the task of counseling. On one hand, it’s nice to know that going forward with a Ph.D. is completely up to me and won’t hinder my career goals, however, it’s still something that I’d love to have underneath my belt, perhaps for personal reasons alone, but it certainly wouldn’t hurt. If I ultimately choose to go down the career path of forensic psychology, I believe that a Ph.D. might become more prevalent for me to consider.

The most important thing that I’ve learned is that going into this field takes sacrifice on more than one hand in terms of mental and emotional regulations. I think it’s important that you have a passion for not only helping others but also the drive and sustainability to go beyond your judgment and open yourself up to a wider world of issues that you may have to navigate along the way. As long as you’re willing to give this professional your entirety, you’ll make the impact that you’re looking for, at least in my case.

References

1. Wyman, H. (2019, September 10th). Phone interview.
2. Nicholas, D. R., & Stern, M. (2011). Counseling psychology in clinical health psychology: The impact of specialty perspective. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 42(4), 331-337. doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy1.lib.asu.edu/10.1037/a0024197
3. Murdoch, D. D., Gregory, A., & Eggleton, J. M. (2015). Why psychology? An investigation of the training in psychological literacy in nursing, medicine, social work, counseling psychology, and clinical psychology. Canadian Psychology/Psychologie Canadienne, 56(1), 136-146. doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy1.lib.asu.edu/10.1037/a0038191
4. Writers, S. (2019). Degrees & careers in forensic psychology: How to become a forensic psychologist. Learn How to Become. Retrieved from https://www.learnhowtobecome.org/psychologist/forensic-psychologist/