Interview Plans

As a part of my field class, we must interview a practicing professional by the end of the semester. I feel this is very important because it can definitely open doorways if done the right way. That is actually part of the reason I got my placement for this semester is because my current supervisor was the professional I interviewed my first semester in the program. For my informational interview this time I will be interviewing the international adoption worker at Lutheran Social Services because that is where my heart really lies. I want to be an international adoption worker in the long run and I would really like to know how she became involved in it herself. I have been starting to tweak my resume and cover letter to reflect my internship because I believe that adds important skills that employers will look at. I use a resume that reflects my skills instead of job experience because I don’t have a lot of job experience that relates to the field. However, I feel that the tech is definitely helping me build on the job experience so that in the near future I may be able to switch that. I am definitely becoming a better working professional through my time at the tech and was able to help with case files last week at my internship because I was taught how to put them together in my case management class. Pretty soon I will be learning how to do a home study which is essential in adoption!

Online vs. Face-to-face

The difference between an online class and a face to face class is definitely a difficult thing to adapt to. I personally believe that I contribute more in an online class because I am guaranteed a time to talk and say what I want. In a face-to-face class it is more difficult to have your voice be heard especially if everyone has something to say about the subject. Online discussion is also much more organized rather than people spouting out whatever they feel at the moment. However, It’s more work discussing in an online class because you have to go on multiple times a week and use different response techniques. I personally like to use open ended questions because it allows for a lot of discussion and detailed responses rather than closed end questions that end with yes or no. I also like to try and expand on topics by picking out a few things in the initial post that I find interesting.
This week was a little more difficult to commit to my online classes because my grandfather passed away on Thursday. It has been a long weekend and there will be many more long weeks to follow I’m sure as things need to be sorted and the house cleaned out. However, I’m glad that my grandfather was finally able to join my grandmother whom he has been missing terribly for 7 years.

Week 1: My Goals

Well this week marked the actual beginning of my internship and I now have a better idea of what my semester may look like so I have thought of a few goals I would like to achieve. The first of these goals would be to establish good connections within the adoption services community. I would like to do this because as I am learning there are a very limited amount of jobs out there and if I can have some insider connections it could help me get a job when I am done with school and need the assistance. Another goal I have is to master the skill of writing a home study. Well maybe not master it but get a good feel for how to do it so that I have that skill for the future when I enter the workforce. A goal I have for the class part of the internship would be to document in my work logs as much as possible so that I have an excellent collection to put into a portfolio. I also would like to do this because in the first two days at my internship I have heard the phrase, “Make sure you document that,” enough times that I now see the true importance of being on top of that. And my last goal would be to become knowledgeable in not just my supervisors position, but also get a basic knowledge of what other people do at Lutheran Social Services as well. Dawn took me around to meet the staff the other day and a lot of people offered to be interviewed about their positions as well as take me along on some of their visits and job experiences. Everyone seems really nice and I can’t wait to get to know everyone a little better. As far as importance goes, I have them listed as how important they are to me. Networking first, then home study skills, good work log documentation, and lastly obtain knowledge in related fields in the agency. Now as far as this week has been going, it has been going awesome! On Monday I was able to go along with Dawn on a home visit and it was a great experience talking to a family. Tuesday I was able to sit in on a staff phone conference and also a panel review. Thursday I am going to a state staff meeting with Dawn to meet other adoption workers in the state so that should help me with goal 1! I’m so excited! I can tell that Dawn will be an excellent supervisor and she is making sure I get the most out of this internship. Well that’s about all I have now so I will give you an update next week.