Final Reflection Paper
My road has been an interesting one. I have always known what I dreamed of doing in a career, however I never knew how to get there. I thought that doing what you love just meant deciding and then going forward with it. I didn’t realize it meant a lot of hard work in the process. I guess that’s what makes a desirable career so desirable, that once you are doing what you love you appreciate it so much because of all it took to get there. I have wanted to be a dental hygienist since I was a little girl.
When I left home to go to college I realized that I had no way of paying for it. Neither of my parents went to college and neither of them knew how to prepare me. I came to Utah because my older brothers had done so before me and attended BYU. I didn’t realize all the hard work they had put into their schooling until I took this road on my own. Once I learned how to apply for student loans and get grants, I began my college career. It took me a while to understand the whole process of college. My first semester I did awful, my second semester I began to grasp certain aspects of the college routine, but still did pretty poor. It was then that I realized my actions and inexperience with college had consequences. I then learned that if I was going to do this on my own I was going to have to do it right.
That is when I finally met with a counselor. My counselor suggested this class. They suggested that although I knew what I wanted to do, it would be helpful to have a class that could show me how to do what I wanted to do. I took this class once and didn’t finish because along with this class I took a semester of very tough classes. I let this class fall by the wayside because I “didn’t need it for my pre-requisites” for dental hygiene. Now that I have finished this class I laugh at myself. I did not realize how incredibly helpful this class was in getting me to understand what I want and need to do to actually fulfill my desired career.
I encountered another hiccup this semester. I was retaking this class to up my GPA since I hadn’t done well previously and because my counselor has highly recommended it. I didn’t think anything would keep me from finishing it this semester but as life would have it, it threw me a curve ball. I lost a very dear friend unexpectedly. It was more tragic than I ever would have thought. I dropped everything in my life to attend to the needs of family members and myself during this grieving process. When I returned, real life hit me hard and I realized that I had done it again. I had put the needs of others and situations I could not control above my education. I was overwhelmed. I knew that if I did not complete this course and others that I would be penalized financially and academically. Thankfully you and your kindness allowed that not to happen. And thank goodness for that. I finished this course, learned so much and finally feel prepared to move forward with the process of applying for dental hygiene programs.
I never knew that those bumps in the road would push me to the point of success. On Thursday May 5, 2011 I am taking the HESI test. Yesterday I made my appointment. This is huge! If I pass this test I will begin the interviewing process for the Fortis College of Dental Hygiene beginning in July of this year!
The last assignment of goal setting and revising my action plan is what set this in motion. I thought about the plans I have been making for years and the goals I had never accomplished and after revising it and learning how to set short and mid-term goals I followed through on one of them. I am really grateful for this class. I learned where I could go for resources on internships, learned how to utilize tools on campus regarding career advisement, learned how to properly make a resume and how a cover letter is important (I’ve never used a cover letter until this class), discuss with other students about my career choices and the importance of what my goals and values are. And most importantly I learned about myself and what I really want out of a career and how to get it!
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