Ever since I was a child I have always wanted to help the community and initially the only way I knew how to do this was by getting involved in the medical field with the desire of becoming a doctor. My life has mostly reflected this by attending the University of Nevada, Reno with an undergraduate degree in Biology, involving myself in the school’s pre-med fraternity and becoming a teaching assistant for Biology Labs. However, after graduation, I wanted real-world experience before committing myself to the 4+ laborious years of medical school. For the past year, I have worked for the local Emergency Medical Services, REMSA, as an EMT. Being an EMT has completely changed the idea of how I see my future. It was not the critical patients with …show more content…
I believe that this Master’s program will hone my skills of communication and interpersonal connections whilst allowing me to harness my compassion to all, openness to change, and cooperativeness with others. As someone who didn’t originally think that the mental health field was my calling, 2nd: Since graduating with my undergraduate degree, I have been working on an ambulance as an EMT. This position has shown me the significance of the mental health field in our community, especially in communities where there are barriers limiting access to mental health resources. I have especially seen a need for mental health resources for adolescent individuals who believe that they are individually struggling with mental health …show more content…
The first of which is the ability to foster appropriate counseling practices for people with different backgrounds. Our local community has shown significant growth within the recent years, and I believe that the ability to harness proper counseling skills with a diverse clientele is significant. Additionally, I recognize the importance of intersectionality within the counseling profession, as individuals deserve to receive the most specific and personalized care. I would like to work with Dr. Kenneth M. Coll with regards to his studies of counseling practices with the youth populations who have limited access to mental health resources due to economic disparities, rural isolation, etc. Another area of the program that I am interested in studying is the treatment and recovery of addiction. I believe that the residents of Northern Nevada have a predisposition to addiction in one way or another, whether it being alcohol consumption, gambling, nicotine usage, and/or other drug use. During my time as an EMT, I have witnessed several patients go through stages of addiction and have seen the resulting consequences. Correspondingly, I would be interested in studying under Professor Adrienne Renwick to better understand addiction prevention, treatment, and recovery. Lastly, I am also interested in contributing to the Downing Clinic to help offer low-cost