Assistant Director, Career Education
University of California, Irvine
(1) Please tell us about your career path – what got you interested? how did you come to be in the position you are now?
In undergrad and graduate school, I studied to work with children and eventually became a licensed therapist. However, the more I worked with children, the more I realized I enjoyed my conversations with the adults better. I also found that I became most engaged in my work while disucssion times of transition, education, careers, etc. Once I realized this, I made the switch to higher education and career counseling. It’s been wonderful!
(2) Do you have a role model in that you aspire to?
Not necessarily. I think everyone has their own path and I am excited to pave my journey. I do enjoy learning from others, though, and hope to explore more pathways as I continue in my career.
(3) What inspires the work you do?
I enjoy getting to walk along side folks during their journeys. It is tough out there and I am happy that I get to be a support for others. I’ve always enjoyed teaching/training and I want to make sure I never get too far away from direct support with people.
(4) In your experience, what are the biggest challenges in applying for a job? What are the most common mistakes students make when applying for jobs?
Not taking the time to fully understand your own skills, interests, and (most importantly) values. I often see folks jump ahead and just begin applying to jobs. But if they haven’t done the work to build a foundation of truly understanding their own wants in the job search process, it isn’t likely to be
too succesful.
(5) If you could give one piece of advice to people transitioning from one position to another (student or professional) what would it be?
Take the time to asses your values. What do you truly want in this next chapter? What is most important to you? Think of your desired work environemnt, work relationships, etc. Do you like being in an office? Do you want flexibility? Stability? Max income? These things shift throughout our life and need constant reevaluation.